Businesses across Southeast Asia are pivoting towards cloud sovereignty to deal with the increasing complexity of data protection and privacy regulations together with the need to transform at scale for business growth. In response to the growing demands, VMware, Inc. (NYSE VMW) has added 19 partners in the APJ region in the last 12 months including key countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia to offer cloud sovereign capabilities to their customers.
As more and more organizations in the APJ scale with the rise of cross-border commerce and expand their geographical presence venturing into multiple geographies, they now need to scrutinize their cloud strategies closely and evaluate their data access and control, especially the businesses in the regulated industries According to IDC, sixty-three percent of respondents from a survey has stated that it is extremely important to have a cloud solution that provides complete jurisdictional control and authority over data1 which further highlights the business need to create cloud infrastructure that provides data transparency and visibility and tightly controls data residency. In today’s growing cloud landscape, organizations need support to navigate through the complexities of a multi-cloud journey and as digital transformation brings greater reliance on data, countries across Asia are in need to intensify efforts to develop data governance strategies and legislation to enforce laws focused on privacy, protection, and security.
“Cloud sovereignty is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s a must-have. Cloud sovereignty is born from the convergence of multiple factors – the accelerated growth of technological innovation, the burgeoning volume of data, data sensitivity and the need to safeguard the integrity of data. Establishing a more secure and resilient cloud infrastructure will open opportunities for businesses trying to scale through multi-cloud to develop collaborative data ecosystems and unlock critical, data-driven applications, leading to scale and innovation with lower risk. VMware Sovereign Cloud providers are well placed to navigate ambiguity and uncharted waters while allowing the customers to achieve cutting-edge transformation at scale.” said Paul Simos, VMware Vice President and Managing Director of Southeast Asia and Korea.
VMware Sovereign Cloud providers are trusted national or regional cloud service providers that unlock the value of critical data for both private and public sector organizations, better secure data with audited security controls, help ensure compliance with data privacy laws, and improve control of data by providing both data residency and data sovereignty with full jurisdictional control.
VMware SaaS offerings for Sovereign Cloud
VMware is continuing to build a portfolio of sovereign SaaS offerings. Partners deliver sovereign SaaS natively using VMware software running in their sovereign cloud data centres, completely disconnected from the public Internet. All data remains resident and exists only within a given sovereign region, with no access by foreign jurisdictions, no data or metadata leaves the country or provider. At VMware Explore 2022, the company announced VMware Tanzu on a sovereign cloud, VMware Aria Operations Compliance pack for sovereign clouds, and new open ecosystem solutions. The slew of new Sovereign SAAS innovations will enable partners to deliver services equivalent to those found in public clouds. With sovereign SaaS, VMware Sovereign Cloud Providers can build highly differentiated solutions to capture modern workloads, simplify operations with continuous compliance monitoring, and support data monetization with lower risk.
To demonstrate the value of VMware’s Sovereign Cloud Partnership across industries and geographies, VMware partners shared the following:
“The security of data on the cloud directly impacts the security of organizations. Each country has different regulations, standards, and laws for using the cloud which conflicts with the security of data from using different cloud service providers. Through our collaboration with VMware, we are enabling our customers to manage and better secure their data within their own jurisdiction away from foreign control and influence.” said Na-pajra Umpudh, Chief Executive Officer, Cloud HM.
“As a leading cloud provider in Thailand it is only our duty to enable organizations to tap into the full benefits of the cloud and unlock the value of their critical data while complying with local data privacy and security requirements,” said Tanapong Ittisakulchai, Chief Enterprise Business Officer, AIS Business. “Instead of being bogged down by even more complexity with regulations and management needs, we are giving enterprises peace of mind with our developer-ready sovereign cloud services so they can focus on growing and innovating.”
“Sovereignty is increasingly a priority for many organizations in Malaysia as more businesses strengthen their cloud adoption strategies. As a VMware Sovereign Cloud provider, our solutions are architected and built to deliver data access and security that meets the strict requirements of regulated industries and local jurisdiction laws on data privacy, access, and control,” said David Chan, CEO, AVM Cloud. “We deliver this national capability for digital resilience while still enabling our customers to access a hyperscale cloud in another region for ancillary workloads or analytics.”
“We are thrilled to partner with VMware to deliver cutting-edge technology solutions through Deka sovereign cloud initiative which is intended for companies that need more protection regarding data stored in Private Cloud. Our combined expertise and innovation will enable us to provide a secure and reliable cloud infrastructure that meets the unique needs of government agencies and critical industries. We look forward to enabling digital transformation and empowering our customers to achieve their goals in this rapidly evolving technological landscape.” said Ginandjar, Commerce Director Lintasarta.
“By leveraging our expertise and local knowledge, we are confident in delivering a more secure, scalable, and resilient cloud infrastructure that meets the unique requirements of our customers. As a Malaysian company, we understand the importance of data sovereignty and are committed to supporting our government’s efforts in promoting a digital-first nation. Together with VMware, we are excited to enable digital transformation and unlock new opportunities for our customers in Malaysia and beyond.” said Imri Mokhtar, Group Chief Executive Officer, TM.
“As a trusted telecommunications provider in Sri Lanka, we understand the importance of data sovereignty and security for organizations operating in our region. Dialog Enterprise Sovereign Cloud provider will offer a scalable, efficient, and secure solution for organizations to build, deploy, and manage their applications and workloads while ensuring data remains compliant with local regulations. We are committed to delivering innovative and reliable cloud solutions to meet the evolving needs of our customers, and we believe that our VMware-powered sovereign cloud platform is a significant step in that direction.” said, Navin Pieris, Group Chief Officer, Dialog Enterprise, Dialog Axiata PLC.
