SMB Nation Blog

This morning, SugarCRM announced the availability of a new deployment option for their CRM applications at the SugarCon 2013 event in New York, NY. SugarCRM customers may now choose to have their services deployed via a private cloud option, which will be managed by the Sugar team.

Here we go again! As I do each week, I am really enjoying bringing our readers a quick round-up of the blog coverage I didn’t manage to get to during the week prior. We have been pretty busy around here at SMB Nation in gearing up for our SMB 150 Awards Gala Dinner, and our Spring Conference, which will be held May 3-5, 2013, at the Microsoft Redmond Campus. For more information, and to register, go to: http://spring.smbnation.com/.

Based in Texas, CMIT Solutions announced Continuum as the exclusive managed services software and services provider for its more than 135 franchises nationwide. The arrangement enables CMIT franchisees to more efficiently and cost-effectively deliver comprehensive IT management, protection and support services that meet all the technology needs of their small-to-mid-sized business (SMB) customers. IT service providers who adopt Continuum’s fully integrated platform can achieve unprecedented gross margins in their managed services business, which is not possible using alternative software-only solutions.

LenovoEMC yesterday, announced the next generation of the company’s LifeLine OS for Iomega-branded Network Storage devices. The new version, LifeLine 4.0 includes updated security and backup features and is expected to come pre-installed on devices beginning May 2013, although current StorCenter ix and px customers will be able to access a free upgrade via download starting next week.

Yesterday, CompTIA and Channel Partners Online announced the results of the third annual Partnering Trends between Telecom and IT Channels study. The main finding of the study was that partnerships between IT and Telecom companies are not only growing in number, but in importance and formality.

Earlier this week, we reported that Intronis completed its search for a new CEO. Most of you in our community know that the BDR provider’s previous CEO, Kent Plunkett departed last fall. Since then, Jay Bolgatz, Intronis’ VP of Engineering had been filling in as interim CEO while a search committee sought out a new leader.

It was reported this morning by various news outlets that Ray Lane, HP’s Chairman of the Board, has resigned his post, effective immediately. His replacement, for time being, is Ralph Whitworth, until a permanent Chairman can be found.

Rackspace announced this morning that it has been selected by Buffalo, a provider of networking and storage solutions for the home and small business environments, to provide the open cloud infrastructure that will power its new product, BuffaloLink. This product will give Buffalo customers easy access to terabytes of content, using the cloud to access their data at their home or office from anywhere. 

Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

Now is the time to download the latest SMB Nation magazine edition. In Issue 7-3, we focus on the following hot topics:

• Why do SBSers have a bad attitude?
• The SMB 150 List revealed – very impressive thought leaders!
• What Happened to Franchising?
• BYOD Debate
• Windows 8 Security
• Cloud Profits!

Click here to download the 7-3 issue!

In case you’ve actually been on an extended Spring break and perhaps missed our recent communication, the Spring Conference is May 3-5 at Microsoft Redmond!

D&H Distributing has added new resources and capabilities to its Partner Services marketing program, as the offering hits the one-year milestone.  Partner Services offers resellers an expanding library of customizable brochure templates and an array of vendor materials that VARs can use to promote their own services. 

Yesterday, Logicalis announced the release of a new partner program aimed at helping SMB MSPs get marketing, expertise, and tech opportunities to make their businesses grow. The M.E.E.T., or MSP Expert Extension Team, program draws on five major areas to assist the SMB MSP.

This morning, ManageEngine announced the general availability of their new ServiceDesk-MSP app for the iPhone. This app, which is currently free to existing ServiceDesk-MSP customers, enables users to access and resolve tickets while away from their desktop.

Late last month, Microsoft OEM executive Peter Han (Vice President, US OEM) provided a sneak preview of the April 1 “Touch Win” campaign. Ironically, it’s not an April Fool’s joke. Rather, the “Touch Win” campaign is being adopted by distributors such as D&H Distributing, and DMRs such as CDW.

According to a press release issued today by tech analyst Jeff Kagan, Windows XP users are still hanging on to old times. “With all the talk about Windows Vista, 7 and 8, the truth is roughly one-third of all users may still be on XP and staying put,” Kagan says.

It was announced this morning that Best Buy and target have reportedly ended their test partnership, which placed Best Buy’s Geek Squad staff at 29 Target stores in Denver and Minneapolis, as reported by the Minneapolis Star. 

Avangate yesterday announced the results and availability of a commissioned Technology Adoption Profile (TAP) conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Avangate. The research highlights the increasing role resellers will play, with 66% of surveyed companies indicating that channel partners are strategically important to growing revenues from their SaaS products.

This morning, the MegaPath Corporation announced that they will deploy all of their VoIP and SIP Trunking Services via Edgewater Networks’ EdgeMarc 4552 Series ESBC and EdgeView VoIP Support System. MegaPath chose the Edgewater Networks system due to its ease of integration into their network. By implementing the Edgewater solutions, MegaPath can easily offer Hosted Voice services to their customers.

ConnectSolutions today announced that they have acquired provider of Microsoft Lync-based UC solutions, NextUC. This acquisition will allow ConnectSolutions to expand their market to include service offerings for the SMB niche.

Dell today announced Dell Precision Performance Optimizer (DPPO), reportedly the industry’s first software that automatically configures Dell Precision workstation settings to maximize performance of engineering, design and digital content creation applications. DPPO is preloaded with profiles for popular applications such as Autodesk Maya, PTC Creo and Dassault SolidWorks and once activated automatically adjusts system settings to optimize performance. Additional features include proactive system maintenance and tracking and reporting of system utilization – helping Dell Precision customers enhance and speed up their design and render times. 

We received news that long-time community member, Chip Reaves is launching two new solutions this week. These new offerings include ComputerCollege.biz, a streamlined version of Reaves’ Bigger Brains online learning program, and a new, centralized site, BiggerMSP.com, where MSPs can go to join reseller programs for any of the Bigger Brains offerings.

We heard this morning from Intronis that the company has completed its search for a new CEO, and has formally announced that it has hired Rick Faulk as CEO and board member, effective immediately.

Here we go again! As I do each week, I am really enjoying bringing our readers a quick round-up of the blog coverage I didn’t manage to get to during the week prior. We have been pretty busy around here at SMB Nation in gearing up for our SMB 150 Awards Gala Dinner, and our Spring Conference, which will be held May 3-5, 2013, at the Microsoft Redmond Campus. For more information, and to register, go to: http://spring.smbnation.com/.

Carbonite said earlier today that Database Backup is now available for its online backup reseller partners to offer to their small business clients. Through the Carbonite Database Backup solution, resellers can now deliver a comprehensive cloud backup solution and ensure their clients can rest easy knowing their backup is protected offsite – securely, automatically and affordably.

DataCore today announced the release of their Premier Partner Program for the Americas. This new program has been designed specifically for resellers in Canada, the Caribbean, Latin America and the U.S. who are interested in entering or expanding their reach in the virtualization market.