Confluent’s data streaming now on Microsoft Azure in Qatar

The Confluent cloud-native data-streaming platform has become accessible on the Microsoft cloud region in Qatar. Confluent, a pioneering force in data streaming, has announced the availability of Confluent Cloud on Microsoft Azure for customers in Qatar, facilitated by Microsoft’s local cloud infrastructure.

Fred Crehan, the Area Vice President of Emerging Markets at Confluent, highlighted the increasing importance of data sovereignty and residency for digital initiatives in the region. He emphasized the changing expectations of business leaders concerning the compliance role played by cloud providers. The presence of Confluent Cloud is seen as pivotal in aligning with Qatar National Vision 2030, supporting Qatari enterprises as they navigate the complexities of digital transformation while adhering to compliance standards in a hybrid, multi-cloud environment.

Confluent leverages the capabilities of Microsoft Cloud regions, ensuring it meets the demanding criteria of customers for performance, security, low latency, and disaster recovery. The data stored within the country facilitates Confluent’s services for industries with stringent regulations, such as government and financial services.

Confluent Cloud, a fully managed cloud-native service, enables seamless data connectivity and processing across diverse environments. With its dynamic scalability and extensive storage capacity, it simplifies real-time data movement across both public and private clouds. The service encompasses managed connectors for popular data sources within the Kafka ecosystem, SQL-based stream processing, and a suite for streaming data governance – all conveniently accessible from a unified interface. The service boasts a 99.95% uptime backed by service level agreements (SLAs).

Furthermore, Confluent has prioritized robust enterprise-grade security and compliance measures. The recent introduction of Stream Governance Advanced, incorporating Schema Registry for Stream Quality, showcases Confluent’s dedication to maintaining compliance requirements and data sovereignty. By expanding Schema Registry’s global availability to 28 regions, Confluent equips customers with the flexibility to manage schemas alongside their Kafka clusters.

Confluent regards the introduction of its data streaming platform on Microsoft Azure in Qatar as a strong affirmation of its commitment to the nation’s government, businesses, and population. Crehan noted Confluent’s belief in the Middle East’s potential as a thriving market and the platform’s adaptability to evolving hybrid and multi-cloud models. The availability of data streaming services on Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure in Qatar signifies Confluent’s involvement in a national technology ecosystem projected to significantly boost the economy and generate numerous job opportunities over the next few years.