Content, 5 things

5 Channel Partner Updates: Thursday 02 August 2018

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Good morning, channel partners. Here are five technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Thursday, August 2, 2018.

Actually, there are 11 timely updates 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:

11. Microsoft Rural Broadband Grants: Microsoft has awarded grants to Skylark Wireless, CvWireless, an Tribal Digital Village to drive broadband deployments in U.S. rural areas. Also, the company awarded a grant to Numbers4Health for healthcare-related IT services.

10. Managed Print Services: Xerox has launched new marketing resources to help channel partners generate leads and sales. The efforts are designed to drive such areas as Managed Print Services (MPS) and demand for Xerox ConnectKey enabled workplace assistants. A redesigned Xerox Partner Portal features the new resources.

9. Integration - Customer Management: Zendesk now integrates with WhatsApp, allowing businesses to manage customer service interactions and engage with customers directly on WhatsApp, Zendesk says. The move comes as Zendesk prepares to make a global channel chief hire.

8. MSP Customer Churn: An overwhelming 87 percent of IT Service Providers have lost customers because they needed more security services they aren't yet offering, according to a Collabrance survey. On the flip side, only 5 percent of Managed Security Services Provider (MSSPs) have lost customers because for a lack of security services, the research says...

7. Talent - Security: Ingram Micro veteran Brent McCarty has joined ESET North America as president. The move comes as ESET extends beyond endpoint security to offer MSPs such capabilities as encryption, two-factor authentication, network forensics and more. We'll share more details soon.

6. Talent - MSP Marketing: NetGain Technologies, a top MSP in Kentucky, has hired Andréa Skov as chief marketing officer, and promoted Megan Reed to the director of marketing.

5. M&A - Legal IT Services Part One: Netgain Technology (no relation to the company in item 6 above), a provider of secure and specialized cloud services to highly regulated industries, has acquired Afinety, a provider of cloud services and IT resources to law firms. We'll share more details soon.

4. M&A - Legal IT Services Part Two: HighQ has acquired Legal Anywhere. The two organizations specialize in secure, mobile enterprise collaboration and file sharing solutions for the legal industry.

3. Strategic Investment: Top Microsoft partner Avanade has made a strategic minority investment in digital workspace specialist Akumina. The investment was made through Accenture Ventures; it was part of Akumina's Series A financing, which was surfaced last month.

2. M&A- MSPs Part One: Computex Technology Solutions has acquired Dallas-based MSP Synetra. This is Computex's fourth acquisition by Computex since 2012, and the first under the leadership of its President and CEO John Schilsky. We'll share more details soon.

1. M&A - MSPs Part Two: CompassMSP has acquired Integrity Consulting Group, a technology advisor in north Florida. We'll offer more thoughts soon.

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.