5 Channel Partner Program and MSP News Updates: 20 January 2021

Here are five (actually, more) technology news updates, insights, chatter, and plenty more to start your day for Wednesday, January 20, 2021. Sip up.

What’s In Our Daily Brew?

A. What’s Brewing Today: Technology News

1. Joe Biden's Small Business Technology Priorities: See details and ongoing updates here.

2. Small Business Financial Assistance: Intuit has updated Intuit Aid Assist (IAA), a free website with two interactive tools to help eligible small business owners and the self-employed assess their eligibility for federal relief and related tax credits from the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act.

3. M&A - IT Support Software: TeamViewer has acquired Xaleon, an Austrian start-up and provider of customer engagement software. Xaleon develops a co-browsing technology that enables GDPR-compliant screensharing in web sessions without installation and transfer of user data. Moreover, Xaleon’s solution provides interfaces (APIs) to major customer service and ticketing systems.

4. MSP Security Summit: NinjaRMM is hosting a virtual MSP Security Summit on January 28. Participants include Coveware, Datto, Huntress, ITProMentor, Red Canary, and TrustedSec.

5. Platform as a Service (PaaS) - MSP: Rahi Systems has launched a global Platform as a Service (PaaS) called Elevate Subscription Services (ESS) by Rahi. The service will deliver elastic subscription-based technology frameworks that cover Networking, Security, A/V Collaborations, and Managed Services, Rahi says.

6. Talent - HP Inc: The PC and printer company has hired:

Also, HP General Counsel Harvey Anderson has been promoted to chief legal officer and corporate secretary. Anderson succeeds CLO Kim Rivera, who is leaving the company.

7. Kubernetes Management: Hitachi Vantara has launched Hitachi Kubernetes Service. The service "enables customers to simply, consistently, and securely deploy, manage, monitor, and govern Kubernetes clusters across major cloud providers and on premises," Hitachi Vantara asserts.

8. HP and Google Chromebooks: HP Inc. has introduced five new Chromebooks focused on teachers and students.

9. Subscriptions - Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL): New options are detailed here.

B. Channel Chiefs, Partner Programs and Strategic Alliances

1. Cloud Marketplace: Pax8's cloud marketplace for MSPs now features Enlyft, an AI-powered B2B customer intelligence platform that "accelerates new client acquisitions," the two companies say. The result: North American Pax8 partners now have access to resources providing "quality lead generation, effective account-based marketing, and prescriptive data insights," the companies say.

2. Partnering and Competing - Atos and IBM: Global IT consulting firm Atos and IBM are partnering to serve such vertical markets as manufacturing, energy and utilities, oil and gas, retail and transportation sectors. Still, the Atos-IBM partnership emerges even as the two companies compete more aggressively in hybrid cloud consulting. Indeed, both Atos and IBM have been acquiring cloud consulting firms worldwide.

3. Partner Program - SD-WANs: Versa Networks has unveiled the the Versa ACE (Accelerate, Captivate, Engage) Partner Program. It is the company’s first formal global channel partner program for VARs, SIs, SPs and MSPs.

4. Partner Program: Stratus Technologies has launched a new value-added reseller (VAR) program for OEMs, Machine Builders, and Solutions Builder. The program is focused on Edge Computing-based offerings.

5. Partnership - European Cloud Storage: OVHcloud is collaborating with IBM and Atempo to develop a Storage-as-a-Service to meet European enterprise and public institution security, sovereignty and resilience needs for the preservation of sensitive data, the three companies say.

6. Partner Program - Identity Management: Sectigo, a provider of digital identity management and web security solutions, has launched a Secure Partner Program.The company already has 1,200 partners worldwide.

7. Distribution: Ingram Micro has agreed to distribute Ergonomic Solutions to include the UK and France. Together, the companies already serve the Benelux, Nordics, DACH, Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Baltic states, and the Middle East.

8. Distribution - Wireless Networks: Poland’s Mission Critical by ASTOR has agreed to distribute Rajant wireless networks for such vertical markets as military, rail, mining, indoor warehousing, public safety, and other emerging markets.

C. Channel Partner Summits, MSP Conferences and Virtual Events Calendar