Good evening or late afternoon, channel partners. I got a bit distracted today with business travel. But there's still plenty of technology news updates, insights, gossip and chatter to share with you.
Actually, today's update involves 12 items for VARs, managed services providers (MSPs) and cloud services providers (CSPs) to sip on.
12. Tech Education: You're familiar with CompTIA certifications. But keep an eye on General Assembly, which trains workers in software programming and other technical skills. The company now offers classes in 14 cities, from San Francisco to Sydney, and has helped more than 240,000 students learn new skills. It says more than 99% of them seeking new jobs have succeeded in doing so within six months of completing a course. Next move: General Assembly just raised $70 million to fund expansion. Source: Wall Street Journal
11. Data Center Tax Breaks: Not sure where to build a data center -- or maybe you're trying to figure out which data centers have the lowest ongoing costs to maintain? At least 23 states offer incentives and tax breaks to recruit data center providers onto their soil, according to AP.
10. Proactive Cloud Monitoring: Datadog continues to catch my attention on the cloud monitoring front -- this time introducing "enhancements that enable real-time identification of anomalies" in cloud applications. Datadog claims the offering is, "comparable to an early-warning system, the new capabilities give DevOps teams the ability to quickly pin-point performance issues in environments that span thousands of servers and allow users to immediately react to issues across multi-tier apps and services." Memo to RMM software providers: Start emulating Datadog's strategy.
9. New Partner Programs: Palerra, a cloud security automation startup, says it has "enhanced its partner program with the addition of new channel partners and referral benefits." Also, Mimosa Networks unveiled a global partner program for VARs focused on gigabit wireless technology. And ShoreTel launched a simplified and enhanced Champion Partner Program driven by a points-based system. Memo to Palerra, Mimosa and ShoreTel: ChannelE2E's Partner Programs Database awaits your submission. More than 100 technology companies are already listed...
8. OpenStack Not All That Hot: OpenStack, the open source cloud technology, was supposed to allow cloud service providers (CSPs) and enterprises to compete more effectively against Amazon Web Services. Hmmm... It hasn't quite turned out that way, according to a Wall Street analyst at Jefferies. I tend to agree. Rackspace bet the house on OpenStack, but ultimately shifted its focus to managed services for a range of clouds.
7. DRaaS Market Growth: The disaster recovery as a service market will expand 36 percent annually from 2012 to 2022, according to Transparency Market Research. That may explain why Barracuda this week acquired Intronis as part of a push beyond security to cloud backup and recovery.
6. Internet of Things Applications: Yes the Internet of Things hype can be overwhelming. But perhaps we'll see more and more real-applications as IT consulting firms partner with GE. The latest such relationship involves Infosys and GE working on Industrial IoT testbeds.
5. IoT Managed Services: So, how will MSPs and VARs cash in on Internet of Things management? Perhaps a clue comes from Radius Networks, which is setting up managed services that track networked beacons.
4. Remember Java?: A few years ago, former Oracle Channel Chief Judson Althoff told me Java was the key to Oracle's embedded strategy -- and the emerging big data and IoT waves. Fast forward to the present, and Althoff is at Microsoft while Oracle's commitment to Java faces serious questions. Oracle will have plenty of time to answer its critics during the Java One and Oracle OpenWorld conferences in October.
3. Managed 3D Printer Services: They'll double to nearly 500,000 units to 244,000 units in 2015, Gartner predicts. But please don't suggest 3D printers are the next rev of managed print services. 3D printers and traditional printers have completely different application use cases. The opportunity: I suspect managed services for 3D printers will enjoy strong adoption in the niche 3D printer market. By whom? Try Just-in-Time manufacturers, which need managed services to keep their 3D printers churning out parts.
2. Amazon Preps MSP Moves: Amazon re:Invent 2016 is next week in Las Vegas. Amazon has spent the past two to three years reaching out to MSPs to build its partner program. Expect updates at the conference... And some exclusive insights from ChannelE2E.
1. Thank You: To the ConnectWise team, for the invitation to participate in IT Nation (Nov. 11-13, Orlando). During a key session at the conference, ChannelE2E looks forward to covering... well, stay tuned. We'll share details when the time is right.
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