Comms Dealer

The autumn acquisition of UK-based UC distributor SIPHON Networks by pan-EMEA distribution firm Nuvias Group promised to extend SIPHON's influence in the UK and across the continent. We spoke to SIPHON Managing Director Steve Harris to find out how.

Harris's intention has always been to try and take the SIPHON product portfolio and value proposition into new geographical markets, and he had been looking at executing on this plan throughout 2016 after successfully expanding the business into the Benelux region. "The acquisition by Nuvias enables us to accelerate this and the group provides us access to over 20 potential countries across EMEA where we can look to replicate our success in the UK and Benelux regions," he said. "Nuvias shares the same philosophy, in terms of the focus on how we add value to our channel partners and provides significant scale, expertise and financial backing in enabling us to transfer this value into new areas."

Nuvias has adopted a 'practice' approach within its evolving organisation structure and is looking for these practices to be thought leaders and experts in the key technology focus areas for the Group. SIPHON will be the Unified Communications practice but its partners also have access to the other six practices being built within Nuvias. The Advanced Networking (former Zycko) and Cyber Security (former Wick Hill) practices are also in place and the SIPHON resellers and partners will now gain the opportunity to explore further new revenue opportunities from being part of this wider group.

"SIPHON has always had a strong focus on innovation and we have a dedicated team in place whose job is solely about researching and launching new technology areas," added Harris. "We are now also working on our own software development to provide operational support systems for our partners to simplify the deployment and management of cloud services. We have made significant investments in the automation of our internal systems and 70 per cent of our orders today are via our API or web store. We will look to continue this approach to enable us to scale effectively.
"Through a combination of growth in our existing markets and entering new regions we expect to double our revenues over the next three years. We will be fully integrated into Nuvias by this time but the ethos of the Unified Communications practice within Nuvias will be SIPHON and built on the DNA and success we have achieved to date."

Much of this success derives from SIPHON's role as a cloud technology enabler for partners, and a growing area is Microsoft's Skype for Business (SfB) which continues to gain traction from large enterprises and public sector organisations. This traction is now being replicated all the way down to the SME with the launch of the E5 SfB license pack on O365. "The availability of the E5 license and a PSTN calling plan from Microsoft in the UK has resulted in a new and significant peak of interest from end users which is now translating to a business opportunity for a new type of reseller looking to enter the UC market, and who have come from predominantly an IT background," noted Harris.

"These resellers are mostly proficient in delivering the collaboration and messaging (Sharepoint/IM/Exchange) features of SfB and O365 and when you add the growing popularity of MS Dynamics as a CRM and the continuing closer alignment between Dynamics and SfB they are well placed to also deliver the full SfB E5 Communications solution. Certainly there is also now an increasing interest too from the more traditional voice resellers to have some form of SfB offering in their portfolio."

Resellers can leverage either their own internal engineering skills, SIPHON's skills as a white labelled service or a combination of the two. "We aim to fill in the gaps and enable resellers to sell SfB solutions effectively," added Harris. "We have been deploying cloud UC platforms for seven years and developed some cloud-based software ourselves which help resellers to deploy SfB solutions and handle the ongoing management of SfB hardware and end points."

Microsoft is not new to this space and Live Communications Server (LCS) was first introduced about 10 years ago. SfB is just the latest release in the journey of Microsoft becoming a credible Unified Communications supplier as well as being dominant in IT. Traditional resellers should look to have some form of Microsoft offering alongside their traditional offerings as ultimately their end user customers are likely to be using some form of Microsoft product and the chances are that usage will continue to expand, believes Harris.

"Certainly at the Microsoft World Partner Conference in Toronto this year there was a very clear commitment to working through channel partners, and with its size and scale plus commitment to innovation and R&D Microsoft is bound to exert even more influence in the communications space moving forward."

Another priority area is the growth of video and collaboration. "Broadly speaking, we provide resellers and service providers with the same value proposition in video and collaboration that we've been delivering in voice and UC services, which is centred on technology enablement for our channel partners," explained Harris. "Firstly, we have invested in engineering skills and internal systems to ensure we have a strong engineering and technical support capability in video platforms as this is at the centre of everything we do in supporting our partners.

"Secondly we want to make the delivery and support of video and collaboration solutions easy and repeatable as historically deploying room based systems and MCUs has been both cumbersome and expensive. We have developed packages of hardware bundles for various room types from huddle rooms to large meeting rooms that are simple for our partners to sell and package to end users. We also then provide field installation services plus extended warranty and technical support to our partners and we are launching some new cloud-based Video as a Service (VaaS) offerings in the new year to complement our video hardware and engineering services portfolio.

"The combination of all of these items is what powers how we enable our channel partners to sell, deploy and support full packages of end point hardware and peripherals together with a white labelled cloud based VaaS proposition."

