Rostelecom, the state-owned telecom operator, has completed phase one of “Project 07,” the national cloud computing platform to be fully put together by 2015 as part of the federal Information Society program.
The platform, launched in beta version in March under the o7.com domain name, offers cloud-based software, infrastructure and development platform services (SaaS, IaaS and PaaS, respectively).
These services are intended for government bodies, large corporations, medium- and small- sized businesses and developers. Solutions for individuals will also be made available.
Companies from across the entire IT spectrum – including Microsoft and 1C – have been tendering for the right to supply their cloud-based applications. More than 30 solutions have already been made available, covering such varied fields as project management, accounting, electronic document circulation and event management as well as socially-oriented services in education, healthcare, public utilities and urban safety.
The platform will also offer part of the infrastructure for the universal electronic card, a government-sponsored project scheduled for completion this year.
Budget estimates for the national platform have been scaled back considerably since last year, when the government first announced Project 07 and appointed the telecom giant to push the ambitious endeavor. What was touted a year ago as Rostelecom’s own $357 million contribution seems to have shrunk to a mere par with the government’s $16 million, trimming the total project cost to a very modest $30+ million.
