Page 48 - SAMENA Trends - February 2020

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

productivity, so people can work and play Ultra-thin and always connected, Surface processor, up to 11.5 hours battery life, and
faster, better, and stay connected wherever Pro X combines ultimate mobility with Instant On. The 15-inch consumer device
they are. As with previous Surface devices, blazing-fast LTE connectivity and amazing is powered by the AMD Ryzen Surface
we have delivered best-in-class upgrades graphics. Aimed squarely at portability Edition processor. “The Surface family has
for our new editions to the family, to ensure and connectivity, it features Microsoft always transcended market expectations
that individuals and organisations have proprietary SQ1 processor, designed in – whether in the consumer or corporate
access to the optimal performance they collaboration with mobile-computing segment – providing devices at the leading
need to achieve more.” The Surface Pro 7 leader Qualcomm. Businesses and edge of innovation, and establishing new
takes Microsoft’s iconic two-in-one design consumers across the UAE will now have benchmarks for excellence,” said Arif.
to the next level, with a faster and even access to the latest editions of Microsoft’s “At each iteration, we elevate the entire
more versatile device for professionals most beloved Laptop series. From work Microsoft ecosystem, ensuring our devices
on the go. Powered by Intel’s 10th- to style, the new Surface Laptop 3 helps evolve into a line of products that cover the
generation core processor, Fast Charging, people make an impact with the thin, light, widest possible range of individual and
all-day battery and Instant On, the Pro 7 and elegant design, a new choice of 2 rich business use cases – versatile, adaptable
also includes superior connectivity with tone-on-tone colours and metal keyboard and powerful.” The Surface Pro X, Surface
USB-C™ and USB-A ports. The Surface finishes, and a new choice of vibrant Pro 7, and Surface Laptop 3 will be
Pro X is Microsoft’s thinnest, lightest 13.5- or 15-inch touchscreens. Laptop 3 available at the beginning of February from
and most powerful edge to edge 2-in- features improved speed and performance authorised retailers and partners across
1 laptop with LTE and 13” touchscreen. with the latest 10th Gen Intel® Core™ the United Arab Emirates.

Microsoft Charts a New Data Center in Spain, Tightens Partnership with
Telefónica

As part of an expanded partnership with Telefónica,
Microsoft will open a new data center region in Spain.
In addition to leveraging Microsoft’s data center in
Spain, Telefónica will lean on Microsoft to accelerate its
internal digital transformation by picking Microsoft as
its “strategic” cloud partner. On the flip side, Microsoft
will use Telefónica’s infrastructure to deliver low
latency, security and assured bandwidth services to
mutual customers for new use cases around Industry
4.0, 5G and edge computing. The deal is similar to the
one that Microsoft struck last year with AT&T, which
included AT&T using Microsoft’s cloud to move most
of its non-network workloads to the public cloud by
2024 as well as combined go-to-market strategies
for both companies. Microsoft and Telefónica will
also collaborate on go-to-market plans in the telco’s global strategic partnership with Microsoft will certainly help to achieve
footprint. As part of the expanded partnership, Microsoft that objective.” While expanding its partnership with Telefónica won’t vault
will serve up its cloud services – including Microsoft Microsoft past Amazon Web Services (AWS) as the top public cloud provider,
Azure, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Dynamics 365 and it builds on top of the key partnerships that Microsoft announced last year,
Microsoft Power Platform – from the new data center which, in addition to AT&T, included SK Telecom, NTT Communications
region in Spain. Telefónica has deployed Microsoft 365 and Reliance Industry. Prior to Satya Nadella coming on board as CEO in
to its global employee base across the 14 countries in 2014, Microsoft wasn’t known for collaborating with other companies, but
its footprint. As a strategic partner for its multi-cloud that has changed dramatically as enterprises are demanding cloud-based
strategy, Microsoft will also train hundreds of Telefónica services and applications. According to a recent report by Synergy Research
employees on Microsoft Cloud services. “The opening Group (SRG), AWS had 33% of the market share at the end of the fourth
of a Microsoft data center region in Spain is a game quarter followed by Microsoft (18%), Google (8%), IBM (6%), Alibaba (5%),
changer, a key milestone in our strategic partnership and Salesforce (3%.) Last month, Microsoft reported that Azure’s revenue
that will boost Spain’s industrial fabric and digital grew by 62% in the second quarter, which was a sequential increase over
economy,” said José María Álvarez-Pallete, chairman 59% in the prior quarter. Microsoft doesn’t breakout Azure’s revenues. Earlier
and CEO of Telefónica, in a statement. “Cloud is one this month, a U.S. judge granted a preliminary injunction to temporarily
of the key priorities in Telefónica, as we announced in pause Microsoft from working on the $10 billion Joint Enterprise Defense
November, with the launch of Telefónica Tech, the new Infrastructure (JEDI) cloud contract that Microsoft won over AWS on October
unit to boost the solid growth of digital services. This 25.

48 FEBRUARY 2020