It is becoming increasingly clear that users do not see video as a separate application to voice and IT now, and it's important that any room system deployed works well and seamlessly into PC clients for remote and mobile users. "When end users then start to consider applications like desktop sharing and collaboration too, it's clear that video services can no longer be deployed and supported in isolation from other IT and voice platforms," commented Harris.

"A further key trend driving adoption is the significant reduction in costs in room system and MCU hardware and the availability of cost effective software based VMRs. Our partnering strategy is based upon making video a ubiquitous and repeatable service that can be deployed in volume and at a price that delivers this to down to the SME as well as the large corporates who have traditionally invested in large scale and complex video deployments. Those companies who make video simple to deploy and consume commercially will see significant success and we are working with our vendor partners to bring new VaaS and associated hardware bundles to market to address this."

The popularity of Skype and Facetime demonstrates the potential usage of video as an application and people now expect to have the same experience in the workplace and want to connect with colleagues who are in rooms and/or on their PCs and mobiles in a seamless and single video call or conference. "This consumerisation of video is driving the emergence of new and innovative video vendors and service providers who are looking to make the technology universally adopted by new cloud-based services and consumption models, and the previous barrier of video services being capital intensive and complex is quickly eroding," observed Harris. "We would expect to see this trend continuing with lower cost hardware emerging and the continued launch of new disruptive cloud video offerings that make video more mainstream and accessible for all types and sizes of end users."

Resellers and SIs will continue to play a major role in the delivery of advanced services like video and collaboration and their value is determined ultimately by how readily they can make complex technology usable within the end user environment, according to Harris. "Video has always been a specialist area, with niche players carving out successful businesses through deploying very complex video 'islands' for end users," commented Harris. "The approach of the SI and reseller today needs to evolve and become more focused, not on integrating video components but on driving video adoption and usage by integrating the video service into existing business processes and making it accessible to all staff and across rooms, desktop and mobile."•

Infrastructure is the future of communications. It's the new kid on the block and the nation requires more of it. With that in mind, Neil Christie, Managing Director of Aberdeen-based Converged Communication Solutions, aims to ensure that his customers get what they need.

Christie hopes to establish the first peering point in north east Scotland, an ambitious challenge that shows his determination to provide businesses with infrastructure that is fit for purpose. "Currently, nearly all data that is generated in the region is sent via a peering point in Edinburgh, or more often London, before it reaches its end destination," he explained. "With a local peering point, emails and phone services could be delivered faster for local businesses. Over the coming decade there will be more self-employed people working from home, with many based outside our towns and cities. Therefore, connectivity for our rural communities is crucial."

Over the past two years Converged has invested in developing its service standards, facilities and connectivity network. It has access to Brightsolid's new tier 3 data centre in Aberdeen and CityFibre's superfast Internet network in the city. Converged has also invested in unbundling nine Openreach exchanges in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. "This gives us access to more customer bases, but we need to win new business to recoup the outlay," said Christie.

The company was established in 2005 by Christie who adopted a technical role and a co-director who worked in a business development capacity. The firm launched the same year as YouTube and Google Maps, a time when more people were accessing the Internet via broadband rather than dial-up. "Our goal was, and still is, to provide a single point of contact that can take care of telephony, Internet and IT support," said Christie. "We wanted to reduce the number of suppliers or contracts a customer would need, and by providing passionate customer service we hoped to eliminate the grey areas that otherwise existed between a customer's IT support, Internet provider and BT/Openreach. We also aim to provide as many services as possible in-house and not just act as a middleman between the customer and ultimate supplier."

Converged's support model is based on the industry standard ITIL framework, with all of its support team ITIL-certified. The firm's customers range from small local businesses to large companies operating in multiple locations throughout the UK and internationally. The client base currently numbers around 300, and in the last financial year (to the end of November 2015) Converged generated over £2.2 million turnover. "We have experienced steady growth throughout our history, adapting as the industry itself has developed," added Christie. "Bundling of services and more service level orientated decision making by customers are areas we're working hard to explore."

In a move to advance this strategy, Converged snapped up Aberdeen-based IT provider Century Business Systems (CBS) this summer, its first acquisition. The deal, valued at circa £500k, significantly strengthens Converged's in-house service operation. CBS was established in 1999 by Brian West and Kevin Sinclair and supplies computer hardware, software and technical support to businesses across north east Scotland. The firm's team have transferred to Converged and relocated to its premises, increasing the workforce at Converged to over 25.

"This is a notable move for us," commented Christie. "To date, we have grown and expanded naturally, so our first acquisition is a major step. Brian and Kevin, supported by a talented team, have built a strong business and its integration into Converged will enrich the service that we offer to clients."

