This week Microsoft finally unveiled HDInsight, its long-awaited Hadoop service. Wikibon analyst Jeff Kelly discussed the launch and what it means for cloud-based analytics with Kristin Feledy on the SiliconAngle NewsDesk show.

Microsoft promised that it would roll out the offering at this time last year, but it was only made available to select testers a few days ago. Kelly explains that the delay was the result of an overly aggressive release schedule that the company failed to meet due to a preexisting commitment.

Prior to announcing the Azure-based Big Data service in 2011, the software giant was working on an analytics engine that would have competed with Hadoop. When management decided that it’s no longer a good idea to go against the grain, resources had to be shifted from that project to HDInsight – a complicated and lengthy process.

Kelly says that the 12-month delay is not a good sign, but points out that so far reviews have been positive. He deems the solution, which is based on the open-source Hortonworks Data Platform, an “important step” in broadening the appeal of Hadoop.

Hortonworks is an emerging big data startup whose growth strategy relies primarily on partnerships with major vendors such as Microsoft. The company gives away its software for free and sells professional services to its enterprise users, a business model that has two upshots: it doesn’t have to sign licensing agreements with resellers, and it can easily cash in on increased adoption driven by partnerships.

Before concluding the interview, Kelly discusses the converge of cloud computing and big data. He says that analytics-as-a-service only accounted for 5 percent of the $11 billion plus that the industry raked in last year,  but adds that Wikibon expects this number to increase dramatically over the course of the next few years.

For more on Microsoft’s relationship with Hortonworks, see here.  And see Kelly’s entire segment below: