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Citrix Targets MSSPs, Cloud Partners with App Firewall
Posted March 4th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
Managed security service providers and cloud vendors for about the past year have been broadening their offerings to include application firewalls. Against this backdrop, Citrix Systems Inc. this week rolled out a line of application firewalls, targeting MSSPs and cloud providers as well as enterprise customers. Here’s some background.
SunGard Builds Out Data Centers
Posted February 19th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
In a case of demand for managed IT services and colocation outstripping supply, SunGard Availability Services has announced a major expansion of their three data centers in the greater Atlanta area. Here’s the scoop.
McAfee Weighs In On Managed Services
Posted December 14th, 2009 by Dave Courbanou
McAfee — only a few months after acquiring SaaS security specialist MX Logic — is providing some clues and statements about the company’s managed services strategy. Here’s a look.
Azaleos: Keeping the Cloud In Perspective
Posted December 11th, 2009 by Matthew Weinberger
To listen to some of the cloud computing vendors tell it, all data has to be delivered remotely from a data center and on-premise installations are evaporating. So when I find out that Azaleos, which provides managed Microsoft Exchange services (among others), isn’t betting the company on a cloud strategy, it gives me pause. Here’s the scoop.
Managed Print Services: Finding the Money
Posted December 11th, 2009 by Dave Courbanou
As a former help-desk technician, I have some strong opinions about managed print services (MPS). Channel chatter about the MPS market is growing louder. More MPS conferences are planned, more research is surfacing and our third-annual MSPmentor 100 survey reveals some interesting MPS trends. So where is managed print heading next? Here are some clues.
Staples Network Services: Not Another Geek Squad
Posted December 2nd, 2009 by Matthew Weinberger
First things first: Yes, Staples — the office supply store with red storefronts and the easy button — operates a managed services business. Instead of countering Best Buy’s Geek Squad, Staples Network Services provides outsourced IT solutions to SMBs with between 10 and 250 employees. I spoke to Jim Lippie, president of Staples Network Services, about the history of the company and the future of managed services, among other things. Here are some perspectives.
Viral Video Marketing Tips for MSPs
Posted November 19th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
masterIT, an MSPmentor 100 company, continues to develop some pretty impressive viral marketing messages to generate new business. The latest effort involves email marketing coupled with a quick video clip. Take a look, and here are some quick tips to help you master video marketing as well.
ConnectWise Partner Summit: Six Managed Services Videos
Posted November 9th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
During the ConnectWise Partner Summit, MSPmentor sat down with a range of managed services experts. In the following MSPmentor FastChat videos, we covered such topics as hardware as a service (HaaS), MSP-to-MSP collaboration, sales and business development, online marketing for MSPs and email security. Here are six FastChat videos with a range of MSP industry experts…
The MSPMentor 100: Checking In with PMV Technologies
Posted October 21st, 2009 by Dave Courbanou
As we launch this year’s MSPmentor 100 survey, we figured it was a good time to check in with many of last year’s MSPmentor 100 companies. Today, we connect with PMV Technologies Partner Scott Goemmel (pictured). Here’s an update from the Madison Heights, Mich.-based MSP.
HEIT Expecting Record Q4, Fueled By Managed Services
Posted October 19th, 2009 by Dave Courbanou
For many companies, focusing on the financial services industry during the recession was a recipe for disaster. But if you take a closer look you can find managed service providers like HEIT — an MSPmentor 100 company — continuing to succeed where others have failed. Here’s the update.
MSPs Not Falling for Apple — Yet
Posted October 14th, 2009 by Dave Courbanou
As Apple marches forward in the consumer market, we decided to check in with MSPs to see if they’re increasingly specializing in Apple products and/or Apple-related services. So far, major MSP and VAR peer groups — like HTG Peer Groups — say they aren’t seeing an uptick in demand for Apple-oriented solutions. But if you look hard enough there is a small Apple MSP niche. Here’s some perspective.
Verizon Business, McAfee Team on Managed Services
Posted October 8th, 2009 by John Moore
Managed services and cloud computing surface as part of the strategic alliance Verizon Business and McAfee unveiled today. On one level the global pact resembles a traditional channel distribution arrangement: Verizon Business will offer the entirety of McAfee security solutions through its customer premises equipment catalog. But the deal doesn’t end there.
Managed SharePoint Services: Can MSPs Cash In?
Posted September 24th, 2009 by John Moore
Fusepoint Managed Services has joined the ranks of companies offering hosting and managed services around Microsoft’s SharePoint collaboration and content management suite. The big question: Is there room for additional MSPs to differentiate their hosted SharePoint offerings?
Microsoft Hosting Partner Program: Comcast Wins Big?
Posted July 14th, 2009 by The VAR Guy
Plenty of managed service providers want to host Microsoft applications or push into software as a service (SaaS). Now, there’s a partner program — called Microsoft Communication Services — to help MSPs get started. The big question: Is the partner program designed for smaller MSPs? Or does it funnel more recurring revenue opportunities to Comcast? Here’s the scoop from The VAR Guy.
Profitable Managed Services: Six Ways to Acquire Customers
Posted April 11th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
One of the best presentations on managed services I’ve ever read reached my inbox on April 10. It was sent by Joe Paquet, VP of vendor alliances and relations at Axis Business Solutions, an MSP in Portsmouth, N.H.
Memo to Dell: Include Partner Messaging in Everdream Webinars
Posted April 10th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
My email inbox today had a Webinar invite from Dell. The company on April 22 plans to educate corporate customers about Everdream, a remote administration and asset management tool for PCs and mobile systems.
Where Are The Managed Services IPOs?
Posted April 8th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
If the managed service market is so darn hot, when can we expect MSP platform providers to begin launching initial public offerings?
Will Managed Storage Providers Emulate HP?
Posted April 7th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
If you’re wondering how managed storage services will evolve in the business market, perhaps you should keep an eye on the customer industry. There, Hewlett-Packard and a bunch of start-ups are launching online storage services that promote simple file access and file sharing.
mindSHIFT Acquires Software as a Service Specialist
Posted April 3rd, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
mindSHIFT, a managed service provider, is pushing deeper into the software-as-a-service (SaaS) market. The company has acquired Collaboration Online, which specializes in hosted Microsoft applications.
Microsoft SharePoint As A Managed Service?
Posted April 2nd, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
Each time I chat with a VAR or solutions provider, the topic of Microsoft SharePoint seems to pop into the conversation. Channel players are having great success deploying SharePoint for their customers. It begs the question: Will SharePoint emerge as a managed service as well? I believe so, but what’s your take?
N-able: No Economic Bumps So Far
Posted March 13th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
Gavin Garbutt, CEO of N-able Technologies, is a glass-half-full type of guy. Despite the tricky U.S. economy, Garbutt sees continued momentum for the managed services industry, and offers some anecdotal proof points that business is humming along — globally.
The Next Managed Services Battleground: APIs
Posted March 12th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
I wrote that same headline for one of my blog entries about a year ago. Even today, I believe that open application programming interfaces (APIs) will be the difference between success and failure in the managed services industry.
Sizing Up the U.S. Managed Services Market
Posted March 11th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
Demand for managed services in the United States will grow 7 percent annually through 2012, according to a new report from Research and Markets. Frankly, the report sounds very conservative, considering top managed service providers are generating double- and even trip-digit revenue growth rates, according to our own MSPmentor 100 report.
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