Content, 5 things

5 Channel Partner Updates: Tuesday 04 September 2018

Good morning, channel partners. Here are five technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Tuesday, Sept 4, 2018.

Actually, there are 15 timely updates (yowzers…) designed 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:

15. Talent - Dell EMC: The giant has hired Tech Data veteran Rob Tomlin to run the company's UK channels, The Register reports.

14. Partner - Dell EMC: ITsavvy has earned Dell EMC Cloud Service Provider status. The VAR and IT solutions provider already carries the Dell EMC Titanium Tier Partner Reseller status.

13. Distribution - Ingram Micro Quarterly Results: Ingram's 2018 second quarter sales were $11.80 billion, up 9 percent in USD, with gross margin of 6.53 percent. Net income was $67 million, up from $45 million.

12. Alexa Is Everywhere: There are now 20,000 Amazon Alexa-compatible smart home devices, a 5x increase from 4,000 at the end of 2017.

11. Cloud Services: SkySilk Cloud Services, a new cloud platform, now offers Virtual Private Servers (VPS) for application development, website hosting, IT automation, cloud storage, and more. More than 20,000 users request beta access, with more than 20,000 VPSs deployed by beta users across the world.

10. Alibaba Cloud: The China-based company's U.S. strategy focuses mainly on U.S. companies that need cloud services in China and Asia, while helping Chinese companies with cloud services in the U.S., not competing head to head with local players,” according to SiliconAngle.

9. MSP for Amazon Web Services: CenturyLink has achieved AWS MSP partner status... Will CenturyLink qualify for the Top 50 MSPs for AWS list? We'll share details in October...

8. App Performance Management:  The Application Performance Management Market will reach $4.98 billion in 2019, up from $2.72 billion in 2014. That's a compound annual growth rate of 12.86% percent, according to Report Consultant.

7. IT Services ContractWipro has won a $1.5 billion to $1.6 billion contact with Alight Solutions LLC, a provider of technology-enabled health, wealth, HR and finance solutions. The 10-year deal is Wipro's largest to date.

6. M&A - Office Equipment & Supplies: Canon copier and service provider Kerr Office Group has acquired Office Environment Co., a Louisville-based independent office products and commercial office furniture company, the two companies have confirmed.

5. M&A - Data Centers: The Datacenter Group (TDCG) has acquired two data centers from the Rabo Bouwfonds Communication Infrastructure Fund. As a result of the deal, TDCG  is now the largest pure-Dutch datacenter provider and answers the need for securely storing data on Dutch soil, the company claims.

4. M&A - IT Service Management: Atlassian is acquiring OpsGenie to help partners and IT teams manage service disruptions. The deal is largely viewed as a competitive move vs. ServiceNow. We'll share more details soon.

3. M&A - MSPs: Logicalis Group has acquired Clarotech, an MSP with IP telephony (IPT) and cloud expertise based in Cape Town, South Africa. We'll share more details soon.

2. M&A - EBITDA Concerns?: Acquisitions that focus mainly on EBITDA can create turmoil in the acquired business, according to a report in the insurance sector. Hmmm... Is the statement true -- and does it also apply to EBITDA-driven buyouts in the MSP & IT services sector?

1. Top 50 MSPs for AWS/Top 50 MSPs for Azure: Participate in the survey here and potentially earn honors for your MSPs. Plus: Get the honoree lists and see the research by attending our next ChannelE2E webcast. Register now.

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.