Good morning, channel partners. Here are five technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to sip on for Wednesday, February 10, 2016.
Actually, there are 12 items for VARs, managed services providers (MSPs), cloud services providers (CSPs) and independent software vendors (ISVs) to sip on…
12. IRS Hacked: An automated attack successfully stole about 101,000 Identity Protection PINS from the IRS. Though no personal taxpayer data was disclosed, it's the latest sign that hackers are poking and prodding multiple systems to build deeper profiles on the personal data they've already stolen from other systems.
11. About Those Unicorns: We spent most of 2015 warning readers that Unicorns -- startups with valuations of $1 billion or more -- would ultimately stumble and many would perish once the tech correction arrived. Well, the day of reckoning apparently has arrived for many unicorns, which are watching their valuations plummet amid the recent big data tech correction on Wall Street. Still, some unicorns will survive -- much in the way that Amazon, eBay and others survived the dot-com implosion. Among the most promising unicorn breed: Startups that actually generate profits. Datto ranks among them.
10. Partner Programs: Among the company's making partner program updates...
- Anoto Group AB, which develops digital writing and drawing solutions, launched a Channel Partner Program for the company’s multiple product lines. The company hopes to attract resellers that specialize in pen input on paper, multi-touch displays, whiteboards, and interactive walls.
- Cato Networks has exited stealth mode and launched its Network Security as a Service (NSaaS) platform. The company, which has launched a partner program, says it is "unifying the network and security stack in the Cloud, addressing multiple enterprise challenges and use cases with one turnkey, service-based solution.” To build its partner program, Cato hired Barracuda veteran Glenn Esposito as vice president of sales, Americas.
- eSentire Inc., which specializes in Active Threat Protection solutions and managed security services, has launched a new Channel Partner Program. Part of the company's recent $19.5 million funding round will be used to expand the company's channel worldwide.
9. RMM Integration: Bitdefender has launched Bitdefender Security for LabTech, a security offering that plugs into ConnectWise's RMM (remote monitoring and management) platform for MSPs. You can track major LabTech integrations here.
8. Small Business Telecom: It sounds like Cincinnati Bell will soon try to partner up with local MSPs and resellers to reach small businesses with 100 or fewer seats. Keep an eye on Cincinnati Bell Business -- a new division that will host an IT symposium at the end of February to reach local channel partners.
7. Webroot Momentum: The endpoint security company says its Q2 ended December 31, 2015 delivered double-digit year-over-year revenue growth. Plus, Webroot bookings grew 47 percent in the business segment and the company was profitable during the period. Among the company's key MSP-focused relationships: A security integration with Continuum Managed Services.
6. APM Warning: On the one hand, application performance management (APM) is a fast-growing niche -- especially for IT service providers that want to manage customers' workloads on premises and in the cloud. But on the other hand, some skeptics are warning investors that APM is "too" niche -- and startups like AppDynamics could struggle as public companies. My spin? I think APM is the real deal. And I suspect every major IT service provider will have an APM toolset within three to five years, especially as customers scatter more and more workloads across on-premises and cloud servers.
5. VMware End User Computing: The virtualization giant has launched Workspace ONE -- which blends desktops on demand with a range of security, identity management, device management and application delivery capabilities. In VMware's most recent quarterly results, the End User Computing business ranked among the bright spots. We're poking around for more context and will follow up soon.
4. Cisco Earnings: The networking giant will announce earnings results later today (Wed., Feb 10.) after the U.S. market closes. While software-centric companies like Microsoft and SAP have made bullish statements about cloud momentum in recent weeks, Wall Street is wondering if the Cisco ONE software push can trigger similar optimism at the networking firm. We'll find out later today.
3. Big Data Mistakes: How are big companies mismanaging big data projects and related priorities? Current and former executives from Fast Forward Labs, Bitly Social Data Lab and Amazon share some common big data mistakes and considerations here.
2. Office 365 Cloud Management: Watch for ConnectWise to officially launch CloudConsole sometime this week. The platform allows IT service providers to manage Office 365, with additional support for Microsoft Azure and other cloud platforms expected down the road. ConnectWise CEO Arnie Bellini explained the strategy to us in recent days. We'll share the conversation in ChannelE2E Podcast Episode 061 later today.
1. Top Vertical Market MSPs: Are you one of them? Prove it and earn free recognition for your success. Complete our Top Vertical Market MSPs survey. We'll share results and name the honorees in Q2.
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