This commonly asked question is actually a false dichotomy – in reality, neither the cloud nor a data center is better, because the cloud is a data center. “The cloud” is often used as a buzzword to give the impression of technological sophistication. Some companies that use cloud-based IT services promote themselves as being “in the cloud,” implying that this makes their products and services somehow “high tech” and therefore high value. But the fact that a company operates in the cloud doesn’t really tell us anything about the quality of its applications. And it doesn’t, by itself, provide any net benefit to the end user.