CHANNEL ROUND-UP

VENDOR

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■ Apple has appealed to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to keep the Clean Power Plan intact, according to reports, which claim Apple is arguing that repealing the Power Plan would hurt the US’ chances, particularly when it comes to competing with China.

Separately, reports claimed Apple is planning to drop Intel’s chips from its Mac devices and replace them with its own design. Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, said Apple plans to use its own chips in Macs as early as 2020, bringing the products in line with its mobile devices which already use Apple-designed components. � e report said a � nal decision was yet to be made. ■ AWS reported revenue of $5.5bn (£4.0bn) for the three months ending 31 March 2018, with operating income up 57 per cent to $1.4bn. � e Amazon business as a whole saw revenue jump 43 per cent to $51bn, with operating pro� t growing at a similar pace to $49.1bn. AWS continues to be the prime money maker for Amazon. � e wider business ran at an operating margin of just 3.8 per cent for the quarter. AWS, however, saw a margin of 25.7 per cent. � is means that 74 cents of every $1 of Amazon pro� t comes from AWS.■ Avaya is investing in arti� cial intelligence with a new partnership with A� niti that it claims will improve enterprise customer experience and contact centre performance. By integrating A� niti’s enterprise behavioural pairing with Avaya’s contact centre platform, Avaya claims � rms will be able to better pair customers with the right agent.■ Bitdefender has made its Security for Virtualised Environments (SVE) available to MSPs. It claims the product has been designed to help SPs protect virtual desktops and servers without slowing performance or a� ecting users. ■ Broadcom is set to buy back up to $12bn of its shares, according to reports. � e buyback programme is set to conclude at the end of Broadcom’s FY19. Shares rose 4.5 per cent as a result of the news.■ Cybersecurity vendor Carbon Black is looking to raise $100m after � ling for an initial public o� ering. Carbon Black, which was formerly known as Bit9, is set to � oat on New York’s NASDAQ stock exchange after reports of an IPO � rst surfaced in October 2016. � e end-point security

vendor is the latest of a string of tech � rms to opt for a public listing this year, with other examples including Avaya, Dropbox and Pivotal. In a � ling with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Carbon Black revealed that its revenues for the 12 months ending 31 December 2017 stood at $149.3m, up 42 per cent on the previous year, along with a net loss of $55.8m.■ Citrix praised channel partners for embracing its new subscription models after a � rst-quarter revenue jump. For the three months ending 31 March, Citrix saw its revenue increase � ve per cent year on year to $697m, while net income more than doubled to $144m. � e vendor saw its subscription revenue jump 49 per cent year on year to $103m in the quarter, to make up 15 per cent of its total revenue.■ Commvault has increased its integration with Microsoft Azure Stack – a hybrid cloud platform product that allows users to bring nearly full public Azure functionality to their own on-premise datacentres.

� e vendor also expanded its o� erings through the AWS marketplace, claiming its Data Platform can help AWS customers with sensitive workloads meet their data protection requirements through data backup, management, ediscovery and DR. ➔

■ ConnectWise unveiled its latest cloud management solution, ConnectWise Unite. Unwrapped at its IT Nation Europe conference, the � rm claims the o� ering allows MSPs to manage, monitor and bill a range of cloud-based solutions through a single pane of glass in their own currency. ■ Anti-virus software vendor Cylance announced the formation of the Cylance Axiom Alliance Programme. � e programme comprises 13 tech vendors that each use Cylance’s threat identi� cation, management and prevention APIs directly within their solutions. Cylance says the � rms – Bitglass, Centrify, Demisto, Digital Shadows, Duo Security, JASK, LogRhythm, Lookout, Netskope, ProtectWise, Splunk, Twistlock and Zimperium — can now leverage its APIs to uncover emerging threats in real time, from within their existing systems, reducing response time “to a fraction of a second”.■ Datto took the wraps o� a new line of cloud-managed devices – Datto Managed Power – which it claims can help MSPs remotely or automatically reboot devices and reduce the necessity for on-site visits.■ Extreme Networks launched a � nancing programme for customers, partners and prospects, known as Extreme Capital Solutions. � e programme is a combination of Extreme’s CPE-as-a-service o� erings combined with the Brocade Network Subscriptions business, part of Extreme since its acquisition of Brocade’s networking business, which completed in October 2017. � e o� ering includes subscription, capital leasing and usage business models, and o� ers a range of � nancing solutions. ■ Forescout announced updates to its device visibility platform CounterACT 8, which it claims will bring increased scalability, cloud-based device intelligence, IoT device assessment and � exible centralised licensing. ■ Google parent company Alphabet reported revenue of $31.1bn, up 26 per cent on the same quarter last year. Because the � rm lumps Google Cloud Platform (GCP) in with its hardware and app store units, it makes it di� cult to establish the size of its public cloud business. But the ‘Other’ category, which houses GCP, saw revenue increase 36 per cent to $4.5bn. Google says this part of the business highlights the growing contributions of its “non-ad opportunities”. � e cloud business is viewed as one of the “three

big areas” by Google, along with hardware and YouTube. Google is on course to having 20 cloud regions worldwide, once all the launches in the pipeline have taken place.

