Microsoft Corp. 2010  global “SMB Cloud Adoption Study 2011,” investigates how cloud computing will impact small and midsize businesses in the next three years.The research designed and conducted in conjunction with Edge Strategies, finds that 39 percent of SMBs expect to be paying for one or more cloud services within three years, an increase of 34 percent from the current 29 percent.

It also finds that the number of cloud services SMBs pay for will nearly double in most countries over the next three years.The findings show an increasing opportunity for hosting service providers to profit in the cloud from offering services such as collaboration, data storage and backup, or business-class email.