MSPmentor has compiled a weekly list of the top cloud computing stories that managed service providers (MSPs) need to know about. This week’s column features cloud computing news from Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), IBM (IBM) and Verizon (VZ).

Here’s a closer look at five of this week’s cloud computing stories:

Google Cloud Monitoring Goes Into Beta

Interested in evaluating how well your Google Cloud Platform services are performing? Google has released the beta version of Google Cloud Monitoring, which enables users to review performance metrics and logs for Google Cloud Platform services. The Stackdriver-based tool also provides users with application monitoring capabilities for Google App Engine, Google Compute Engine, Cloud Pub/Sub and Cloud SQL.

Microsoft Eases Migration Between Azure Data Centers

Microsoft this week took steps to make it easier for users to move data between Azure data centers. With the release of Azure Data Center Migration Solution, users can leverage a tool that “provides a highly flexible and extensible method of moving assets from one Azure data center to another,” according to Azure Compute Runtime Senior Program Manager Guy Bowerman. The solution can be downloaded from github and includes a user guide too.

Amazon Launches Compute-Intensive C4 Instances on EC2

Amazon already offers a program that is specifically designed for Managed Service Partners, and this week, the company released its highly anticipated Amazon Web Services (AWS) Compute-Optimized Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) Instances. AWS Chief Evangelist Jeff Barr said these instances, which Amazon previewed last November, are designed to deliver “the highest level of processor performance on EC2.”

IBM Opens First Cloud Data Center in Mexico

IBM opened its first cloud center in Mexico as part of its $1.2 billion investment to expand its cloud services. TechNavio has predicted that Latin America will see more than 26 percent growth in the cloud computing business within the next three years, and the Mexico cloud center could help IBM further extend its reach in this sector.

Verizon Cloud Gets Performance Boost After Weekend Downtime

The Verizon Cloud was down due to scheduled maintenance last weekend, and the outage lasted approximately 40 hours. Verizon, however, this week said it plans to complete all future upgrades in the background, with no impact to customers.

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