Usage and Technology Acceptance of Cloud Computing in Saudi Arabian Universities

Cloud computing promises many advantages like reduced expenses, on-demand access to computing resources and ease of use for both cloud providers and consumers. These benefits significantly contributed to the usage and technology acceptance of Cloud computing worldwide. In this study, we propose a two-dimensional research model namely motivators and inhibitors to examine the usage and the adoption of Cloud computing technology in Saudi Arabia. An extensive statistical analysis was conducted on data collected from more than 300 participants from 5 different universities in Saudi Arabia. Based on the results, we found that the two highest motivators for using Cloud computing from the perspective of Saudi Cloud consumers are ubiquitous network access and on demand (self-service) while the highest 5 inhibitors are availability, reliability, security, compliance, and privacy respectively. This can help decision makers in large Saudi Arabian organization in making a better decision regarding the adoption of cloud computing.