Verizon expands data backup to include PCs

That function is particularly important in the global rollout, Broders noted, because in many areas of the world, bandwidth may be restricted.

For customers such as COOP Systems, a provider of business continuity software, the Verizon Remote Backup and Restore service is enabling a greater degree of data protection and a much simpler process, according to Chris Alvord, chief executive officer of COOP.

"We didn't have a regional failover capability. We were backing up onsite, so we needed to go to the next level," Alvord said. As a network-based service, Verizon can provide that regional failover without the considerably higher expense COOP would face to maintain a secondary site at which all of its customers' data is backed up on tape, Alvord said.

"It is extremely simple to implement," Alvord said. "There is a simple agent that runs on our sequel [server] instance that grabs what we've got, compresses it and sends it to [the network backup site]." Retrieving data is also simple, he said.

For PC backups, there is a simple Web interface with the calendar tool, Kessel said. Verizon also gives IT managers a Web portal that allows them to easily track and access server backup data.

One prime appeal of the service is that it is cost-effective and enables enterprises to avoid the capital expense of setting up their own tape backup system and the operational expense of transporting tapes to remote locations for storage, Kessel said. The pricing is usage-based. Server storage starts at $380 a month for 100 gigabytes and PC backup starts at $7.90 per month for 5 gigabytes, but enterprises only have to pay for the amount of data stored.

Verizon's Server and PC storage are available now in the US and EMEA. Server storage is available now in Asia/Pac, and PC storage will be added later this year.