It is a sign of product maturity when cutting edge vendors let the reins go and start appointing partners as it is a signal that their products are channel ready. That’s why Comms Business Magazine caught up with SD-WAN vendor Open Systems and their Head of Channel EMEA, Nico Capitoni.
After three decades as a direct sales vendor Swiss SD-WAN services firm Open Systems is now making a major investment into a global channel partner programme, with plans to announce significant partnerships throughout the year.
So, what has brought about this new move from direct sales to appointing channel partners?
Nico Capitoni (NC): Open Systems has recently partnered with a Swedish private equity firm as a route for expansion of the business. So, along with a new headquarters in California and the opening of other offices we have decided to work with partners.
The UK and the US are both prime markets for Open Systems and both have established and mature channel routes to market. With Microsoft Azure being an established technology partner for us it’s logical for us to have Equinix as a data centre and co-location partner.
Our partner CDW provides a wide range of managed IT services including security and 8x8 gives Open Systems access to the UC and contact centre markets.
SD-WANs provide users with greater control and visibility of networks and their security is a key factor for all which is why we have integrated security features built in to our offerings.
Overall we have 15 UK partners now and having recently appointed a UK channel manager we plan to have 50 active partners by the end of 2020.
What do you see as being the key market drivers for SD-WANs?
NC: With the advent of 5G and the growth of the IoT coming alongside deployment of tech such as AI and Blockchain, the requirement to deliver data quickly, seamlessly and securely across networks has never been greater.
Application performance and security are crucial in achieving this.
Open Systems secure SD-WAN addresses these needs and reduces network risks, simplifies compliance and eliminates the complexities of managing a global IT network. Integrated, multi-layered network security and protections are seamlessly built into every edge device.
Why should channels consider partnering with Open Systems for SD-WAN services?
NC: Open Systems has spent decades building the most robust, reliable and secure global network infrastructure, and the combination of Open Systems and our partners, for example Equinix, provides a single worldwide solution that our customers can rely on to roll out applications powered secure SD-WAN solution.
The Open Systems offering dramatically reduces complexity, increases cybersecurity, improves application performance and eliminates barriers to global expansion for business.
The global SD-WAN can be monitored from a single cloud-based interface and is backed 24/7/365 by Open Systems network and security operations and L3 DevOps engineers.
The SD-WAN market is set to explode as customers look for more flexibility and control with their connectivity options. The Channel are spoilt for choice when it comes to SD-WAN options as providers come to market in their hoards. However, are all SD-WAN propositions born equal? In this episode David Dungay will be joined by Anthony Senter, MD of SDWAN Solutions, Adrian Tate, VP Sales EMEA at Talari Networks, and Tony Randall, Global Software Defined Solution Director at Westcon. The expert panel will be discussing the latest in SD-WAN and how partners can go about adding it to their portfolio.
Ed Says…
Organisations are moving to the cloud at an unprecedented rate and Open Systems has a lot of bases covered here. For global or international deployments it is clear they have entrusted a great deal to Equinix and their extensive world-wide managed service operation. Likewise, Open Systems are clearly aware of security threats with both their own built in features and partnerships steeped in security skills.
SD-WANs are not a like for like replacement vehicle of MPLS networks – there are downsides. Not all SD-WAN deployments will provide significant costs savings as every use case is different and as a rough rule of thumb I would say that the more overseas branches or operational centres a firm has the greater the opportunities for savings exists.
Open Systems provides an ‘overlay SD-WAN service, which means they are not a connectivity supplier. The company say they are transport agnostic as to the carrier and whether an organisation is already using MPLS or indeed, off-loading to the internet.
With application performance being critical as firms move more and more of their business processes to the cloud and application performance improvement being routinely slated as one of the key benefits of going for an SD-WAN, any mention of internet off-load would worry me, let alone a business IT/Network manager.
But that’s manageable if all the other benefits stack up.