Microsoft Cloud Computing Exec Heads to Apple

A Microsoft executive has jumped ship to the company's bitter rival, Apple. Kevin Timmons, general manager of Microsoft's Datacenter Services unit, has reportedly announced plans to leave the Redmond-based firm with rumors suggesting he'll soon take a similar position at the Cupertino, California competitor.

"Kevin Timmons, general manager of Datacenter Services, has decided to pursue other career opportunities and is no longer working at Microsoft," a Microsoft representative noted in an April 15 email to tech blog, eWEEK. "We appreciate the contributions he made to Microsoft during his time here."

Apple Looking to Expand Cloud

Timmons has been with Microsoft for just under two years, where he's been a leader in developing the company's cloud computing capabilities.

In June 2009 he made a similar leap from Yahoo! to Microsoft, having served with the search company for nearly ten years. He's also been a prominent executive with GeoCities and a software engineer for Marconi Dynamics. (Source: computerworld.com)

If there's one area Apple could use some help with, it's with cloud computing. Reports suggest the company has been trying to expand its expertise in this field for some time. And if there's one company that has been a leader in cloud computing, it's Microsoft.

Role for Timmons at Apple Unclear

Rumors suggest Timmons could now play a considerable role at Apple's new North Carolina data center, completed last year, though it's not yet clear. A potential first project for Timmons may include working on cloud functionality for a new version of the iOS mobile operating system.

"The new iOS will be heavily built around the cloud, and we could see several new services launch from Apple that take advantage of this," said an unnamed source in a recent report forwarded to industry insider, TechCrunch. (Source: eweek.com)

"But much of the cloud stuff will be talked about first at WWDC, Apple's developer event which will take place in June."