For better or worse, I have been involved in thinking and writing about Information Technology for more than three decades. In that time, I have seen countless trends and buzzwords come and go: Client-server. Object-oriented. Cooperative processing. Virtual reality. Open Source. Blockchain. The list goes on.
The Cloud is Here to Stay. So is Print.
While some of these terms have come and gone, many have become so integral to our daily lives that we tend to forget how innovative they once sounded. One of the latest and (in my opinion) best examples of this phenomenon is the term “Cloud Computing.” Some have argued that there are similarities between today’s Cloud computing and traditional mainframe concepts, including the ability for relatively lightweight clients to tap massive, centralized, scalable computing resources in a secure, cost-effective manner.
I see that similarity, but I’ll go one step further. I predict that that Cloud computing — like mainframe computing before it — will be here for decades to come. Another thing that is here to stay is the requirement to create, deliver, and digitally store business-critical documents for the users who need them to do their jobs.
Survey Says?
To this end, the global market insight and research firm Quocirca recently published their findings from a survey of 500 IT decision-makers to learn how large organizations were preparing to address print challenges in the era of Cloud computing. Survey respondents listed Cloud computing initiatives as their third largest technology spending priority in 2025, after cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence investments, followed closely by spending on printing and imaging infrastructure.
How does Cloud printing help organizations address output management challenges? Not surprisingly, respondents hoped that Cloud printing initiatives would reduce the environmental impact of printing, control costs, secure printed information in a hybrid workplace, and more. In fact, the word “hybrid” appears throughout the research results, which got me thinking: haven’t I heard this story before?
When it comes to new technologies, organizations normally want to reap the benefits of the latest IT breakthroughs while maximizing their current IT investments. They also tend to jealously protect sensitive customer, internal, and other data. As explained in the Quocirca Cloud Print Services Landscape 2025 report:
“While the move to cloud-based IT infrastructure continues, hybrid cloud infrastructure is the dominant approach. This reflects a pragmatic approach to IT modernisation, where organisations leverage the benefits of both on-premises and cloud resources. This dominance of hybrid cloud infrastructure creates a demand for cloud print solutions that can seamlessly integrate with and manage printing across these diverse environments, as addressed by the specialised offerings of ISVs.”
Prudent organizations did not quickly jump from bandwagon to bandwagon as each of the previously mentioned buzzwords emerged. Likewise, today’s large enterprises are loath to abandon the proven output management systems they rely on for secure, cost-effective delivery of their most important documents. As such, Quocirca offers some crucial advice to Cloud printing suppliers like LRS:
“Offer tailored migration strategies and embrace hybrid flexibility.
Guide customers through their cloud journey, providing expert advice and customised migration plans. Offer seamless integration between on-premises and cloud solutions, enabling gradual migration and mitigating repatriation risks. At the same time, understand the factors where organisations are considering workflow repatriation; ensure solutions address common concerns; and build confidence.”
This neatly sums up LRS’ approach to our new Cloud printing solutions, which is to offer organizations a sensible path to the Cloud-based future without pulling up the drawbridge behind them.
The report notes that “Cloud repatriation” — the ability to provide a migration path both to and from the Cloud as customers choose to migrate their cloud workloads back on-premise — is an important capability. Given our decades-long leadership in the field of output management, the Quocirca research validates our time-tested approach.
Whether it be Cloud printing or any other emerging trend, the strength of the LRS solution set comes down to three words: And, Any & All. LRS software captures output from any application on any platform in any format. It can convert that output for delivery to printers and MFPs and email addresses and PDF repositories and digital archives from all major output device and Cloud platform vendors. This has been our approach for over 40 years and it continues to serve our customers well.
To learn what Quocirca’s latest research has to say about LRS’ Cloud Print Services offerings, click here to download a free copy of the Excerpt Report from our website.