5 things

5 Channel Partner Updates: 21 February 2017

Good morning, channel partners. Here are five technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Tuesday, February 21, 2017.

Actually, there are 13 timely updates for VARs, managed services providers (MSPs), cloud services providers (CSPs), independent software vendors (ISVs), telco master agents and telco agents to sip on. Take a look…

13. eFolder Hires Matt Nachtrab: LabTech Software Founder and former ConnectWise President Matt Nachtrab has joined eFolder as chief strategy officer. Find more details here.

12. ShoreTel Sold?: Nope, ShoreTel has not disclosed a company sale. But lots of readers have searched ChannelE2E in recent days for potential news about a potential ShoreTel company sale, according to our analytics. Does that mean a deal is potentially brewing? Hmmm... CEO Don Joos declined to comment about a potential company sale in January 2017, but said a strategic review of the business continues. Talk about a potential ShoreTel company sale started in August 2016, prompting ChannelE2E to explore this list of potential ShoreTel buyers...

11. M&A - Telecom Services: EQT Infrastructure has acquired Lumos Networks Corp., a fiber-based service provider in the Mid-Atlantic region, for roughly $950 million. We'll share more details soon.

10. M&A - Digital Agencies: Accenture has acquired SinnerSchrader AG, a full-service digital agency that specializes in developing and implementing digital products, services, and marketing solutions. SinnerSchrader has approximately 500 employees in studios in Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, Prague and Hanover. Accenture also has been acquiring IT consulting firms focused on SaaS platforms like ServiceNow.

9. M&A - Telecom & Security Services: CBTS, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cincinnati Bell, has acquired SunTel Services. SunTel is a regional provider of network security, data connectivity, and unified communications solutions based in Troy, Michigan. The deal will expand CBTS’ presence in the Midwest, building on its existing sales offices in Cleveland, Columbus, Indianapolis and Louisville. Financial terms weren't disclosed. We'll share more details soon.

8 . M&A - Big Data Consulting: Atos has acquired zData, a big data consulting and solutions provider focused on Dell EMC's Pivotal platform. Financial terms were not disclosed. We'll share more details later today.

7. M&A - Data Centers: Carter Validus has finalized yet another data center purchase, picking up a $16 million facility located in Tempe Arizona, from an unnamed owner, according to Datacenter Dynamics.

6. Microsoft Azure Cloud Revenues: Microsoft Azure cloud revenues roughly doubled to $2.7 billion in 2016, according to a JP Morgan estimate. Still, Amazon Web Services is widely considered the IaaS cloud market share leader.

5. Fastest Growing Software Company?: The fastest-growing enterprise software company with at least $1 billion in annual revenues is... ServiceNow, according to Investors Business Daily. Poke around and you'll find quite a few MSPs adopting ServiceNow for their own ticketing and help desk needs. Some IT service providers are also standing up ServiceNow for end-customers. True believers include CDI. We'll share more thoughts on that soon -- especially ahead of the ServiceNow Knowledge 2017 conference, which is set for May.

4. Top 100 Outsourcers: The world's top 100 global outsourcing companies and associated advisors for 2017 has surfaced here, care of the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals.

3. Security Services: Avnet has unveiled two new security assessment services for the healthcare and retail industries. Partners in the U.S. and Canada can leverage the services to determine the strength of their customers’ security postures and measure customers’ security approaches compared to the overall healthcare or retail industry, Avnet asserts.

2. Tech Data's Avnet Technology Solutions Buyout: Tech Data expects to complete the Avnet Technology Solutions acquisition by the end of February, according to a statement from the company. Tech Data announced the $2.6 billion ATS buyout in September 2016.

1. Top 50 Cloud Management, Monitoring Tools: You'll find the list here. Let us know what we missed...

More: Read all of our daily 5 Channel Partner UpdatesPlusSubscribe to our daily enewsletter. Thanks to those who already have.

Joe Panettieri

Joe Panettieri is co-founder & editorial director of MSSP Alert and ChannelE2E, the two leading news & analysis sites for managed service providers in the cybersecurity market.