File Sync Services Exploding in 2012

SugarSync, Inc. announced that a commissioned study from Forrester Consulting was released tracking the growth of personal cloud services over the last three years.

The study, commissioned on behalf of SugarSync, surveyed over 2,000 people to track usage of a broad range of Personal Cloud services including file access, sync and share services, online backup services, and online office productivity.

The new research reveals that adoption of file access, sync, and share services grew by two thirds from 9% of U.S. online adults in 2010 to 15% in 2012 to become the fastest-growing online file service category.

"Personal cloud services are transforming personal computing, as U.S. individuals move to store their files on online services accessible from any device, rather than fiddle with files to get them on the right PC or mobile device of the moment. The growth of a rich personal computing ecosystem of PCs, mobile devices, Internet-connected appliances, and a myriad of online services is spurring this transformation of personal computing into a Personal Cloud services ecosystem." Forrester Consulting, Personal Cloud Services Emerge To Orchestrate Our Mobile Computing Lives, July 25, 2012.

Key findings of this report include:

• File sync services crossed the chasm in early 2011, and are exploding in 2012. File access, sync, and share adoption grew by two thirds from 9% of U.S. online adults in 2010 to 15% in 2012 to become the fastest-growing online file service category, ahead of both online backup and web-based office productivity. Forrester estimates adoption to have surpassed 10% of U.S. online adults in early 2011, implying hyper-growth this year and next.
• Mobile device proliferation is driving daily use of the personal cloud. Using multiple computers has motivated many to try Personal Cloud services, but the increased usage of mobile devices is driving even more demand for the Cloud. 58% of personal cloud users with smartphones use personal cloud services daily or hourly.
• Two-thirds of U.S. online adults are using at least one form of personal cloud services. Whether for photos, files, information, media, password services, contacts, or calendaring, two out of three U.S. online adults are using at least one personal cloud service.
• U.S. online adults are increasingly blending work and personal technologies. Almost half of personal cloud services are used for blended work and personal purposes.

   Which of the following categories of personal data
       are you storing in online or Internet services?
                     Select all that apply

  
Base: 529 U.S. online adults aged 18 and over
   who use personal cloud service(s)

"At SugarSync, we’ve already seen the number of devices our average customer uses increase from 1.5 to over 4 in the past three years, and our user base grow between 400 and 600% year-over-year," said Laura Yecies, CEO of SugarSync. "Based on the feedback we receive from our customers and the findings from this survey, it is clear that the way we all access our data and files has changed. We continue to facilitate that change by giving our users the best mobile Cloud experience available, regardless of what device they have in their hands."

Launched in 2008 and based in San Mateo, CA, SugarSync currently has millions of users worldwide in over 120 countries. Brands such as Samsung, Lenovo, Fujitsu, SanDisk, France Telecom-Orange, Korea Telecom, SoftBank Mobile, Best Buy have selected SugarSync as a partner to bring cloud services to their customers.

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