Tech Transformers

Box CEO: If Facebook entered cloud race, we’d partner

Competition in the cloud
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Competition in the cloud

Box would partner with Facebook if it entered the cloud space rather than take it on, the chief executive of the U.S. cloud file-sharing company told CNBC a month after he wrote that the social networking giant could become a "dark horse" in the industry.

Writing in TechCrunch last month, Box CEO Aaron Levie, said that the cloud market is in its infancy and that it's "not a winner-takes-all game". He then said different players will serve different parts of the market with Facebook potentially being a "dark horse" in the game.

Speaking to CNBC, Levie expanded on this, saying that Facebook would not be a threat to Box, but instead the two companies could work together.

"I think that there's going to be different sort of roles that companies are going to play in the space broadly. So we're not so worried about Facebook or Alibaba coming into our category directly, just because we only sell to enterprises," Levie said.

"So certainly they are exploring the enterprise space but using the sort of DNA and product line they are already very familiar with, which is communication and social technology applied to an enterprise context…So I would see if Facebook were to become a very credible player in the enterprise that would be an opportunity where we would partner with them as opposed to being a competitor with them."

However, Facebook hasn't really shown any desire to be a cloud provider as of yet, but it has been focusing on ways to serve businesses. Last year, the Menlo Park, CA-based firm unveiled Facebook at Work, a specific version of the social network aimed at businesses.