New Delhi: Microsoft India has announced commercial availability of the Windows Azure Platform. Which is an internet-scale cloud services platform hosted in Microsoft's datacentres. With this launch microsoft has offerings across three service layers in the cloud including infrastructure, platform, and software applications.

Microsoft enables cloud computing across the three service layers

I SaaS: Software-as-a-service.
Microsoft offerings: Microsoft Online Services, Office Web Apps, Microsoft Hosted Dynamics

II PaaS: Platform-as-a-service.
Microsoft offerings: Windows Azure Platform [Windows Azure, SQL Azure; AppFabric

III IaaS: Infrastructure-as-a-service
Microsoft offerings: Windows Server, SystemCentre, Dynamic Data Centre Toolkit

"Windows Azure Platform, will make the Platform available as a service, over the last two years Microsoft has already launched several products and solutions in India across other layers as part of its Cloud Strategy for Enterprises. These include hosted Dynamics, Office Web Apps, Microsoft Online Services [comprising Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Office Communications Online, and Office Live meeting], Windows Server, SystemCentre and the Dynamic Data Centre Toolkit 'This completes our cloud stack.'" said Rajan Anandan. 'All of our popular products are already cloud-ready, and we have a clear future roadmap to provide anytime, anywhere access across diverse devices spanning computer, mobile and Internet. We are ready today to help customers leverage the benefits of cloud services.'

More than 50 partners including HCL Technologies, Wings Infonet, Cerebrate and CDC Software are developing commercial applications and solutions on Windows Azure platform. Customers can access over 3000 applications on Azure platform, fifty of them for various vertical scenarios including healthcare, Finance and Accounting etc.

Cost efficiencies are being seen as one of the key benefits of the cloud computing paradigm. "SMBs in India are looking for low cost solutions without the hassle of running an in-house infrastructure. Windows Azure is not only a reliable and scalable platform for customers to access online services, but also enables us to create feature-rich applications for different devices and a large set of users without worrying about IT infrastructure". said Ajay Gandhi, MD Wings Infonet. Microsoft's estimates say that Windows Azure Platform's customers and partners can realize a reduction in Total Cost of Operations of key workloads by up to 30 to 40% over a 3 year period.