UK cloud forecast may be downgraded due to 'challenging' Brexit fallout

IDC predicts choppy seas ahead for the UK cloud infrastructure market

IDC is mulling downgrading its forecast for the UK cloud infrastructure market as it expects a "challenging transition" as the country leaves the EU.

Across the EMEA region, IDC said the public and private cloud infrastructure market soared by 17.3 per cent to $1.3bn (£1bn) in the first quarter of this year, with cloud-related share of the total EMEA infrastructure market rising four points annually to 25.1 per cent.

By 2020, IDC expects this figure to rise to 46.4 per cent of the market, with the market expected to be worth $10.7bn, "making it one of the strongest growth areas for the European infrastructure sector".

But one weak spot in the EMEA market could be the UK, the analyst added.

"Our forecast for the UK may be adjusted downward in the following quarter as IDC expects a challenging transition if the UK activates the process of EU withdrawal," said Kamil Gregor, research analyst at IDC's European Infrastructure Group. "Other EMEA markets are expected to remain largely unaffected."

Last week, IDC said Cisco is catching up with Hewlett Packard Enterprise in the global cloud infrastructure market, adding that some areas of the market have slowed, and that Brexit could make it worse.