Channel catch-up: News in brief

SentinelOne

The firm’s channel summit formed the backdrop to the launch of its global PartnerOne Programme, which will provide tools, technology and support to customers.

The programme is structured around four tracks tailored to different types of partners: manage, for MSPs and MSSPs; sell, for resellers and solution providers; build for ISVs and technology partners; and deliver, for system integrators and service providers.

“Partners are at the core of our mission to deliver cutting-edge cyber security solutions,” said Brian Lanigan, senior vice-president and global head of partner ecosystem at SentinelOne. “With the Global PartnerOne Programme, we are creating an ecosystem that fosters long-term success by empowering partners to expand their market presence, increase customer satisfaction and maximise profitability.”

Unframe and Climb

AI platform specialist Unframe emerged from stealth with $50M in funding from Bessemer Venture Partners, TLV Partners, Craft Ventures, Third Point Ventures, SentinelOne Ventures and Cerca Partners.

Unframe signed a distribution agreement with Climb Channel Solutions in the UK. The partnership will enable resellers and enterprises across the region to access Unframe’s platform and deliver AI solutions at scale.

“We are very excited to welcome Unframe to our growing roster of innovative technology companies with a focus on AI,” said Gerard Brophy, CRO at Climb. “Unframe opens up a huge amount of opportunities by enabling organisations to solve all of their AI use cases in one platform. We firmly believe this can be a gamechanger for our partners.”

Shay Levi, co-founder and CEO of Unframe, said the firm was going to use funds to fuel global expansion and increase R&D into its platform: “Our AI solutions are built to do more than just improve traditional enterprise workflows. For too long, businesses hungry to innovate have been slowed by costly legacy software and services companies.

“We’ve reimagined what’s possible by creating a platform that challenges the status quo of enterprise software and empowers companies to save time, cut costs and modernise the way they operate.”

Softcat

The channel player has indicated that after upgrading offices in London and Birmingham the next move is happening in Bristol. Softcat cut the ribbon on its operations in the city back in 2014, and will be relocating from Wyndham Court to Bristol’s Halo building, expanding by 3,000ft².

With an eye on sustainability, the new office is close to public transport, with staff encouraged to use it as a means of getting to work, as well as being a seven-minute walk from Temple Meads train station.

“Our new office marks a significant milestone in Bristol’s growth,” said James Jarvis, sales and office manager for Softcat Bristol. “The team has crafted an exceptional space that celebrates Bristol’s unique and proud culture. It not only brings a remarkable upgrade in technology and branding, but is thoughtfully designed with both our employees and customers in mind.

“For our employees, we’ve created a diverse and innovative environment that empowers them to work in the most effective way. For our customers, we’ve established a spacious event area to host and connect with more local businesses throughout the South West.”

TD Synnex

The distributor has been appointed by Civo in the UK&I to help the firm widen its channel reach and get its Kubernetes-powered cloud services in front of more customers.

“We are adding Civo to our comprehensive portfolio of cloud options at a time when a lot of customers are re-evaluating their strategies and looking for options that will enable them to operate and grow cost-efficiently,” said Simon Bennett, managing director of advanced solutions, UK and Ireland, at TD Synnex.

“Civo’s value proposition, combined with the exceptional cloud expertise, services and support of the TD Synnex hybrid cloud team, will resonate strongly, both with partners and their end-user customers.”

In response, Henry Godwin, vice-president global sales at Civo, said the firm wanted to view the distribution relationship as a means of getting exposure to more partners: “Through our alliance with TD Synnex, we will extend our visibility and penetration and offer a genuine alternative that delivers benefits to both the end customer and the partner in equal measure.”

Bugcrowd

The crowd-sourced cyber security player has cut the ribbon on a fresh managed service provider (MSP) offering for partners, addressing the backlog of compliance-related pentests.

The firm is hoping that the provision of a standardised and scalable solution will provide MSPs with something to take out to mid-size customers that will be an efficient way of offering pentesting.

“By leveraging our crowd-sourced streamlined-scope pentesting capabilities, MSPs can offer their clients fast, reliable and cost-effective compliance testing,” said Jacques Lopez, vice-president of global channel and alliances, Bugcrowd. “This enables those clients to stay ahead of regulatory requirements and security threats while their systems are secure and compliant. 

“This offering can augment the capabilities of those partners who already provide pentesting, enabling them to reserve their in-house pentesters for projects they are best-suited for while Bugcrowd handles more routine projects.”

Hornetsecurity

The firm has acquired French email security player Altospam as part of a strategy to strengthen its European position, and follows in the wake of previous moves in the country, including the purchase of Vade Secure last year.

“We are excited to join Hornetsecurity Group, as this enables us to join an exceptional European cybersecurity champion in what is largely a US-centric cyber security world,” said Jean-Christian Dumas, CEO at Altospam.

“This important milestone will present our partners and customers with a far wider range of robust, AI-powered cyber security solutions that have been proudly built in Europe, extending beyond email security to backup and recovery, permission management, compliance and security awareness.”