AVG Buys Level Platforms: Memo to MSPs

As AVG buys Level Platforms, both companies are reaching out to mananaged services providers (MSPs) to explain the deal. Here are letters from AVG Senior VP Mike Foreman and Level Platforms CEO Peter Sandiford to the MSP community.

Level Platforms’ Message to MSPs

In an email to MSPs, Sandiford stated:

“Good morning,

This morning AVG Technologies announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Level Platforms, with an expected closing date this month. AVG is the absolutely ideal partner to help establish Managed Workplace as the clear global leader in remote monitoring and management software. I could not be more excited about the many benefits this will bring to our MSP partners, alliance partners, vendor partners and employees.

From the beginning Level Platforms’ driving vision has been to create the ultimate RMM platform for IT service providers. Our elite MSP partners in the United States, Canada and around the world have helped us establish a reputation for advanced technology and unwavering commitment to our partners’ success. AVG’s selection of Level Platforms as their partner for their strategic goal to become a leader in the next wave of MSP growth and success was based on their confirmation of these core values. And we continue to set the pace. We are launching Managed Workplace 2013 at our Partner Summit in Las Vegas next week, where we will be demonstrating many new features that will continue to accelerate your competitive advantage in a very fast-changing market.

With wide and growing global acceptance of the need for RMM for IT service providers around the world and with technology we knew could beat anyone in the market, we began a search for a strategic partner that had the resources, strategic motivation and commitment to establish Managed Workplace as the global standard for MSPs.

Already a global leader in security, and deeply understanding the inevitable convergence of security and IT management, AVG had embarked on a parallel quest to accelerate their global expansion, looking for the best RMM to complement and drive their strategic goal to establish global leadership in the SMB market.

It is the perfect match.

With AVG our partners now have the long term commitment and resources of a billion dollar NYSE listed global technology leader, who sees Managed Workplace as truly strategic to their future. With a deep understanding of the SMB channel market, they know the keys to MSP success including a commitment to the open ecosystem. So for our partners it is business as usual, but better.

Over the past months we have discussed and agreed on many of the steps we need to take achieve this next wave of success. Now it is time to put this in action. I will be playing an active role as part of the senior executive team at AVG helping to drive this next stage of growth.

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact your Partner Development Manager. On behalf of the entire team at Level Platforms I thank you for your commitment, dedication and support over the years. I welcome the opportunity to continue to help you succeed for years to come.

Peter Sandiford
CEO Level Platforms”

AVG’s Message to MSP Partners

In an email, AVG’s Foreman wrote:

“Following on from Peter’s earlier email I wanted to say hello and welcome all Level Platforms partners to AVG.

We are very excited by this acquisition and look forward to working with you all. It’s an interesting time in the marketplace and together we can maximize the opportunities and accelerate growth for your business and your customers.

We have put in place a team of leaders from our SMB and Engineering organizations – including myself, Luke Walling, David Haadsma and Greg Mosher – to work closely with Level Platforms staff to ensure this transition is as smooth as possible. The AVG team members all previously led businesses that were acquired by AVG, and we bring first-hand knowledge to ensure this is a seamless and successful process along with insight and expertise into the opportunities and challenges you face as an SMB.

It’s important to mention that we developed AVG CloudCare in close cooperation with our Channel partners. We took on board their feedback, implemented improvements based on their comments and this remains an important part of the product development process. Lately a good number of our partners had been telling us to add full RMM capability so that they could perform a much greater variety of tasks remotely through AVG CloudCare. Today’s announcement is confirmation that we listen to our partners and we want to listen to you too.

Critically, I know there is an equally open relationship with Level Platforms and its partners. In addition, we also understand that Managed Workplace’s open ecosystem and vendor technology integrations are a key component for managing the end-to-end IT environment for your clients. This will remain and we will look to build upon it as we extend the capabilities of Managed Workplace.

My team and I will be attending the upcoming Level Platforms Partner Summit beginning on June 17th and I hope to meet you in person, answer any questions you have and learn more about your businesses and the challenges you face.

We now have a formidable combination of partner networks on a global scale, and I personally look forward to increasing our footprint and disrupting the market!

Best regards, Mike

Mike Foreman
SVP, AVG Technologies”

Next Moves

MSPmentor Managing Editor Jessica Davis is set to speak with AVG and Level Platforms executives later today — providing additional insights to our readership. We’re also taking a close look at the Level Platforms MSP Community Summit next week in Las Vegas.

By that time, rival MSP software providers and security companies will have formulated first responses to the AVG-Level Platforms business combination…