Jordan Robertson, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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SAN FRANCISCO - In a sign that political instability and natural disasters can fuel technology spending, IBM Corp. plans to invest US$300 million building new centres that can store companies' sensitive data and deliver it remotely in the event of a meltdown.

Called "cloud computing," the technology that Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM is employing in 13 new facilities lets companies access backups of their critical computer files over secured Internet connections - instead of housing all the data internally.

Many companies are pursuing cloud computing strategies. But IBM says its expanding initiative is drawing attention from customers especially concerned about severe weather and global instability, including the war between Russia and Georgia, said Michael Riegel, vice-president of IBM's Business Continuity and Resiliency Services unit.

"We've got a lot of interest going on right now, which is great for business," Riegel said in an interview.

Riegel said the new facilities will be focused on helping companies moving into emerging markets. And he said the cloud-computing method would be cheaper and more effective than traditional data-recovery techniques, which can include storing data on tapes that have to be physically retrieved in an emergency.