Managed Services, Backup and Disaster Recovery, Video Surveillance, And Networking News
By The Business Solutions Network
Ingram Micro To Be Acquired
Ingram Micro and Tianjin Tianhai Investment Company announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Tianjin Tianhai will acquire Ingram Micro for $38.90 per share in an all-cash transaction with an equity value of approximately $6 billion. Upon close of the merger, Ingram Micro will become a part of HNA Group, a Hainan-based Fortune Global 500 enterprise group focused on aviation, tourism, and logistics. In 2015, HNA Group had revenue of $29 billion and nearly 180,000 employees worldwide.
Following the close of the transaction, which is expected in the second half of 2016, Ingram Micro will operate as a subsidiary of Tianjin Tianhai and is expected to remain headquartered in Irvine, CA. Ingram Micro’s executive management team will remain in place, with Alain Monié continuing to lead as CEO. Now the important part to everyone here in the U.S. channel: All Ingram Micro lines of business and all regional and country operations are expected to continue unaffected.
Webroot Introduces BrightCloud Threat Investigator
Webroot recently released its new BrightCloud Threat Investigator, a threat investigation tool that gives MSPs (managed services providers) instant access to actionable threat intelligence on individual IPs and URLs. The tool also gives the ability to drill down into each object’s category, history, and related IPs or URLs for threat investigation and incident response. In the event of an ongoing cyber investigation, this saves precious time and enables security analysts or first responders to focus on the most critical issues right away. Security personnel are then better able to mitigate the effects of a breach, limit exfiltration of customer data or intellectual property, and limit reputation-related fallout.
According to the Webroot 2016 Threat Brief, attackers are using a larger pool of IP addresses for launching attacks and are increasing their usage of new IP space as threat intelligence services improve at identifying these threats. Coupled with the overwhelming amount of information and alerts security personnel receive, this has created an environment that makes it challenging to prioritize and minimize response time. The BrightCloud Threat Investigator’s Web-based, graphical user interface (GUI) research console makes research manageable by providing insight into a number of variables, including why Webroot categorizes a specific IP or URL as malicious, why specific reputation scores are assigned, and how long a particular IP or URL has been a threat. This context allows enterprise security teams to quickly make specific data-driven decisions.
Milestone Overhauls Partner Program
Milestone Systems recently announced strategic initiatives to enhance its partner community engagement. The new business initiatives introduce forums for partners and customers to give and share advice on future solutions, services, and appliances from Milestone. Developer resources will be boosted to further ensure that all partners developing XProtect add-ons meet the highest standards for reliability, openness, security, and dependability. It’s Milestone’s hope that developing solutions will become easier and accelerated through educational and advisory services. Milestone will also allocate additional marketing resources to increase emphasis on these add-ons for existing and new channel partners and customers. In 2015, Milestone saw a 30 percent rise in partner-programmed XProtect add-ons when the monthly downloads of the Milestone Software Development Kit (SDK) doubled in one year.
To accomplish this, Milestone will be creating an Advisory Board with partners and customers on road map prioritization; establishing a developer forum to strengthen the developer experience; enhancing the SDK (software developer kit) design and developing more documentation of the API; expanding solution certifications to bolster reliability and ensure uniform quality; building an online Milestone marketplace for partners to promote and sell their solutions; and introducing comarketing programs to strengthen commercial collaboration.
Genetec Makes Its Security Software More Secure
When we discuss physical security software updates, the conversation is typically around new and enhanced video management features for viewing different cameras, organizing video, or sorting through volumes of video footage. Genetec, however, recently announced a new version (version 5.4) of its Security Center software that does provide new and updated features, but also has a strong focus on making the software itself more secure.
For instance, Security Center users can now implement digital certificates to establish trust within the security environment itself. Additionally, the software uses the latest encryption standards such as TLS, AES-128, and RSA, resulting in secure communications between all Security Center client and server applications. Taking it one step further, Security Center is now able to encrypt video data at rest (while the data “rests” in an archive) or in transit (while the data is in movement on the network), ensuring the privacy of live and recorded video. To streamline multi-organization collaboration, organizations can leverage third-party claims services, including Microsoft Active Directory Federation Services, to authenticate and manage Security Center users across organizations and domains.
Beyond these security enhancements, as organizations evaluate methods to reduce surveillance system costs and storage needs, the advent of the H.265 video compression standard promises to reduce bandwidth consumption by up to 50 percent, while also allowing them to leverage higher resolution cameras more efficiently. Security Center 5.4 offers support for H.265 via a recent integration to the Vivotek IP9171 H.265 camera.
Autotask Launches Partner Program For File Sync And Share
Autotask has created the Autotask Workplace Partner Program to give technology service providers the technical, sales, and marketing resources they require to add a file sync and share offering to their services portfolio. Autotask Workplace (AWP) provides capabilities that help increase collaboration, document security, and mobile productivity for end users, while providing recurring revenue opportunities for partners.
The AWP Partner Program features Autotask Workplace Manager, which provides a single pane of glass for provisioning and managing client teams, members, and storage allocations; a fixed-cost, channel-only sales model; internal use licenses to support partner sales efforts; and sales enablement tools and brandable marketing resources.
Unitrends Rolls Out New Partner Program Focused On Engagement
Unitrends recently announced its new partner program. Custom-built based on partner feedback and based on a progressive engagement model, Unitrends’ new partner program gives partners the freedom to determine the level of involvement that fits their business needs. Using this framework, every partner gets rewarded for engagement activities, regardless of size and revenue.
Built on the gamification principle, Unitrends’ new program enables partners to access benefits and incentives without feeling stifled by imposed levels and objectives. The program features a five-star rating system, which rewards engagement at both the business and employee levels with points. In addition to traditional measures, like deal registrations and closed business, partners can earn points through various sales, marketing, and training initiatives that support partner growth, such as completing certification courses, hosting a webinar, running a marketing campaign, or promoting Unitrends via social media. Employees can also accrue points by participating in Unitrends’ existing UniRewards program.
ConnectWise CloudConsole Aims To Ease You Into The Cloud
ConnectWise announced that ConnectWise CloudConsole — its cloud service management, monitoring, and billing tool — is now available inside ConnectWise to help companies become effective cloud solution providers (CSPs) in an increasingly cloud-centric IT landscape. Craig Fulton, GM, ConnectWise Business Suite, says CloudConsole was developed to address inefficiencies in the management and billing of services as MSPs move their clients from on-premise systems to the cloud. “Our goal is to help technology service providers become CSPs by equipping them with the tools to get ahead of this trend,” he says. “The ability to provide cloud services will give them the competitive edge they require to continue to grow their businesses.”
CloudConsole, launched inside ConnectWise 2016.2, gives providers the means to manage all users, groups, and mailboxes via a single, unified dashboard. Companies are able to further capitalize on cloud opportunities by automating cloud services billing and setting monitors for Office 365 services.