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5 Channel Partner Updates: Thursday 21 December 2017

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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, December 21, 2017.

Actually, there are 12 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:

12. Bonus Debate: AT&T plans to give $1,000 bonuses to 200,000 workers once President Trump signs the tax bill into law. Proponents are cheering the 'trickle down' impact of the tax cuts, claiming businesses will truly pass on the benefits to their employees. But skeptics call the AT&T move a one-time publicity stunt. My spin? I prefer to take a long-term view. Profits permitting, let's see if AT&T delivers similar bonuses on an annual basis going forward; let's see if actual worker salaries see a healthy uptick; let's see if additional companies follow suit and reward rank-and-file employees with bonuses based on profit outcomes. In the meantime, $1,000 bonuses for employees certainly sound like a good thing to me...

11. Sluggish iPhones: So, you've upgraded your old iPhone with a new iOS release -- and suddenly the smartphone feels really, really, really sluggish. Don't worry. That's a feature... at least in Apple's mind. Indeed, the tech giant says it purposely limits old iPhone performance to increase battery life and prevent unexpected shutdowns. Here's a suggestion: Maybe Apple should focus instead on eliminating or vastly reducing bloatware and feature creep.

10. Cloud, Telco Invasion: Chinese tech company Xunlei Ltd. plans to launch a cloud computing service in the United States and Europe next year, countering AWS and Microsoft Azure in both regions, according to AP. Also, China's Huawei plans to sell through American telecom carriers next year, the report adds...

9. Azure Government Cloud Services: Planet Technologies has launched Azure Advantage, a secure managed service offering for Microsoft Azure government customers. The service sounds a lot like traditional SMB server management -- though it's Azure cloud focused and government-centric. It includes 24x7 phone support, email support, data recovery, performance issue resolution, real-time environment monitoring, daily environment reviews, monthly strategic reviews and more...

8. Partner Programs: Plexxi, a hyperconverged networking (HCN) specialist, has signed up more partners in Europe. The expanded lineup includes:

7. Help Wanted - If You Fit the Demographic: Several U.S. employers engaged in age discrimination by placing recruitment ads on Facebook targeting younger workers, according to a lawsuit filed on Wednesday by a communications industry labor union, Reuters reports.

Aditya Joglekar
Aditya Joglekar

6. Talent: Among the key executives making headlines...

  • GTT Communications,  the global cloud networking provider, has expanded its channel partner program.  Three regional vice presidents are driving the effort: Robert Westervelt, east region; Michael Gough, central region; and Roland Saenz, west region.
  • Taos, a well-known MSP that supports Google Cloud Platform, has hired Aditya Joglekar as VP of sales. Joglekar previously held key roles at QTS Realty Trust, CenturyLink and Xerox.

5. M&A Rumors: Avaya, which just emerged from chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, is exploring potential acquisitions. Among the targets Avaya is exploring: India-based startups, according to one report.

4. M&A - Chatbots: Verint Systems Inc. is acquiring Next IT Corp. for roughly $51 million. Next IT develops artificial intelligence and chatbot technology that organizations like Amtrak, Alaska Airlines and the U.S. Army leverage.

3. Welcome to ComputerLand (Circa 1982): We told you yesterday that retired Quosal founder Kent McNall has started a blog to reminisce about life's journey. Among his latest entries: Looking back on the Apple III (yes, three) and working at ComputerLand -- one of the original computer retail chains.

2. Certifications: CompTIA has launched Stackable Certifications -- which essentially bundle several certifications into several next-gen designations. For instance, professionals who hold both the CompTIA Network+ and CompTIA Server+ certifications now automatically earn the CompTIA Network Infrastructure Professional certification. More than 145,000 IT professionals who have attained more than one CompTIA certification have been notified that they’ve earned a CompTIA Stackable Certification, the association says.

1. Top 100 Vertical Market MSPs: Complete this survey and your company could be ranked among the world's Top 100 Vertical Market MSPs when we unveil results in Q1 2018.

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.