Monday Morning Impact – June 3

Published On: June 2, 2024Categories: Buzz

Canalys: Global Cloud Spending Grows in Q1

According to a report by Canalys, worldwide cloud infrastructure services expenditure grew by 21% year-on-year in Q1 2024 to reach US$79.8 billion, an increase of US$13.4 billion. The top three cloud providers – AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud – collectively grew by 24%, accounting for 66% of total spending. All three hyperscalers experienced a growth rate surge, as enterprise cloud spending accelerated. However, Microsoft outpaced both AWS and Google Cloud, with sales rising by 31% year-on-year, nearly double AWS’s growth rate of 17%, while Google Cloud grew 28% year-on-year.

Enterprises are shifting their focus from optimizing cloud budgets toward investing in new initiatives, fueled by a potential AI integration. According to Canalys, all three of the top hyperscalers saw an increase in the number of multi-year commitments from enterprise customers, suggesting that many businesses are readying themselves for a long-term increase in cloud consumption.

“There is significant variation in the strategies of the top three hyperscalers, reflected in their differing growth rates,” said Yi Zhang, Analyst at Canalys. “Microsoft’s end-to-end portfolio is proving to be a strong competitive moat, while Google’s strength in AI is giving it a strong tailwind. However, AWS’ recent US$4 billion investment in Anthropic for generative AI and its ongoing AI integration in its cloud services underscores a determination to stay ahead of the pack as business priorities shift to AI.”

“The convergence of AI and cloud represents a transformative juncture, reshaping how businesses approach technology for innovation and growth. Businesses must navigate the complexities of optimizing costs associated with AI infrastructure, including compute resources, storage and data processing, while ensuring that investments in AI technologies yield tangible returns,” said Alex Smith, VP at Canalys. “Looking ahead, cloud service providers as a whole will endeavor to capitalize on this trend by embedding AI in their products and solutions, making AI integration not something novel, but the norm.”

Channel Impact^®Fueled by the AI revolution, enterprises are reevaluating their entire technology stack, signaling a significant inflection point for cloud computing. However, the process of transitioning to the cloud can be intricate and financially burdensome, which potentially hinders the adoption of AI. Addressing these transition costs and challenges represents a formidable opportunity for the channel.

TD Synnex Introduces Initiative to Strengthen Empower MSP Growth Strategies

TD Synnex has launched MSP Evolve, an aggregation of its resources and tools specifically designed to accelerate business growth for MSPs, with initial roll-out in North America.

The initiative features a range of support, services, solutions and training programs to help streamline processes and provide cost-effective IT support to clients, including features within the global TD Synnex StreamOne cloud platform which tracks customer acquisition, integration, purchases, management, and billing.

“MSP Evolve was created to meet managed service providers where they are today and enables them to make larger strides toward building a more agile business, whether they are looking to expand into new areas or accelerate growth in an existing practice,” said Meredith Payne, Senior Director, Cloud at TD Synnex. “By leveraging the breadth of our comprehensive offerings, MSPs can achieve greater automation, expand their capabilities and maximize their market potential in this highly competitive industry.”

MSP Evolve was recently launched to North American partners at TD Synnex’s “Beyond Security” event in Boston, MA.

The program also includes access to Security Operations Center (SOC) services, as well as operational and technical services, and guidance on business transformation.

Channel Impact^®
TD Synnex is looking to leverage its knowledge base on channel functions to help generate greater efficiencies and profitability for managed service providers allied with the distributor.

IBM to Deliver Security Consulting Services Across Palo Alto Networks Security Platforms

Palo Alto Networks and IBM have announced a new partnership to deliver AI-powered security solutions.

As part of the agreement, Palo Alto Networks has agreed to acquire IBM’s QRadar SaaS assets, including related intellectual property rights. Upon closing, the two companies intend to facilitate the migration of QRadar SaaS clients to the Cortex XSIAM SOC platform. QRadar clients who wish to remain on QRadar on-prem will continue to receive IBM features and support, as well as updates to existing connectors and the ability to expand consumption. IBM will receive incremental payments from Palo Alto Networks for QRadar on-prem clients who choose to migrate to the Cortex XSIAM platform.

“The security industry is at an inflection point where AI will transform businesses and deliver outcomes not seen before,” said Nikesh Arora, Chairman and CEO of Palo Alto Networks. “Together with IBM, we will capitalize on this trend, combining our leading security solutions with IBM’s pioneering watsonx AI platform and premier services to drive the future of security platformization with complete, AI-powered, secure-by-design offerings.”

IBM Consulting will be a preferred Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP) for current and future Palo Alto Networks customers. In addition, a joint Security Operations Center will feature a managed SOC, and the companies will also establish a joint Cyber Range that will offer immersive experiences for customers to further understand the value of Palo Alto Networks security products.

Palo Alto Networks’ cybersecurity solutions will be accessible in IBM’s Consulting Advantage AI services platform, including the building of assets and repeatable methods to support scale. IBM will also build industry-vertical capabilities on top of Cortex XSIAM, leveraging watsonx.

Palo Alto Networks intends to integrate watsonx LLMs into Cortex XSIAM to drive additional automation capabilities, as well as leverage IBM’s watsonx to accelerate its roadmap to improve customer support outcomes.

The transaction portion of this announcement is expected to close by the end of September 2024 and is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.

Channel Impact^®The expanding and complex enterprise technology landscape, driven by digital transformation and the rapid growth of AI, presents significant cybersecurity challenges. These industry dynamics, paired with this partnership announcement, present significant opportunities for both companies and their respective networks of partners.

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