The need for simpler, more reliable and cost-effective networks is prompting companies to make their first steps towards utility computing, says the 2004 survey conducted for AT&T by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). According to the survey 44% of executives plan to adopt some form of utility computing within the next two years.

Utility computing is about making IT services available "on tap" without users having to worry about how those services are delivered. The concept is made possible by network automation technologies that enable complex computers and networks to manage themselves. For the IT department, that should mean less time spent on routine network management, and more time focusing on the quality and cost-effectiveness of IT as a business service. with the Economist Intelligence Unit.

In Self-managing networks: building the infrastructure for utility computing, the AT&T white paper we examine the ideas behind utility computing and the different ways it will be delivered, the technologies that make it possible, and some of the challenges companies face in creating utility environments

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