5 Channel Partner and MSP Updates: Thursday 20 August 2020

Here are five (actually more) technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Thursday, August 20, 2020. Sip up.

Our Daily Brew

A. What’s Happening Today

1. M&A Assessment Tool: Bugcrowd has launched Bugcrowd M&A Assessment (Mergers and Acquisitions), a pre-packaged bundle of security tests that allows companies to test the security of M&A targets. The bundle combines remotely-deployed penetration testing with the advanced asset discovery, alerting, attribution, prioritization, and management capabilities of the Bugcrowd platform. Organizations can initiate these tests in 72 hours or less—record time for the industry—and access results in real-time, expediting an evidence-based evaluation of a merger target’s cybersecurity posture.

2. M&A - Technology & Software Services: Endava has acquired Comtrade Digital Services business (CDS) of Dublin, Ireland. CDS provides strategic software engineering services and solutions and serves clients predominantly in the European Union but also elsewhere in Europe and in the United States.

3. M&A - Digital and IT Consulting: BAE Systems has acquired Techmodal, a UK-based data consultancy and digital services company.

4. Alleged Fraud Scheme Targets Amazon: Four individuals have been arrested after running a wire fraud and money laundering scheme against Amazon, according to  the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Amazon supported the investigation and the arrests.

5. Data Protection and Cybersecurity: Acronis has released Acronis True Image 2021. The new release integrates cybersecurity capabilities with personal backup to create a personal cyber protection solution for home users, prosumers, and small businesses.

6. Data Protection - New Headquarters: Infrascale has relocated its headquarters from Los Angeles to Reston, Virginia. After a recent Infrascale management shakeup, most of the company's new executive team is located in the Reston area.

7. Talent - Microsoft Azure for MSPs: Former Microsoft executive Andy Lees has joined Nerdio's board of directors.

8. Talent: West Monroe, a national business and technology consulting firm, today announced it is launching a new Corporate Transformation practice for companies that need technology-led transformations and turnaround services. The practice will be led by Guy Cartwright, a 20-year veteran turnaround executive, who joined West Monroe in July 2020 as a managing director.

9. Talent - Hosting Services: Leaseweb has named Marilou van Doorn as chief operations officer.

10. Zoom Video Conferencing Goes Home: Zoom for Home is expanding to smart displays including Amazon Echo Show, Portal from Facebook, and Google Nest Hub Max. Zoom on Portal is expected to be available publicly in September; Zoom on Echo Show and Zoom on Assistant-enabled Smart Displays, including Google Nest Hub Max are expected to be available by the end of the year, the company says.

11. Earnings - Nvidia & Chips: Nvidia's Q2 revenue was $3.87 billion, up 50 percent year over year. The chip maker's financial results exceeded Wall Street's expectations, but Nvidia ($NVDA) warned that growth would likely slow in the quarters ahead.

12. Earnings - Alibaba & Cloud Services: Alibaba revenue was $21.76 billion in Q2, up 34 percent year over year. Also, Alibaba's cloud computing revenue grew 59% year-over-year to $1.75 billion. The results generally beat Wall Street's expectations.

13. Going Public - Asana: Workplace software firm Asana, which is planning to go public next month, is projecting a 66% increase in revenue this year, partly due to the impact Covid-19 has had on remote work, according to previously unreported financial projections the company has given its investors, The Information reports. Asana has picked the New York Stock Exchange as the home for its direct listing in late September, Bloomberg reports.

B. Channel Partner Programs and Strategic Alliances

1. Talent - Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) Channel Chief: North America Managing Director Dan Belanger has resigned from HPE. Paul Hunter will succeed Belanger, according to an HPE blog.

2. Talent - Tibco Software: ServiceNow, Salesforce and Anaplan veteran Tony Beller has joined Tibco Software as senior vice president of worldwide partner ecosystems and OEM sales. In his new role, Beller will work to build new markets with the partner ecosystem, drive revenue, and ensure customer success through partners, including service providers, resellers, system integrators, independent software vendors (ISVs), OEM partners, and technology partners, Tibco says.

3. Cybersecurity Event for MSPs and TSPs: ConnectWise in October plans to host the IT Nation Secure 2020 virtual conference for TSPs and MSPs.

4. CloudBlue Virtual Conference: The CloudBlue Innovators Virtual Forum 2020 is scheduled for October 12-14. The CloudBlue Commerce and CloudBlue Connect platforms allow organizations to automate, aggregate and sell both their own cloud services as well as those from third-party vendors. Ingram Micro owns CloudBlue.

5. Partner Program - MSP Data Protection: Axcient has unveiled an expanded partner program led by Corey Banner, director of partner success.

6. Partnership - Amazon Web Services (AWS): Crayon, an IT consulting firm focused on digital transformation services, has announced a deeper relationship with Amazon Web Services. The announcement surfaced roughly one day after rumors that AWS may invest in Rackspace Technology.

7. Partnership - Call Centers: Cyara, which develops the Automated CX Assurance Platform, has joined Twilio’s partner ecosystem.

8. SAP Managed Services: NTT's Managed Services division America has enhanced its ControlPanelGRC (CPGRC) governance, risk and compliance software for clients using SAP S/4HANA or the HANA database.