Separately, Google took the wraps o� a new messaging system – Chat – aimed at replacing SMS text messages on Android phones. It is reportedly set to be integrated with the default messages app on Android phones, and will have all the usual messaging features including group texts, videos and read receipts.

In addition, Google Cloud unveiled a new sister networking product to its Dedicated Interconnect o� ering that gives customers access to Google Cloud’s global network. In a blog, Google product manager John Veizades said Partner Interconnect will provide high-bandwidth connectivity to the nearest Google Cloud Platform (GCP) region through GCP partners, including AT&T, Equinix, NTT and Verizon.■ IBM has launched a raft of new partner incentives around all-� ash arrays and software as the � rm makes an aggressive channel push in its storage business. Partner sellers and systems engineers can earn up to $100,000 per annum in stackable rebates ➔

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through IBM’s new storage incentive package. Under the scheme, a partner rep will earn a three per cent rebate on each new partner deal with a limit of $30,000 per deal.■ IGEL has expanded its portfolio of virtualisation-optimised end-points to include the new IGEL UD7. � e o� ering is part of the end-point management software vendor’s thin-client collection and is designed for end-user computing environments that require high performance and access to multiple, high-quality displays, such as video production or CAD design suites, the vendor claimed.■ Network control vendor Infoblox and McAfee have announced integrated solutions as part of an expanded partnership. Under the announcement the � rms will o� er DNS and web security, data sharing and security orchestration. � e two companies have also enabled intelligence sharing between Infoblox ActiveTrust Suite and McAfee Data Exchange Layer (DXL).■ Infosys saw revenues grow 9.2 per cent YoY to $2.8bn for the quarter and year ended 31 March. Operating pro� t for the quarter hit $693m, a YoY growth of 9.3 per cent. ■ Kaseya unveiled an OEM partnership with SaaS data protection � rm Spanning Cloud Apps. Under the deal it will o� er O� ce 365 backup as an integrated module within Kaseya’s RMM platform, VSA by Kaseya. ■ Kaspersky Lab unveiled a subscription service aimed at helping companies improve investigations and responses to “complex” threats. � e o� ering, Kaspersky Cloud Sandbox, is available through Kaspersky � reat Intelligence Portal. It claims it allows � rms to take advantage of sandboxes without any additional investments in hardware infrastructure.■ LG Electronics is starting to make a comeback, after reports revealed it was expecting its highest Q1 operating pro� t since 2009. Reuters claimed the South Korean � rm is expecting a 20 per cent increase from last year, driven by sales of premium home appliances and OLED TVs.■ Microsoft is set to invest $5bn in the Internet of � ings (IoT) over the next four years in a move it claims will allow every customer to transform their business. � e investment will be used to continue research and development in IoT, as well as continued ‘innovation’ in Microsoft’s technology platform, the vendor claimed.

� e vendor also beat quarterly pro� t expectations

in April, with notable growth on its Azure public cloud and O� ce 365 productivity suite. Revenue increased 16 per cent to $26.8bn, with server products and cloud services growing 20 per cent, built on Azure revenue growth of 93 per cent. ■ Mitel revealed it is to be acquired by investor group Searchlight Capital Partners for around $2bn. � e � rm claimed its decision to become a privately held company will give it the � exibility to speed up its move to cloud.■ McAfee has integrated IBM Resilient’s Incident Response Platform (IRP) with its Data Exchange Layer. � e move will allow better security intelligence and faster response times, and enable security teams to handle threats using automated tasks.■ Nutanix’s plans to release a public cloud o� ering to rival market leader Amazon Web Services were temporarily put on hold this month due to engineering issues, according to a report by Bloomberg. � e launch was originally scheduled for the second half of 2018, the report claimed. CEO Dheeraj Pandey said targeting Amazon was “harder than expected”.■ Red Hat has launched Red Hat Storage One to its channel partners, which the vendor claims will provide customers with “the convenience of hardware-optimised systems, while preserving the � exibility and scale of software-de� ned storage”. ➔

