Open source 'critical' to big data for all
Technology vendors have backed a community-developed software platform as the critical piece to bring big data to the masses.
EMC and Intel have joined IBM in releasing their own flavours of an open-source software that manages how hardware in data centres accesses and processes information. The Hadoop open-source software by the Apache Software Foundation was released in October. It helps extract business insights from huge amounts of unstructured data, a trend commonly referred to as big data.
While it is free to download, its complexity has meant only large players, such as Google, Amazon, and Facebook, had the manpower, scale and incentive to customise it.
The new commercial releases are designed to make it easier, faster and safer to deploy. The vendors claim the cheaper technology will democratise
big data.
This is Intel's first declaration of its software ambitions, according to Singapore-based Forrester analyst Dane Anderson, who said a standardised platform could unleash a new wave of data analytics innovation - like the iTunes App Store did for mobile apps.
"The risk for big data is that
it becomes over-hyped when tech vendors just use it as a means to sell more of their gear," Anderson said.
"That isn't what big data is all about, it's about the services that allow you to extract business or social value. This is the building block for that to happen."
Famous for the chips inside personal computers, this time Intel has transcended the physical barrier to compete in the virtual world.
"The opportunity cost to not do this is that the evolution will be a lot slower, and the standards won't be established early enough," said Jason Fedder, Intel's general manager for Asia of data-centre products. "Intel's whole business model depends on open standards - it needs to make hundreds of millions of anything to make money - so it needs to accelerate the take up of those standards."
In 2004, EMC breached the software threshold when it acquired VMware, whose software generates additional server computing power, and became a preferred virtualisation platform.
The companies believe there is a similar opportunity in the big data market. For their troubles, they hope they will sell more of their Hadoop-friendly products.
Intel's announcement marks its first major foray into software. When asked whether it hoped to sell more Xeon processors from being the biggest contributor to the open-source project, Intel's mission critical computing director, Patrick Buddenbaum, said "absolutely".
The challenge for Intel, which failed to capitalise on the smartphone revolution, was to continue to drive demand for the hardware it made, he said.
Mahesh Sharma travelled to Singapore as a guest of Intel.
Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…
Intel announced its first major foray into software by backing a commercial flavour of the Hadoop open‑source platform. For investors, this shows Intel is moving beyond chips into the virtual software space, aiming to speed up standards and potentially drive demand for its hardware (the company’s executives said they expect the move to help sell more Intel Xeon processors).
EMC and IBM have released their own commercial versions of Hadoop to make the open‑source platform easier and safer to deploy. For everyday investors, that suggests large technology vendors see a market opportunity in big data platforms and may sell complementary hardware and services tied to those Hadoop‑friendly products.
Hadoop is an Apache Software Foundation open‑source platform released in October that helps extract business insights from huge amounts of unstructured data. Investors should care because commercial releases are intended to democratise big data—making analytics more accessible to more companies, which can create growth opportunities across software, services and hardware vendors.
Yes. Intel executives in the article said their Hadoop work is intended in part to drive demand for Intel hardware. The company acknowledged it hopes the software push will help sell more Xeon processors, which is relevant for investors watching Intel’s revenue mix and hardware demand drivers.
Vendors claim the new commercial Hadoop releases will make deployment easier, faster and cheaper, which could democratise big data. A Forrester analyst in the article said a standardised platform could unleash new data analytics innovation—an outcome that could expand the customer base beyond the biggest tech players.
A key risk noted in the article is that big data could become over‑hyped if vendors primarily use it to sell more gear rather than to deliver services that extract real business or social value. Investors should look for evidence of actual customer outcomes and services, not just marketing claims.
The article notes EMC crossed into software in 2004 by buying VMware, which added server computing capabilities and became a preferred virtualisation platform. Investors can view EMC’s Hadoop initiatives as a similar strategic effort to expand into software-linked markets where it can sell complementary hardware and services.
Intel executives argued that supporting open standards is crucial to accelerate adoption and avoid a slower, fragmented evolution. Because Intel’s business model depends on high-volume hardware sales, it sees early standardisation as a way to expand markets and ensure the ecosystem develops in ways that support large-scale hardware demand.
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