Windows Phone 7 is still a variable in the long-term effect of the mobile OS war. But early expectations of the platform are high, and now that Microsoft has officially debuted Windows Phone 7, the world is anxious to figure out what it all means, despite the fact that its real world scenarios have yet to be observed. Well, here at SiliconANGLE, we wonder what Windows Phone 7 means for the cloud.

It will drive the cloud’s demand, that’s for sure. From nearly every side of the table, the reinforcement of the mobile economy will increase the need for the personal cloud, storage and hosting needs, cloud-based processes and virtual systems. As more industries turn to mobile apps as interfacing access points, the need for cloud-based systems will only grow.

Industries like healthcare, where a mobile app carries a patient’s records, monitors their blood sugars and kinetic movements, tracks their meals and jogging routes. Healthcare already generates a lot of business for hosted enterprise solutions, and will see a huge push with consumers in need of instant access to their own information.

Finance, entertainment, government organizations, service providers, and travel will all expand their hold on the cloud, as business and consumers restructure their records, communications and work around mobile phones.

That means the winning OS gets to own this mobile economy. Already, Android has surpassed Apple in terms of its reach, driving sales for handset makers. The likes of Samsung and HTC get a second go-round with Windows Phone 7, leaving ample opportunity for developing their own consumer interfaces to one OS or another.

This interaction is just as important for the development of the mobile market, and its one that Microsoft is retaining control of. An earlier commentary on Microsoft avoiding the step-ladder approach Google took with Android’s OS and manufacturing partners demonstrates how Microsoft hopes to preserve a good consumer experience.

Of course, Bing search could also be a way for Microsoft to prevail through Windows Phone 7. Bing’s past two years of prep has added individualized layers, social search and mobile-ready tools. Yet there’s still a ways for Bing to go. Google’s already hitting hard with search personalization, and has two years of its own experience to orient search around its entire Google platform.

As search becomes more individualized, the cloud will become more important for search platforms, like Google’s and Bing’s. This is just another challenge for Microsoft Windows Phone 7 as it kicks the mobile OS wars up a notch.