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� e vendor claimed Red Hat Storage One has been designed to provide “more of a plug-and-play approach” to the procurement, deployment and performance tuning of software-de� ned storage. � e o� ering is a platform of pre-engineered enterprise storage solutions, developed alongside Red Hat’s server hardware partners, which will also provide ful� llment and support.■ Cloud data management start-up Rubrik took the wraps o� its Rubrik Polaris o� ering this month. Rubrik claims it is the industry’s � rst SaaS platform targeting data management applications and o� ering a global policy framework, as well as work� ow orchestration and deep data intelligence as cloud-delivered applications.■ Sage failed to hit its revenue growth expectations in April, which sent its share price tumbling. � e accounting software revealed organic revenue growth for the six months ended 31 March 2018 was 6.3 per cent, down from 7.4 per cent the previous year. Recurring revenue growth dropped to 6.4 per cent, down from 11.1 per cent in H1 2017. Despite the results, the � rm claimed the recent overhaul of its partner programme is paying o� and resulting in better partner revenues. ■ Network security specialist Tufin launched a new partner programme called the Technology Alliance Partner (TAP) programme. � e � rm claims its TAP programme opens a new avenue to meet customer demand.■ OPAQ Networks closed a $22.5m Series B round of � nancing. It was led by new investor Greenspring Associates, with continuing participation from Columbia Capital and Harmony Partners. � e network security cloud � rm said it will use the funding to “accelerate growth and support the company’s go-to-market initiatives for delivering security-as-a-service to mid-size enterprises via its strategic security channel partners”.■ Qlik revealed updates to its Qlik Partner Programme (QPP) in April, including the introduction of a dedicated BI market MSP partner o� ering. � e new o� ering, which Qlik claimed is the � rst of its kind in the BI market, enables MSP partners to o� er Qlik solutions through a subscription model. � e vendor also claimed its three-tier partner programme is moving to a “more value-based model” that includes clear bene� ts and requirements per tier.■ Qualcomm is set to axe 1,500 jobs across multiple divisions at its California o� ces, according to reports. � e job losses are part of the chip maker’s

pledge to investors to cut annual costs by $1bn. ■ VMware unveiled a new global channel chief in the form of Jenni Flinders, who is tasked with developing and executing the vendor’s channel strategy and programmes for its global ecosystem. ■ Cloud communications vendor Vonage announced the launch of its chatbot Vee in beta. Vee is the � rst virtual customer assistant integrated with a cloud-based uni� ed comms solution, the vendor claims. It added that Vee enables Vonage Business Cloud users to set up and manage their accounts using “natural language commands”, while also o� ering troubleshooting assistance in real time. ■ Visibility software vendor Ziften has launched a global partner programme – the Ziften Activate Partner Programme. � e tiered programme boasts � nancial incentives, partner-focused enablement programmes, support for global growth initiatives and lead generation. ■ Zerto has signed a cross-selling agreement with Microsoft that will see Zerto’s channel partners incentivised to co-sell and cross-sell Zerto’s IT Resilience Platform alongside Microsoft Azure. � e vendor claimed customers can realise savings by eliminating redundant recovery datacentres and hardware and automating their full environment recovery, while Microsoft customers can more easily adopt Azure using their existing Microsoft Enterprise Agreements.

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DISTRIBUTOR■ ABC Data has far exceeded its revenue and pro� t targets for 2017, despite new challenges in its domestic Polish market from new global competitors. � e Warsaw-headquartered distributor’s EBITDA surged by 48 per cent year on year in 2017 to PLN 59m (£12.5m), on revenues which fell slightly by six per cent to PLN 4.64bn. � e pro� ts increase was substantially higher than the 25 per cent growth rate forecasted by ABC Data at the beginning of 2017, while revenues came in PLN 170m higher than projected.■ US giant D&H has launched a device-as-a-service (DaaS) programme geared toward SMBs called Easy DaaS IT. � e � rm claims it allows resellers to o� er notebooks, workstations, desktops, thin clients and tablets through a multi-year life cycle agreement in which procurement, deployment, device management, services and life cycle management are managed for a monthly fee.

D&H says the vendor-agnostic programme is designed to make a volume of devices accessible to SMB companies through a more � exible � nancing vehicle, allowing VARs to realise revenue upfront.■ Latvian distributor ELKO claims its expansion into new markets last year has had a positive impact on its 2017 numbers, in which the � rm posted growth to its top and bottom lines.

Sales enjoyed a nine per cent hike year on year

to $1.6bn, as gross pro� ts surged by 42 per cent to $78m and net pro� ts jumped by 62 per cent to $14m. � e � rm gained a presence in the Nordics last year through the acquisition of an 85 per cent stake in Swedish hardware and components distributor Gandalf. It also established a sales presence in Wroclaw, Poland. ■ Exclusive Group is chasing down a new €10bn revenue target after taking on fresh private equity investment. Having spurned approaches from multiple trade suitors, the Paris-based distributor yesterday signed a binding agreement to sell a majority stake to private equity house Permira.

Investment from Permira is for “well over” €1bn, according to sources, with previous private equity owner Copeba said to have realised a multiple of close to � ve times its original investment. Rumours have been circulating for several months that Exclusive was set for an ownership change.

