According to global analyst and consulting firm Ovum, IT service providers, particularly those offering system integration (SI) services, need to make sure that the trend toward cloud computing services doesn’t negatively affect their business.

Ovum said that while cloud computing adoption has been fairly slow to materialise, service providers need to stay in the know in order to take advantage of opportunities down the road.

Ovum Research Director John Madden said: “These steps include becoming an innovator in the development of cloud computing services, and creating and supporting cloud services ecosystems among various IT vendors.”

He said that the traditional SI model of tying together separate IT systems is not going away any time soon due to cloud offerings, however, “some customers that leverage cloud services in theory will no longer need an SI for complex, time-consuming and costly integration of their internal IT system”.

But, according to Madden, there are new opportunities for SIs on the horizon.

“Cloud services also could open up new opportunities for service providers to package SI services with consulting and outsourcing, as customers look for guidance and third-party expertise in the delivery of cloud services.”