IBM has officially launched its premium cloud services portfolio in the US and Europe and other global customers will be able to access its SmartCloud Enterprise + services in Q3 2012.

SmartCloud encapsulates IBM’s cloud services as part of its Smarter Planets initiative, and the services issue assurance on the architecture, robustness and security of the cloud offered across its marketplaces.

They cover a range of cloud options, from private to public, Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Software-as-a-Service and business process management, with solutions that can be coupled with hardware to enable a shift to the Cloud.

SmartCloud Enterprise 2.1 has also had a revamp, with new functionality to make deploying IaaS and applications much easier, allowing them to integrate with private cloud and traditional IT elements.

It has also added the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.8 and 6.2 operating systems for improved performance and better storage and identification management features, among others.

The main changes for SmartCloud Enterprise + covers support for x86 and P-Series. Migration services using patented tools and methods for moving from traditional outsourcing environments to the Cloud and a new System z shared environment.

IBM said across both services, it will also allow customers deploying Microsoft applications to do this using IBM’s SmartCloud to help lower operating costs by using a shared infrastructure.

IBM said a number of customers are already using its SmartCloud services, including the development community TopCoder, for 400,000 developers (using SmartCloud Enterprise to support the entire innovation process), advertising firm Ogilvy & Mather (IBM is migrating Ogilvy from a hosted environment to SmartCloud for SAP Applications running in an IBM data center) and OTRUM, which is using the Enterprise version for its TV solutions and content delivery for the hospitality industry.