Separately, the � rm’s UK business set itself a £500m revenue goal after opening its fourth UK o� ce in Newmarket.■ Former IBM exec Rich Hume is to take over the chief executive spot at Tech Data in the summer, replacing Bob Dutkowsky from 6 June. Dutkowsky will take the role of executive chairman of the board. � e � rm says the appointment provides a “natural progression” for the distribution giant to “continue to grow and thrive”.

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RESELLER

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■ Bytes secured a mega £150m deal this month which will see it roll out Windows 10 to all NHS England machines, as the health service strives to avoid any future downtime as experienced by the crippling WannaCry attack last year. � e project also includes a £21m upgrade of NHS England’s � rewall and network infrastructure, plus the construction of a security operations centre. ■ UK outsourcing giant Capita has reported a £513.1m loss for its full year 2017, and warned of further struggles as it continues to wade through its restructure. For the year ending 31 December 2017, Capita saw its revenue decline three per cent year on year to £4.2bn, while losses widened substantially from the £16.1m de� cit reported in 2016. Capita attributed its losses to £850.7m of “speci� c non-underlying item, including £551.6m of goodwill impairment”. � e outsourcer also announced a restructure of the business and a new round of fundraising.■ Computacenter recorded “record” Q1 revenues with 23 per cent growth, thanks to a mega £34m UK software licencing deal. In a trading update, the LSE-listed reseller and services giant said its Q1 performance beat expectations, particularly around its supply chain (product supply) business and claimed 2018 looks to be a year of “further progress”. � e UK shone, growing 31 per cent in the quarter thanks to the bumper deal, but even without it, growth was 21 per cent, with supply chain up 52 per cent and services down by seven per cent. In contrast, the � rm’s German arm saw 19 per cent growth, while French revenues were � at. ■ DXC Technology grabbed Microsoft partner eBECS for an undisclosed sum as part of a double acquisition targeting the lucrative Dynamics 365 market. DXC was formed in 2017 after HPE span o� its services business and merged it with CSC. Its second acquisition was Melbourne-based Sable37, also a Microsoft Dynamics partner, also for an undisclosed sum. ■ Ambitious Belgium-based VAR Econocom has made its � rst acquisition of 2018, snapping up a majority 60 per cent stake in Spanish digital signage company Altabox. Founded in 2003, Altabox is a 50-employee-strong out� t which turned over €9m in 2017. Operating from its o� ces in Gijón and Madrid, the � rm designs and

deploys digital signage, “sensory and auditory” marketing and data analytics solutions for point-of-sale customers. Its managing director Israel Garcia will stay on as head of the company and remain a shareholder.■ HPE’s former western European general manager has been appointed CEO of €750m Netherlands-based reseller Infotheek. Hans Daniels, who spent two years as HPE’s vice president of western Europe, will step into the new role on 5 July. Daniels led HPE’s activity across 13 European countries: Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Former CEO Jordy Kool, who announced his intention to step down in November, took Infotheek from a €55m to a €750m-turnover company during his nine-year tenure as CCO and then CEO at the � rm.■ Leeds-based LDD Group entered administration this month, with the ill health of one of its directors said to have been a contributing factor to its demise. � e � rm, which at its peak had revenues of £12m and almost 50 sta� , is continuing to trade while it looks for a buyer to secure its future. ■ Logicalis Germany announced plans to split its ➔

workforce into three separate technology divisions, each to be led by a new team leader. Sta� across pre-sales, professional services, solution sales and architect personnel will be divided into “practices”: datacentre; networking, collaboration and security; and application and information management. Logicalis employees across its o� ces in Germany – Düsseldorf, Berlin, Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Cologne – will be a� ected. � e German subsidiary consists of around 300 employees.■ MTI Europe CEO Scott Haddow has hinted at acquisitions, possibly in Europe or the US, after a successful � rst year at the company backed by private equity house Endless Capital. Haddow became CEO of the data storage integrator last February after overseeing Trustmarque’s £57m sale to Capita.■ One of Europe’s top storage integrators, Sweden-based Proact, has posted a 13 per cent fall in quarterly revenues following its application of a new accounting standard. Under the IFRS 15 standard, Proact has changed the way it recognises revenues from supplier guarantees and maintenance, and now spreads the revenues and costs over three years. Proact has been applying the new standard since 1 January 2018 – the start of its � scal 2018 – and revealed the change left a SEK 95m (£8m) dent in its Q1 revenues. As a result, its revenues for the three months from January to March 2018 tumbled by 13 per cent to SEK 759m, down from SEK 873m a year earlier.■ Polish systems integrator Qumak has � led a bid to merge with Polish outsourcer Euvic Group which, if approved, would create one of the largest IT � rms in the CEE. Under current plans, Qumak would get a 100 per cent stake of Euvic, in exchange for Euvic shareholders receiving a majority stake in Qumak. Euvik already has a stake in Qumak, when it shelled out PLN 30m for a share of more than 10 per cent in the company as of September 2017. Both parties estimate that the value of the 100 per cent stake of Euvic will not exceed PLN 220m.■ VAR SICL has been the � rst

acquisition of new kid on the block – channel buy-and-build venture MXLG – a joint venture between technology-focused investor MXC Capital and TV and broadband giant Liberty Global. MXLG is aiming to build an IT services provider focused on UK SMEs.

