Acronis has launched its new CyberFit Partner Program. The program rewards service providers and resellers for their "expertise, commitment, and growth with Acronis through performance-based benefits and financial compensation."
Instead of requiring partners to reach specific revenue goals, Acronis partners can now achieve Gold level status -- with associated perks -- by focusing on specific engagement tasks with Acronis, Channel Chief Alex Ruslyakov tells ChannelE2E.
In a prepared statement, Acronis said the #CyberFit Partner Program now includes:
- Financial incentives including rebates and proposal-based market development funds (MDF).
- Marketing and sales assets, with additional marketing automation tools and renewal tools coming in March 2021.
- Account management assistance that increases with program level, with dedicated marketing support available to Platinum partners.
- Enhanced technical support.
- Sales and technical training via the Acronis #CyberFit Academy, with courses available both live and online.
Next up, Acronis in March 2021 will launch a new partner portal to further simplify account management and communications with partners, the company says.
Data Protection, Backup and Cybersecurity Rolled Into One
Acronis was one of the first backup companies to push hard into the data security market. Through a mix of R&D and acquisitions, Acronis now offers a Cyber Protection platform and associated cloud services that extend from backup to anti-malware, endpoint management and more. Acronis CEO Serguei Beloussov explained the business evolution in this October 2020 ChannelE2E interview.
Still, multiple companies are blending and integrating security and data protection into their respective cloud services. Key rivals include:
- OpenText’s small business software unit — blending Carbonite and Webroot — has a somewhat similar Cyber Resilience strategy for MSPs.
- MSP platform technology providers such as Barracuda, Kaseya, NinjaRMM and SolarWinds MSP also offer software suites that span data protection and cybersecurity.
- ConnectWise gained cybersecurity services and a niche BDR platform from the Continuum acquisition, and also owns Perch Security.
- Datto has a massive installed base of data protection services, and also works closely with a range of cybersecurity technology companies.
- European cloud & email security provider Hornetsecurity acquired Altaro for backup and disaster recovery (BDR) data protection capabilities.
- Zix acquired CloudAlly for approximately $30 million in 2020.
All that said, Acronis was one of the first movers in the cyber protection market.
