Mergers and Acquisitions, Mergers and Acquisitions, IT distribution, Content

AppSmart Acquires Master Agent MicroCorp; Gains Telecom, UCaaS, SD-WAN Partner Ecosystem Reach

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AppSmart has acquired master agent MicroCorp as part of a larger strategy to provide partners with a one-stop shop for connectivity, software, infrastructure solutions and more. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Ingram SVP Renee Bergeron
Renee Bergeron, SVP & GM, AppSmart

This is M&A deal 507 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2020. See the full M&A deal list here.

AppSmart offers a catalog of more than 400 SaaS solutions, backed by the company’s own help desk. The company’s catalog includes solutions from Google, Microsoft, AT&T, Verizon, and more. AppSmart positions itself as the top marketplace to "find, buy and manage all business technology services including connectivity, wireless/mobility, software, infrastructure, energy, managed services, and devices."

MicroCorp, based in Atlanta, Georgia, is a master agent for telecommunications, Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS), SD-WAN, cable, data center, security and cloud services. The deal cements AppSmart as a leader in the telecom channel, while also maintaining its strong focus across software, infrastructure solutions and more, Renee Bergeron, senior VP and general manager of AppSmart, tells ChannelE2E.

Bergeron joined AppSmart from Ingram Micro Cloud in March 2020.

AppSmart: One-Stop Partner Shop

Outside of AppSmart, most master agents are still focused on connectivity -- and are barely dabbling in software and infrastructure, Bergeron asserts. Meanwhile, distributors are still mainly focused only software and infrastructure, and don't address telecom-type connectivity, she says. In stark contrast, AppSmart solves for the entire technology spectrum -- connectivity, software, infrastructure, managed services, and even energy, she notes.

During a briefing with ChannelE2E, Bergeron also praised and welcomed the MicroCorp team to AppSmart -- including MicroCorp CEO Karin Fields and President Phil Keenan.

In a prepared statement about the deal, Fields said:

“For over three decades, we’ve been a trusted resource for our partners’ business transformation through the power of recurring revenue streams. We strongly align with AppSmart’s technology-driven vision and advisor-first culture and are delighted to join the AppSmart family in working to improve and automate experiences for advisors.”

AppSmart has grown both organically and through multiple acquisitions. In addition to MicroCorp., recent acquisitions include CNSG, Telegration and World Telecom Group (WTG).

Meanwhile, rivals certainly aren't standing still. Multiple IT distributors have been pushing further into the telecom services partner ecosystem.

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.