Its maiden acquisition was part funded by a £2.35m equity injection into MXLG by each of its two investors. MXC’s other current investments include AIM-listed Cisco partner IDE, in which it owns 21.9 per cent, and Castleton, a supplier of software and managed services to the social housing sector in which it has a 24.5 per cent stake. At the time MXLG was formed in November, MXC said it would make a series of acquisitions to create an “enterprise of scale”.■ Ambitious UK Computer Suppliers is looking to build a 19-strong network of franchisees over the coming three years, it revealed this month, citing the business template of McDonald’s as a key strategy in� uencer. Franchisees of the Northampton-based � rm will get a 70 per cent cut of the gross pro� t on their sales, with UK Computer Suppliers trousering the remaining 30 per cent, plus various charges, in return for taking care of back-o� ce needs.

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RESEARCH

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■ Arti� cial intelligence (AI) promises to be “the most disruptive class of technologies during the next 10 years”, according to Gartner. Global business value derived from AI – based on customer experience, new revenue and cost reduction – will total $1.2tn in 2018, an increase of 70 per cent from 2017, the analyst said. Gartner added that this � gure will reach $3.9tn in 2022.

■ � e EMEA outsourcing market is in sharp decline, according to research house ISG, which found that contract values spiralled during the � rst three months of the year. � e annual contract value (ACV) of commercial outsourcing contracts in Q1 fell by 20 per cent across EMEA to €3bn, which ISG claims is a result of enterprises opting to instead put their budgets towards preparing for GDPR ahead of the 25 May deadline. � e steep decline stems from a 40 per cent drop in ACV for traditional outsourcing contracts, despite just a three per cent drop in the number of contracts signed.

� e UK saw the steepest declines, according to ISG, su� ering a 60 per cent drop spurred on by the collapse of Carillion and other major UK outsourcers.

■ Global spending on cloud infrastructure services hit $17bn in Q1 this year, up a whopping 47 per cent on last year according to Canalys. AWS kept the top spot, with revenues almost double that of its rival Microsoft, but spending grew 93 per cent at Microsoft which is growing faster than AWS. Google came in third.

■ Figures released by McAfee this month point to SOC automation and gami� cation in the workplace as key to beating cybercriminals. In its Winning the Game survey, Vanson Bourne surveyed 300 senior security managers and 650 security professionals at private and public sector companies with at least 500 employees in the US, UK, Germany, France, Japan, Singapore and Australia.

Among the � ndings are that 46 per cent of participants believe they will either struggle with or � nd it impossible to defend against the growth of cyber threats over the next year, and 84 per cent say it is di� cult to � nd security talent, with 31 per cent saying they aren’t doing anything to � nd new workers. As such, the survey � nds 81 per cent of

participants think their � rm would be more secure with more automation, and 25 per cent say this will liberate time for innovation and value-added work.

■ North America topped the data breaches chart in 2017, according to the 2018 Trustwave Global Security Report released this month. However, it declined slightly from last year to 43 per cent of the total, followed by Asia-Paci� c at 30 per cent, EMEA at 23 per cent and Latin America at four per cent. In the vertical sector, retail was the hardest hit, followed by � nance and insurance.

■ Worldwide semiconductor revenue totalled $420.4bn in 2017, a 21.6 per cent increase from 2016’s � gure of $345.9bn, according to Gartner data. � e market was driven by strong growth in the memory space as under-supply drove pricing for DRAM and NAND � ash higher, says the analyst.

Intel, which has been rated the one vendor for the last 25 years, was pushed into second place by Samsung Electronics. However, Gartner predicts the company’s lead will be “short-lived and will disappear when the memory market goes into its bust cycle, most likely in late 2019.”

■ Less than half of organisations surveyed by LogRhythm are able to detect a major cybersecurity incident within one hour, according to its Cybersecurity: Perceptions & Practices survey. � e ➔

� gures also revealed that a third felt that if they had been able to detect a major cybersecurity incident, they would not be able to contain it within an hour.

■ Business decision makers (BDMs) have “seized a much greater role” in technology acquisition, according to the latest research by Techaisle. In a blog, the analyst claims that BDMs also play a much more prevalent role in technology deployment and management than IT management.

In small businesses in particular, businesses play a more in� uential role than IT in � ve out of nine stages of technology adoption, Techaisle said. When it comes to medium-sized businesses, the analyst noted that business management dominates the � rst three stages of decision making, which it described as needs identi� cation to solution options.

