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by arfliw 4477 days ago
It will if this IPO is an epic fail, which it looks like it may be...
1 comments

This is why I'm concerned. With Google pushing the price of online storage down and Box filing for its IPO we might end up with a damaged reputation of online storage companies and result in probably tanking Box's future revenues. The biggest loser will be us consumers since we'll end up with less choices if companies go bust.
I think the only losers will be cloud storage companies if the industry is commoditized and margins are pushed towards zero. The industry is only going to grow, and there will always be competition. Meanwhile, cheaper cloud storage is better for almost everyone.

But I don't think full commoditization will ever fully happen - there's a lot of value in trust and dependability in online storage, and these attributes are difficult to quantify. I'm much more likely to go with dropbox or google than some startup, even if the startup is offering much cheaper rates. Also, companies can compete on efficiency and scale, which adds barriers to entry.