Vodafone’s cloud services deal with IBM should generate revenue but limits Vodafone’s future options

Vodafone announced on 17 January that IBM would supply it with multi-cloud services as part of an 8-year deal worth USD550 million. The deal illustrates the clear distinction between Vodafone’s strategy for cloud services and that of many of its competitors. Most incumbents are trying to manage hybrid solutions themselves, but Vodafone is taking the simpler approach of outsourcing to IBM.