DEFINITION: "Cloud Computing" is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Internet. The name "Cloud Computing" was inspired by the cloud symbol that's often used to represent the Internet in flow charts and diagrams. In this model customers pay subscription or usage fees to "lease" their application from the vendor. SaaS applications do not require the installation of any desktop software nor do they require any hardware investment by the customer.

Cloud computing for today's companies is equivalent to the electricity grid for companies a century ago.
Once companies no longer had to produce their own power they were able to focus more of their resources on running the business. The same goes for cloud computingâ€¦now everything they need can be bought and used via "the Cloud.

The Wall Street Journal: "Spending Soars on Internet's Plumbing""Behind the recovery in business spending is a surge in purchases of the computers that form the backbone of the Internet, as companies scramble to meet growing demand for video and other Web-based services."