Jelastic, provider of one of the several Java PaaS hosting platforms that have sprung up in the last half of 2011, has announced support for the Apache CouchDB distributed database. CouchDB, according to Jelastic, makes it easier and more reliable for cloud ISVs and users to replicate and scale data over multiple data centers.

Apache CouchDB is document-oriented and NoSQL-based, “[providing] a RESTful JSON API that can be accessed from any environment that allows HTTP requests,” in Jelastic’s own words from the press release. The value proposition? The simple capability to keep your data replicated across multiple data centers running the Jelastic platform, boosting redundancy and minimizing downtime. According to Jelastic, CouchDB databases can’t be corrupted, further bolstering their claims of reliability.

The rest of the press release is given over to recapping Jelastic’s overall statement of intent. Which is to say, Jelastic supports any Java Virtual Machine (JVM)-based application, including Java 6/7, JRuby, Groovy and Scala, and recently integrated NGINX web server into its continually evolving offering.

Jelastic is well worth watching, and TalkinCloud is going to keep an eye on it as we go into 2012.