Christie plans to continue to grow Converged at a steady pace while staying in touch with established service values. "If we try to grow too quickly we may lose what our clients like and respect about us," he commented. "In five years, I would like to see us being regarded as the leading connectivity provider in north east Scotland and having grown our market share across Scotland and parts of the UK. Aberdeen will always be our home, but as we expand we need to look at how we deliver our services while remaining local to our clients. Continued hard work by the whole team, along with investment, evolution, innovation and putting the needs of clients first will take us there."•

Businesses must offer far more than traditional marketing techniques if they are serious about growth and strategy, according to Comms Vision speaker Allister Frost, founder and Managing Consultant at Wild Orange Media.

If marketing messages are to remain relevant to their target audiences they must extend their influence to the ‘segment of one', he told delegates, and this can only be achieved by alleviating historic divisions between marketing and IT departments. "IT needs to understand marketing and see it as an enabler for growth," he stated. "The marketing versus IT divide cannot continue. Data is key to making marketing messages hyper-relevant. This is your big opportunity."

Frost, who has spent 25 years working in big organisations such as Microsoft, now gives a helping hand to companies wanting to evolve in line with how technology is fuelling the customer experience. "It's commonly said that we live in a Digital World where screens are cheap and offer a window into wider realities," he added. But it's not a Digital World, it's Our World and there's no reverse gear. We are irreversibly changed and hyper-informed with more access to information sources than ever before. We become welded to the technology we trust."

Hyper-connected consumers are no longer the underdog. They have to an extent disempowered businesses by taking control of ‘knowledge'. And customers are intolerable to sub-standard service.

"This all means that businesses must improve," added Frost. "Organisations must learn to play the long game, create new marketing messages and build relationships that can be nurtured. Prospects must not be rushed, they should be given information on their terms - helping is the new selling."

The language of marketing is no longer a language of action and hoped-for reaction. It's interactions that count most and this dynamic has driven an evolution in content marketing. And there is a clear danger in hyping blanket messages that should sensibly be more targeted and individualised.

"Marketing is no longer a case of ‘spray and pray' to see what sticks," noted Frost. "It should be laser targeted to reach specific people in a short space of time. Marketing is now about talking to an increasingly smaller group of people, and saying the right things to the right people at the right time."

This tech-fuelled reaction to customers should encourage all channel marketers to think differently. "As technology and automation moves us forward, the ‘segment of one' has emerged," added Frost. "Personally tailored messages will be key."

Equinix is to acquire 24 data centre sites from Verizon in a $3.6bn all cash deal, strengthening its global platform and expanding its interconnection portfolio.

The sites consist of 29 data centre buildings across 15 metro areas. The addition of these strategic facilities and customers will further strengthen Equinix's global platform by increasing interconnection in the U.S. and Latin America; opening three new markets in Bogotá, Culpeper and Houston; and accelerating Equinix's penetration of the enterprise and strategic market sectors, including government and energy.

The acquired portfolio includes approximately 900 customers, with a significant number of enterprise customers new to Equinix's platform, and it adds approximately 2.4 million gross square feet.

It will bring Equinix's total global footprint to 175 data centers in 43 markets and approximately 17 million gross square feet across the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific markets.

Circa 250 Verizon employees, primarily in the operations functions of the acquired data centres, will become Equinix employees.

Steve Smith, President and CEO, Equinix, said: "This opportunity complements and extends Equinix's strategy to expand our global platform. It enables us to enhance cloud and network density to continue to attract enterprises, while expanding our presence in the Americas.

"The new assets will bring hundreds of new customers to Platform Equinix while establishing a presence in new markets and expanding our footprint in existing key metros. The deal will also provide significant value for shareholders as the proposed transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to our adjusted funds from operations per share upon close."

Virtual1 put its team's baking prowess to the test with Bake Off challenge in aid of charity Restless Development.

"Its great to see the baking talents within the team, with so many staff getting involved in the fun while raising money for Restless Development, Virtual1's nominated charity partner," said Tom O'Hagan, CEO at Virtual1.

As part of the event all the entries were sold in the foyer of AlphaBeta, where Virtual1 is based, raising in excess of £500 for Restless Development, a global agency for youth-led development.

A VIP golf event staged by Invosys saw 30 customers descend on the Hellidon Lakes Golf and Spa Resort in Daventry for an afternoon of golf, a BBQ, games and an overnight stay. Winners of the team event were Cliff Norton, MD, Channel Telecom; Duncan McNally from Vodaphone; and James Gill of Switch Utilities.

Peter Crooks, founder of Invosys said: "The golf event was our way of saying thank you. We had a brilliant day and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves."

Document solutions company Kyocera has acquired Annodata in a move that adds ICT services to its portfolio and channel proposition. Hironao Katsukura, MD of Kyocera Document Solutions UK, said: "The UK has been a major success story for Kyocera over the past seven years and this acquisition gives us a great platform to further grow throughout the region. 

