Good morning, channel partners. Here are five technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Monday, October 24, 2016.
Actually, there are 11 entries 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…
11. AT&T-Time Warner: Is this $85.4 billion deal really necessary -- and what's the potential upside for consumers and business owners? Many of us watching this deal unfold are having flashbacks to the disastrous $182 billion AOL-Time Warner combo of 2000.
10. AT&T Debt Load: Assuming AT&T's buyout of Time Warner gets approved, here are some financial yellow flags from The Wall Street Journal:
"In a deal announced Saturday, AT&T agreed to pay $85.4 billion to buy the owner of CNN, HBO and TNT networks. Including debt, the value grows to $108.7 billion. And to finance the half-cash, half-stock deal, AT&T is taking on $40 billion of bridge loans. AT&T, the largest nonfinancial corporate issuer of dollar-denominated debt, already has about $119 billion in net debt—roughly double what it was five years ago"
Ahem... when the financial correction comes, cash will be king...
9. Microsoft Raising UK Cloud Prices: Microsoft plans to increase prices for some enterprise services by up to 22 percent in Britain following the plunge in the pound, likely hitting thousands of companies and government departments who rely on its cloud and software products, Reuters reported. The big question: Will additional cloud, software and mobile companies follow suit?
8. DDoS Attacks Impact IPO: Turkey’s biggest initial public offering in three years has been postponed just days before shares were due to start trading, according to Bloomberg. The country’s largest wireless operator said it would wait for “a time when markets come to a more secure and stable state" before selling a stake in Global Tower, citing cyber attacks targeting popular websites last week, risks related to the U.S. elections and Federal Reserve rate policy, Bloomberg added.
7. Limiting Tablet Time for Kids: Friday, the American Academy of Pediatrics validated my experiment, recommending that children younger than 18 months get zero screen time, and those ages 2 to 5 be limited to one hour a day—half of its prior recommendation, The Wall Street Journal reported. The group recommended that the hour be “high quality programming” that parents watch with their children, The Journal added...
6. Intuit, Google Cloud: Watch for Intuit QuickBooks to gain closer integrates with with Google G Suite (formerly Google Apps for Work). The integrations involve Google Calendar and QuickBooks Online, plus single sign on via the G Suite Marketplace.
5. Office 365 Additions: Microsoft is introducing a range of new SMB apps for its Office 365 Business Premium Plan.
4. Tigerpaw Software: The Tigerpaw Conference '16 kicks off Tuesday in Omaha, Nebraska. Tigerpaw develops PSA and business management software for IT service providers. It's safe to expect updates on Tigerpaw's cloud and mobile strategies... Stay tuned. PS: For a complete list of IT channel conferences across the world, check out www.ChannelE2E.com/Events.
3. Cloud MSP Forecast: The cloud-based managed services market will grow at a CAGT (compound annual growth rate) of 19.7 percent from 2016 to 2020, predicts Technavio. But this isn't your typical SMB MSP forecast. This particular report looks at enterprise IT vendors that offer cloud-based managed services. Names like Cisco Systems, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, IBM and NTT Data are covered...
2. MSP M&A: Zones Inc. (Auburn, Wash.) has acquired Nfrastructure Technologies (Clifton Park, N.Y.), a provider of core-to-edge technical and managed services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Zones, Nfrastructure will expand globally and nationally, thereby expanding its product fulfillment and technical capabilities, the companies said. Among the power brokers involved in the deal: Deloitte Corporate Finance acted as advisor to Nfrastructure during this transaction. Zones was represented by Martin Wolf, and Wells Fargo Capital Finance provided the financing.
1. Help Wanted: Looking for a job in the IT channel? Want to make a career move somewhere within a VAR, MSP, CSP or channel-friendly tech company. Check out the ChannelE2E Job Board. Or, post openings at your company.
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