Cloud computing is the future of information technology, Eclipse has said, meaning IT contractors and freelancers are likely to be making use of it next year if they are not doing so already.

According to a study from the Centre for Economics and Business Research released this month, some €177.3 billion (£148.7 billion) per year will be generated by 2015 if Europe's five largest economies adopt cloud computing as expected.

Clodagh Murphy, director at Eclipse, said a lot of businesses have "fear and uncertainty" about the technology as they do not have the time to build a full understanding of it.

"If small businesses embrace the likes of hosted exchange or hosted email then it can free up money in their business as it is more cost effective and it also covers less scope," she advised.

As the technology becomes more accepted, firms that adopt it will find they have more time to spend on selling their products and growing their businesses, she added.