■ Mobile phishing click rates have increased 85 per cent annually since 2011, according to security � rm Lookout. In a survey of its users and over 67 million mobile devices, the mobile security � rm’s report, Mobile Phishing 2018: Myths and facts facing every modern enterprise today, � nds that mobile users who clicked on a mobile phishing link did so an average of six times a year.

■ CRM has overtaken database management systems (DBMS) as the largest software sub-segment, according to Gartner. � e analyst also tipped CRM’s star to continue rising thanks to GDPR, which will be enforced from 25 May. CRM software revenues hit $39.5bn in 2017, ahead of DBMS sales of $36.8bn. � e market is projected to grow a further 16 per cent in 2018, making it not only the largest, but also the fastest-growing software market.

� e lead management, voice of the customer and � eld service management sectors of the CRM market are each enjoying more than 20 per cent growth, Gartner noted.

■ Global IT spend will reach $3.7tn this year, according to Gartner’s latest forecast. � is is a 6.2 per cent increase from 2017’s numbers, according to Gartner’s Worldwide Spending Forecast. Gartner research VP John David Lovelock noted that although IT spend will grow in 2018, the declining US dollar has caused currency tailwinds, which are the main reason for this strong growth.

■ Small businesses represent 58 per cent of data

breach victims, a new report from Verizon reveals. Healthcare organisations represented the second-most breached at 24 per cent, with accommodation and food services third at 15 per cent, according to the Verizon 2018 Data Breach Investigations Report, a survey of 67 organisations and analysis of 53,000 incidents and 2,216 breaches from 65 countries. Most (73 per cent) breaches came from outsider threats, while 50 per cent came from organised criminal groups and 12 per cent involved nation-state or state-a� liated actors, according to the report.

■ One third of organisations say that their business is at stake if they don’t comply with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), according to research by NetApp. In a survey covering 1,106 C-suite managers, CIOs and IT managers responsible for or involved in IT buying decisions across the US, the UK, France and Germany, NetApp found that 35 per cent of respondents felt GDPR could “threaten their business” because of the � nancial penalties associated with non-compliance. In the US this � gure rises to 40 per cent of respondents.

Meanwhile, 51 per cent of global respondents expressed concerns about the damage that non-compliance could do to their reputation. � is � gure rises to 56 per cent of businesses in the UK, 52 per cent in the US, 49 per cent in France and 45 per cent in Germany. ➔

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■ A study released by McAfee this month reveals that one in four organisations that use the public cloud have had data stolen. � e report, Navigating a cloudy sky: Practical guidance and the state of cloud security, also says one in � ve has experienced an advanced attack against its public cloud infrastructure. � e data shows 97 per cent of organisations use cloud services – public, private or a combination of both – up from 93 per cent a year ago. Further, 83 per cent say they store sensitive data in the public cloud and 69 per cent trust the public cloud to keep their sensitive data secure.

■ Worldwide ICT spending will exceed $5.6tn in 2021, with new technologies accounting for a growing share of overall investments. � at is according to IDC’s Worldwide Black Book: 3rd Platform Edition which claims that by 2021, new third-platform technologies, including IoT, robots and drones, augmented reality and virtual reality (AR/VR) headsets, and 3D printers, will account for almost a quarter (23 per cent) of total ICT spending. Overall, it says the four pillars of cloud, mobile, social, plus big data and analytics, will make up more than 70 per cent of worldwide ICT spending.

■ IT providers will require a di� erent set of marketing tactics to reach and engage with millennials in the workplace, according to a new study by Spiceworks. � e research, outlined in a blog post, reveals 65 per cent of millennials believe the technologies they purchase at home in� uence the technologies they purchase for their organisation. � is is compared with 55 per cent of Generation Xers and 57 per cent of baby boomers. Brand relationships are also important to millennials: 60 per cent prefer to purchase from tech brands that focus on building a relationship versus “those looking to secure a quick transactional deal”.

Elsewhere, personal experiences are more important to millennials. � irty-four per cent said they need to have “a personal experience” with a tech brand, such as an email exchange or in-person encounter, before making a purchase, compared with 25 per cent of Gen Xers and 17 per cent of baby boomers.

■ Automated digital sales are set to be vendors’ second- and third-highest source of indirect revenue over the next � ve years, according to the

latest research by � e 2112 Group. But there is also opportunity for channel partners who can deliver professional, managed and integration services, the report, entitled Strategies for Engaging Automated Digital Sales Channels, claimed.

■ Research from Kaspersky Lab revealed an increase in activity by both old and new botnets, growth in the popularity of ampli� cation DDoS attacks and the return of long-lasting (multi-day) DDoS attacks. � e security vendor’s Q1 2018 DDoS Intelligence Report claimed that long-lasting attacks returned with a bang in the � rst quarter of 2018 with the longest DDoS attack lasting more than 12 days.

