Stash stuff online with us, tech firms say

By Michelle Kessler, USA TODAY

SAN FRANCISCO - Is your PC clogged with digital photos, songs and home video? Stash them online.

Tech giants AOL, Microsoft, EMC and Amazon are among more than two dozen companies developing services to allow people to store data in cyberspace.

Sites such as Flickr and Photobucket already allow Web users to store some files, such as photos. But most people are accumulating a variety of digital data, including videos, songs and presentations, says Amazon Vice President Adam Selipsky.

All that information needs to be backed up somewhere. Online storage is becoming a compelling alternative to extra hard drives or other devices, says tech analyst Doug Chandler at researcher IDC. New offerings are designed for:

* Consumers. AOL is overhauling Xdrive, an online storage service it bought in 2005. Customers can upload up to 5 gigabytes of data - enough to store about 1,200 songs - free. The information is protected by a password and stored out of sight on AOL's computers. Users download it when they need it again.

AOL plans to soon announce a $10-a-month service with nearly unlimited storage, says Senior Vice President David Liu.

Microsoft is developing Live Folders, an online storage tool that eventually may accompany its Hotmail e-mail and other online services. Microsoft has not released details, says spokesman Adam Sohn.

* Businesses. EMC, best known for making storage hardware, is developing a service to automatically back up PCs via the Internet. Data is stored in big computer centers run by EMC and its partners. It's expected to launch next year, and is designed mainly for businesses, says Executive Vice President Mark Lewis.

Retailer Amazon launched Simple Storage Service (S3) last year. Tech-savvy customers can stash whatever they want on Amazon's computers for about 43 cents per gigabyte per month.

S3 is designed for Web developers. But many of them have created consumer storage sites powered by S3, such as ElephantDrive and photo site SmugMug.

Small companies, including Box.net and Mozy, offer online storage, too. "Not a day goes by that I don't hear about another player entering the market," says AOL's Liu.

Online storage services first appeared in the '90s, says Chandler. But most lost money, and the idea never really took off, he says. Now, the services cost far less to operate and there's more demand, he says.

There are disadvantages to online storage, says analyst Matt Rosoff at researcher Directions on Microsoft. If a company has a hardware problem, data could be lost unless properly backed up. And unscrupulous sites may snoop into files and use the information for marketing. "You have to trust the company," he says.