If you need any evidence that the cloud is big business, look no further than Salesforce’s acquisition of Slack earlier this week. Salesforce has always been prepared to throw money around to grow its position, but no one could have imagined that it would spend $27.7 billion on Slack. 

The acquisition of Slack is Salesforce’s largest to date and comes at a time when business communication platforms have flourished due to the shutdown of offices. While a Covid-19 vaccine has now been approved in the UK, Salesforce clearly sees the permanent transition to remote working for many employees, and wants to make sure it gets a sizable slice of the pie. 

Slack is one of the most popular pieces of software for businesses looking to ensure that their staff can continue to collaborate remotely, and although it has faced fierce competition from Microsoft Teams in recent years, the firm is still a pioneer when it comes to cloud-based communication platforms. 

Salesforce for its part has been invested in the cloud. While it’s predominantly known for its cloud-based CRM, the company does so much more in 2020. It offers an array of services that are all cloud-based from marketing tools, customer service platforms and analytical reports. Now it’s adding a robust communications platform to its arsenal. 

It’s hard to argue against 2020 being the year of the cloud, but it’s likely that what’s started in 2020 is going to continue for some time to come. That’s why we wouldn’t be surprised if more big deals like the one between Salesforce and Slack are announced in the coming months and years. But who’s next? That’s anyone’s guess. 

This editorial originally appeared in the Data Centre Review Newsletter dated December 4, 2020. To ensure you receive these editorials direct to your inbox, subscribe to the newsletter now.