Kaspersky said the last time it saw a longer attack than this was at the end of 2015. China, the US and South Korea were the top three most targeted, while Hong Kong and Japan replaced the Netherlands and Vietnam to feature as part of the top 10 most-targeted countries in Q1.

■ Adoption of uni� ed communications and UC-as-a-service continues to grow among SMBs, according to a survey undertaken by Intermedia and Techaisle. � e survey claimed 40 per cent of SMBs are using collaboration tools – up from 32 per cent two years ago, with productivity software topping the list, followed by � le/document management and sharing and web conferencing. Looking at the top � ve reasons for purchase, reliability ranks number one, followed by price, features, quality and support.

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ANALYSIS

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April saw the UK government give everyone the perfect lesson in how not to handle a sensitive situation when the Windrush immigration scandal snared headlines, by trying to brush things under the carpet and deny all knowledge of any wrongdoing.

It is always better to be open and honest, and look at � nding a positive solution, rather than indulging in � nger pointing and denial. It is a lesson many businesses have learned the hard way. Governments should know better.

Talking of sensitive situations, there appeared to be the beginnings of a thaw between North and South Korea this month as well, with North Korea agreeing not to develop any more nuclear weapons.

But as the UK government backtracked on Windrush and Amber Rudd fell on her sword, another major story emerged this month as news broke that supermarket giants Sainsbury’s and ASDA were in talks to merge. � at certainly came out of the blue, with speculation over the new name – SASDA? Sainsbasda? Ainsbury’s – doing the rounds on social media.

Of course, the deal has to be agreed by the Competition Commission because some cynics argue it is a move to get Tesco o� the top spot and also give Lidl and Aldi a bloody nose. Whether the move is as good for sta� and customers remains to be seen. But anything that sparks a price war will always be welcomed by customers.

Turning to the IT sector, battles of a di� erent kind – for market control – are a constant feature between cloud leaders AWS, Microsoft and Google, which saw Q1 growth of 43 per cent, 26 per cent and 16 per cent respectively. However, Microsoft, which last month we learned was on track to be the � rst vendor to reach a $1tn market valuation, is stealing a march on growth, with its Azure revenue for the quarter growing at a whopping 90 per cent.

Microsoft also pinned its � ag to the IoT mast, revealing it was to invest £5bn into the technology over the next four years.

In other vendor news, the channel proved its worth for Citrix, which credited its partners for its � ve per cent Q1 revenue jump. However, Sage, which has had an on-o� relationship with the channel in recent years, failed to hit growth expectations for the quarter. � e vendor did admit it was getting closer to partners again, which raises

the of question why it ever distanced itself from the channel in the � rst place.

In distribution land, Exclusive Group was the standout performer in this month’s line-up – chasing €10bn revenue and setting ambitious £500m targets for its UK business as well. Tech Data meanwhile is set for a change of CEO later this year, with Bob Dutkowsky taking a role as executive chairman of the board, and former IBM exec Rich Hume taking over the hotseat.

In the reseller space, we saw two pretty impressive megadeals.

Bytes was the star performer with its £150m Windows 10 deal with the NHS (much needed after the WannaCry outbreak last year) and Computacenter’s UK results were bolstered by a one-o� £34m megadeal, making it the poster child for the group’s Q1 results, beating both Germany and France. Both � rms are proof that there are still some big deals out there for the taking.

� ere were also a few acquisitions in the VAR space, with DXC Technology grabbing another player in the Dynamics market, and ambitious Belgian VAR Econocom taking a 60 per cent stake in Spanish � rm Altabox. Private equity-backed MTI ➔

Europe also ensured it was one to watch after CEO Scott Haddow hinted at acquisitions in the future – likely in Europe or the US. Channel buy-and-build player MXLG also got in on the act with its acquisition of SICL, and we saw the � rst mention of a “McDonalds style” franchising system going on with relative whippersnapper UK Computer Suppliers, which is hoping to build a 19-strong network of franchises in the next three years. It will be interesting to see if that model works, but it is a good way for a senior salesperson who has reached the pinnacle of their current job to get a foothold in a business of their own and make their mark.

Sadly it wasn’t all positive news; LDD Group went into administration – a � rm that started in an old dairy and showed real promise by reaching £12m revenues and 50 sta� at its peak, but unfortunately the ill health of one of its directors meant it struggled to implement its growth strategy. It hopes to keep trading and � nd a buyer as a going concern.

Looking at the trends for the month, arti� cial intelligence (AI) featured heavily – according to Gartner AI is set to be the most disruptive class of technology during the next 10 years, reaching $3.9tn in 2022. Rival research house IDC backed this up with its 3rd Platform Technology report, which claimed that third-platform technologies such as IoT, robots, drones and AI will account for over a quarter of total ICT spending by 2021.