"Annodata is a well-established, influential national player with similar business ideals to our own, as well as having important vendors, technologies and a very strong value adding culture in common."

Annodata will operate as a separate business entity to Kyocera Document Solutions UK with its own independent strategy and management team.

Co-founders Andrew and Tim Harman will continue to support the Annodata management team.

"This marks a significant opportunity for our partners, customers and people as we become part of the global Kyocera family and continue the journey we started back in 1988," said Andrew Harman. 

"With the significant resources and support of KYOCERA Document Solutions UK we can remain committed to our principles, innovate new solutions and services tailored to rapidly changing market needs, and ensure we are well placed to meet customer demands."

Mick Heys, VP Printing Imaging and Document Solutions at IDC, added: "In the current market, imaging vendors need to extend their capabilities beyond managed print to incorporate ICT services. Such enhanced offerings will allow them and their channel partners to secure a stronger foothold in existing accounts and to win new business."

KYOCERA Document Solutions UK will draw on the expertise of Annodata to strengthen its Channel Partner Programme for the UK & Ireland with the addition of ICT services. "The contribution of the channel in supporting our growth is crucial and we remain committed to this as our primary route to market," added Katsukura.

"This acquisition adds significant capabilities to our overall proposition for the channel, and maintains our commitment to support resellers of all sizes to increase expertise and leverage our solutions to better align their services with the rapidly evolving needs of customers, which ultimately boosts value."

Mid-market private equity firm Livingbridge has invested £23m in Exclaimer, a global provider of email signature software.

The investment is the last primary investment from Livingbridge 5, the firm's £360m fund raised in 2012. 
 
Exclaimer, headquartered in Farnborough, Hampshire, was founded in 2000 by business partners Andrew Millington, Gary Levell and Chris Crawshay and today provides software to over 25,000 customers in more than 100 countries including blue-chip firms such as the BBC, Audi, Sony and McDonalds. 
 
The Group is an accredited Microsoft Gold partner and its products support the full range of Microsoft's email solutions including MS Office 365.

Exclaimer's software gives users flexibility and control over email signatures and disclaimers, ensuring regulatory compliance while enabling consistent brand promotion and innovative marketing campaigns.
  
The investment will see the business invest in expanding relationships with partners, add scale by broadening its suite of products and invest further in infrastructure and customer services.
 
Millington, CEO, Exclaimer, said: "In the last 16 years we have taken a very simple concept and turned it into a global success. 

"The investment from Livingbridge will enable us to push on even further, adding scale and firepower to our business while still maintaining our entrepreneurial culture of innovation."
 
Matthew Caffrey, Partner at Livingbridge said: "Our experience of working with high growth tech businesses, combined with Exclaimer's strong management team and award winning reputation, means that the business is extremely  well placed to capture the opportunity that the rapid expansion of MS Office 365 brings."

CityFibre has kicked off the roll-out of dense full-fibre networks in business parks across its 40 city UK footprint to reach more than 500 business parks.

The first parks targeted for upgrade are in the company's Gigabit City projects Coventry, Bristol and Peterborough.

The full fibre networks will be made available to ISPs and resellers on a wholesale basis.

Pre-registration rates of over 60% have been recorded in many of the business parks surveyed on the current footprint.

Greg Mesch, Chief Executive of CityFibre, commented: "This is preparing our cities for an inevitable future upgrade to Fibre to the Home."

Minister of State for Digital and Culture Matt Hancock said: "Fibre is the future. It will give small businesses across the country access to fast and reliable broadband and encourage other emerging providers to scale up so we remain a world-leading economy."

Fast growing Channel Telecom celebrated its achievements alongside partners and suppliers at its annual Partner of the Year Awards held at London’s Mayfair hotel on December 2nd.

Awards were presented to Channel’s top reseller, dealer, supplier, data partner, IP voice partner and newcomer, plus the fastest growing and best overall partner.

Clifford Norton, Channel Telecom MD said, "It was a fantastic evening where we had chance to recognise and thank our partners for what has been a very successful year.  Without them, our business would not thrive in the way it does and it’s great to be able to give something back.

"Our sponsors BT Wholesale, Channel Utilities, Comms Dealer, Entanet, MyPhones, Union Street, Vaioni Wholesale, Virtual 1 and Voiceflex really helped this event come alive and we’re extremely grateful for their support in making our ceremony as memorable as it was. The year ahead is looking to be bigger and better than ever as we’re welcoming new partners every week, so it’s safe to say that we’re all very excited about the future of Channel Telecom.\"

Picture shows Channel Telecom Head of Partner Sales Steve Yates and MD Clifford Norton before the Awards ceremony.