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When Zenith Infotech defaulted on a Sept. 21 bond payment, QVT Financial — a hedge fund with $6 billion under management — apparently was among the investment firms that missed out on the payment. Now, it sounds like QVT is taking legal steps to explore Zenith Infotech’s recent spin-off of Zenith RMM. But who exactly is QVT Financial and what is their interest in Zenith Infotech’s business? Here are some thoughts.
Zenith Infotech faces another round of questions about its bond default. The Times of India suggests Zenith Infotech’s bond defaults will be about $85 million, rather than the $33 million that had been originally reported. What’s my opinion?
In an open letter, Zenith Infotech CEO Akash Saraf has responded to questions about the company allegedly defaulting on a bond payment. Saraf confirms the default but assures customers and vendors that Zenith Infotech is “financially solvent, strong and stable.” Here’s the letter in its entirety — plus some perspective from MSPmentor.
Zenith RMM is marching forward with its business and is not impacted by the alleged bond default at Zenith Infotech, according to Zenith RMM CEO Michael George (pictured), who says the two companies are completely separate businesses. Here’s the update, along with a look at where Zenith RMM is heading next.
Zenith Infotech, the cloud computing company that works closely with MSPs, has confirmed that it defaulted on its $33 million foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs), which were due Sept. 21, according to Reuters. Zenith Infotech remains in negotiations with the bondholders to extend the time for repayment, Reuters added. So what exactly does this mean for managed services providers that work with Zenith Infotech? Here’s some perspective.
Zayo Group, which provides telecommunications services to the government and private sectors, has agreed to acquire 360networks. The deal will reportedly come close to doubling Zayo Group’s fiber network.
Before you pitch a technology upgrade to your SMB customers, consider this: SMB owners and entrepreneurs prefer proposals that help recruit new customers and drive revenue. And remember this: SMBs are generally not too anxious to borrow money these days, according to a recent blog posting on the website of The Boston Globe. Here’s why.
Techaisle predicts that managed IT services spending within U.S.-based small and midsize businesses will grow from $7 billion this year to $12 billion in 2015. We’re always skeptical when we read research reports because long-term IT spending forecasts can change from one year to the next. But generally speaking, MSPmentor is confident the managed IT services market continues to grow. We’ve got our own built-in biases — yes, we’re bet a portion of our business on this market — but we also have a pretty good feel for why managed services demand continues to climb.
The cloud backup and online backup markets are both expanding and consolidating. Two recent examples: VaultLogix has acquired assets from Utility Backup Solutions, and Vembu recently acquired Cloud Nucleus. Those deals surfaced around the same time that Axcient — a hybrid cloud storage specialist – raised $15.5 million in venture capital funding. Plus, more private equity is expected to flow into the managed services software market really soon, MSPmentor has learned. So how can markets expand and contract at the same time? Here’s some perspective.
It’s official: Everyone agrees that the last 10 years have been an economic nightmare. People everywhere are tightening their belts and stocking up expecting the worst over the next few years. And the worst may come, if the folks in Washington don’t get their act together. But all this is big picture. Let’s shift the focus to our own businesses. How much can we do to hedge against the future when we are still struggling to make it through today, right? The truth is, there is a lot of opportunity in a down economy. Here’s why.
Axcient, which promotes hybrid cloud storage services to SMB channel partners, has raised another $15.5 million to accelerate its business growth and channel partner efforts. Axcient has now raised $33.5 million to date. Axcient CEO Justin Moore (pictured) shared some more insights with me over email today.
LabTech Software claims to be doubling down on the IT service provider industry. Specifically, the managed services software provider has created the LabTech Business Transformation Division. LabTech has hired Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer and Administrator Kevin Gibson to lead it.
Apparently, Zenith RMM’s spin-out from Zenith Infotech may be the start of a bigger managed services M&A trend. Consider this: Within the heart of the managed services market, a venture capitalist/private equity firm is expected to make a major investment — in a well-known MSP-oriented company — in the next two weeks or so, according to a trusted MSPmentor source. The source says the private equity investment will likely be more significant than today’s Summit Partners investment in Zenith RMM, which spun out of Zenith Infotech today.
When the Channel Transformation Alliance surfaced this week, it signaled that big technology companies — including HP, Microsoft, CA Technologies and Symantec — are finally ready to help VARs and MSPs to develop recurring revenue business models. In some ways, the Channel Transformation Alliance reminds MSPmentor of the old MSP Partners initiative, where vendors helped channel partners to shift from break-fix business models to managed services and now cloud services business models.
Managed print services (MPS) finally seem to be gaining moment but the market for MPS services will still face some challenges, according to a recent study by CompTIA, the Computing Technology Industry Association.
A new SonicWALL MSP Advantage Program seeks to help partners drive IT security sales and monthly recurring revenues. The effort includes FlexSpend, the SonicWALL Global Management System (GMS) and the potential to create multiple revenue streams. Here’s how.
President Barack Obama’s Jobs Act includes $447 billion in proposals. The piece of the American Jobs Bill that caught our attention: Payroll tax cuts. There has been a lot of controversy around the theory of “trickle down economics,” where tax cuts to businesses and the wealthy ultimately ripple through the rest of the economy. Without addressing the underlying pros and cons of this theory, it appears a proposed payroll tax break that is part of a larger Obama administration tax proposal may well trickle down to MSPs, and potentially boost small business hiring. As reported by University of Chicago economics professor Casey Mulligan in a recent New York Times editorial, a cut in payroll taxes could seriously stimulate hiring.
ControlCircle, an MSP focused on the banking, accounting, legal and commercial sectors, wants to become “the UK’s foremost managed services provider,” according to a prepared statement from ControlCircle CEO Carmen Carey. To that end, ControlCircle has added three members to its management team, each set to lead three separate company initiatives.: sales, finance and technical services.
Geeks On Call apparently has overhauled its IT services franchising model. At its height in 2007, Geeks on Call claims it had more than 300 IT services franchises across the United States. But by 2009, the company fell off a cliff and SEC filings revealed deep financial problems. But by late 2010, there were signs that new owner Glenn Davis was overhauling Geeks on Call. Fast forward to the present and Geeks On Call is introducing a new IT services franchising model. Will VARs and MSPs give it a look?
Yes, we’ve done a lot of things right at Nine Lives Media (now a division of Penton). But people who truly know me have witnessed plenty of mistakes, failures and goof ups. I typically don’t dwell on those mistakes. But I certainly learn a lot from them. Here are some of the biggest blunders in my career and what I ultimately learned.
Some stunningly bad data points are starting to emerge in the small business market. To wit, roughly 40 percent of SMBs have seen their profits decline this year and 31 percent say profits are flat. Translation: Fewer than 30 percent of SMBs are growing their profits from 2010 to 2011. The stats come from the latest Office Depot Small Business Index. I’m an eternal optimist so I’m not ready to press the panic button. But I wonder if it’s time for MSPs to adjust their sales strategies and customer guidance.
Quosal LLC has released Quasal 2012, an update to the company’s sales quoting and proposal software for VARs and MSPs. Quosal 2012 includes such enhancements as Visual Quoting, integration with web-based sales tax solutions, and features developed specifically for Quosal’s UK partners and customers.
After a string of stunning announcements yesterday, it’s fair to say Hewlett-Packard is undergoing the most dramatic changes in the company’s history. So, what can small MSPs and IT service providers learn from a $120 billion technology company’s missteps? Plenty. Here are five lessons involving distractions, focus, vision, execution and differentiation.
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