(Yicai Global) March 23 -- Alibaba Group Holding's cloud computing unit has begun testing its first personal cloud product.

The whole process is "very exciting" as consumers are changing their perceptions about online collaboration after using cloud computing for work and study, Qi Junyuan, head of the new service, told Yicai Global.

Alibaba Cloud Drive will later be integrated with the e-commerce giant's corporate cloud service and workplace application DingTalk's cloud.

After price wars in China's cloud computing market since 2008, Baidu Wangpan has emerged as the most dominant service provider with its more than 700 million users by last December.

But Alibaba has one card up its sleeve. Alibaba Cloud Drive has no speed limit for uploading nor downloading. This is not a marketing trick but a decision based on the product's commercial opportunities after nearly a year of testing and data modeling, said Qi.

But the service has some caveats. Users of Alibaba Cloud Drive need to download the mobile app and allow notifications to secure more space. After one year, the app may start charging a fee.

Users are expected to first upload content, and especially something they have generated themselves, said Qi. The cloud computing market is predicted to expand from personal use to groups involving home and workplace over the next five years, he added.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi