5 things

5 Channel Partner Updates: 27 January 2017

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Good morning, channel partners. Here are five technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Friday, January 27, 2017.

Actually, there are 12 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…

Andrew Nash
Andrew Nash

12. IoT Talent: MetTel has hired Verizon Wireless veteran Andrew Nash to lead the company's Internet of Things division. MetTel has been expanding its managed services portfolio to include IoT, SD-WAN, cloud computing, enterprise mobility, data analytics, procurement and telecommunications management.

11. Acer Pays Data Breach Fine: Acer, the PC maker, will pay a $115,000 fine for a website data breach that exposed 35,000 credit card numbers. The payment is part of a settlement with the New York Attorney General.

10. ServiceNow Partner Ecosystem: Alcor Solutions has achieved gold partner status with ServiceNow, the fast-growing IT service management platform. Accenture and other major systems integrators have been buying up ServiceNow partners over the past year...

9. eDiscovery Managed Services: Compliance, an integrated eDiscovery services and managed review provider, has launched DaaS 2.0, the newest version of its Discovery-as-a-Service Managed Services platform.

Richard Dresden

8. Hybrid IT Sales Talent: Ensono has hired Richard Dresden as senior VP of sales and field operations for Ensono North America. Dresden is a veteran of Mattersight, CenturyLink and Savvis. Ensono's buyout of Attenda ranks as a ChannelE2E Top 100 Merger & Acquisition for 2016.

7. Oracle, IBM Cloud Changes: No doubt, Oracle and IBM have growing cloud services businesses. But Microsoft and Amazon, in particular, still dominate the cloud spotlight. Perhaps that's why cloud shakeups at both Oracle and IBM appear to be under way...

Keith Reed

6. MagicJack SMB Shakeup?: MagicJack, the cloud-focused VoIP company, plans to lower pricing and streamline operating efficiencies to bolster its SMB unit. Hmmm... "streamlining" typically is code for layoffs and departures. Look closely and you'll notice that Keith Reed, SVP and GM of the SMB unit, is leaving the company on February 3... The company will provide a "revised" 2017 financial forecast for its SMB unit during the next earnings call, MagicJack said. That call is set for March 31, according to published reports.

5. Data Center Buyout?: Digital Bridge Holdings is acquiring Vantage Data Centers Management for more than $1 billion, according to Reuters. We'll share more thoughts soon...

4. VMware Momentum: VMware's expansion from server virtualization to network and storage virtualization continues to accelerate. The company delivered stronger-than-expected quarterly results yesterday -- based on impressive NSX and vSAN businesses.

3. Cloud Lifts Microsoft, Intel, Google: The latest quarterly results from Alphabet (Google's parent), Microsoft and Intel state the obvious... If you've got an effective cloud strategy you'll grow.

2. ChannelE2E 100 - Top Mergers & Acquisitions: What were the Top 100 mergers and acquisitions involving VARs, MSPs and CSPs for 2016? Download our new report and complete list of buyers and sellers from here.

1. Channel Partner Programs Database: collab9, dinCloud,eSentire and Everbridge are the latest companies now listed in ChannelE2E's Partner Program's Database. The database now features nearly 150 companies listed by product and service category (security, storage, etc.). Is your company listed? If not, submit now.

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.