Interestingly, it emerged that GDPR had an impact on outsourcing, according to ISG, which claimed that contract values fell by 20 per cent across EMEA as enterprises put their budgets towards getting ready for GDPR which comes into force on 25 May. � e UK saw the steepest decline mainly thanks to the collapse of Carillion and other UK outsourcers. Not the most welcome news, but it does o� er a chance for smaller MSPs to o� er a more bespoke service to these jaded customers. Opportunity always knocks.

On a more positive note, spending on cloud infrastructure grow 47 per cent in Q1 according to Canalys, with AWS grabbing the top spot, pulling in revenues almost double that of arch rival Microsoft.

In other good news, global IT spend is set to grow 6.2 per cent on last year according to Gartner – which is a boon for the channel. Firms are realising the need to keep their technology up to date and unfortunately (for them) that means investing.

Security is still very much at the forefront of people’s minds, with a Verizon report revealing that small businesses account for 58 per cent of data breach

victims, with healthcare organisations coming in second at 24 per cent. Similarly, McAfee � gures revealed that one in four organisations which use the public cloud has had data stolen, and further research by LogRhythm claimed that less than half of � rms it surveyed were able to detect a major cybersecurity incident within the � rst hour.

� ere is a huge opportunity in security for the channel; customers are desperate for � rms to guide them through the mine� eld of products and threats. CRN is holding an event dedicated to that in May – � nd out more here.

April was again a fairly quiet month – with the shadow of GDPR hanging over everyone’s heads, it appears � rms are getting on with business, staying under the radar, and maximising every opportunity.

Despite a couple of � rms experiencing a slightly challenging month, overall business appears very buoyant in the industry, and the appetite for M&A is very active in the reseller space. All in all, the general mood is a positive one, which is great to see.

13

MISCELLANEOUS

14

■ Tech giants such as Google, Microsoft and Facebook may have to hand over users’ data to European law enforcement o� cials even when it is stored on servers outside the EU under a proposed law on the matter, Reuters has claimed. � e EU said the law – which mandates that data such as emails and text messages be handed over within a six-hour to 10-day timeframe, depending on the urgency – is necessary because the procedures currently in place can take months, according to the report.

■ � e EU unveiled new regulations that will govern tech � rms’ relationships with smaller businesses in April. Reuters reported that the likes of Google, Apple and Amazon will be required to be more transparent in their dealings with app stores, search engines, e-commerce sites and hotel booking websites, speci� cally “how they rank search results and why they delist some services”. � e proposal would also give companies the right to collectively sue online platforms if they do not respect the new non-discrimination and transparency rules.

■ Citrix has taken legal action against desktop virtualisation challenger Workspot, alleging patent infringement and false and misleading public statements. In a blog, Citrix SVP, general counsel, secretary and chief legal compliance o� cer Tony Gomes said Workspot has “misled the market and has continuously used Citrix-patented features of our XenApp and XenDesktop products and cloud services without permission or licence”.

■ Twitter con� rmed it has banned Kaspersky Lab from advertising on the social media site, saying the cybersecurity � rm’s business model con� icts with advertising rules. Twitter reportedly con� rmed the ban in an email to news agency Reuters, after Kaspersky founder Eugene Kaspersky revealed the news in his blog earlier this month. Kaspersky said the company learned of the ban in January.

� e Russian vendor has repeatedly denied charges made by Washington that it has close ties to intelligence agencies in Moscow, and its software could be used to enable Russian spying.

■ � e European Commission launched an investigation this month into Apple’s bid for music discovery app Shazam. In a statement, the Commission said it is concerned the merger could reduce choice for users of music streaming services. Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the investigation “aims to ensure that music fans will continue to enjoy attractive music streaming o� ers and won’t face less choice as a result of this proposed merger.” � e Commission said it is concerned that following the takeover of Shazam, Apple “would obtain access to commercially sensitive data about customers of its competitors for the provision of music streaming services in the EEA. A decision will be made by 4 December.

EVENTS■ Cisco Partner Connection, Nassau – � e networking giant brought partners to a Caribbean paradise as it asked them to look at new strategies and solutions that will help them navigate the market challenges they face. Automation, cloud and networking were major themes of the event. Click here for a full round-up of the event.

■ ConnectWise IT Nation, London – Click here for information on the main discussion points of the event.

■ Oracle SuiteWorld, Las Vegas – CEO Mark Hurd claimed the vendor is planning to “out-invest” everybody in the industry when it comes to cloud and told delegates the acquisition of NetSuite had gone according to plan. Click here for more.

■ RSA Conference 2018, San Francisco – One of the world’s biggest security conferences took place this month with everything cybersecurity under one roof. A big topic this year was AI and what it means for the security market. Click here for more.