Report: Google Tried to Stop Microsoft and CISPE Antitrust Deal

We have more details on the recent antitrust settlement between Microsoft and CISPE, the Europe-based association for cloud service providers.

Turns out, Google tried to pay around $512 million to prevent the deal from going through, according to Bloomberg News. Microsoft, the brand behind the Azure cloud platform, agreed to pay $21.7 million to provide remedies and compensation to CISPE members, which include Amazon Web Services, a founding member, and a variety of smaller vendors. CISPE contended that Microsoft’s cloud computing licensing requirements in Europe, implemented last October, erode rivals’ profit margins.

In settling, Microsoft avoided fines much bigger than the $21.7 million it’s paying, and a deep investigation on the part of European Union antitrust authorities.

But rivals including Google Cloud were not happy with the arrangement. And, per Bloomberg, Google tried to pay CISPE to keep its EU complaint intact. Bloomberg cited anonymous sources and confidential documents viewed by its staff.

Bloomberg says Google was willing to pay about €455 million worth of its cloud software licenses for five years, as well as €14 million in cash for working with the company long-term. It also was considering joining CISPE as part of its values around fair software licensing, a Google spokesperson told Bloomberg. Meanwhile, AWS apparently agreed to pay about €6 million to expand Google’s proposed deal because it’s part of CISPE.

Even so, CISPE members opted for the Microsoft agreement.

AI startup Jasper, which sells through the channel, has named a former Google executive to its leadership team.

Melody Meckfessel now serves as chief technology officer for the company, which specializes in AI-powered marketing.

Meckfessel spent nearly 15 years at Google as vice president of engineering. There, she oversaw teams at Google Cloud Platform, as well as groups handling infrastructure, search and DevOps for Google. After that, she co-founded her own firm, Observable, data visualization software.

Jasper said hiring Meckfessel points to the significance of the company’s expansion and capabilities.

“Melody shares my vision of transforming how marketing teams connect with their customers,” said Timothy Young, CEO of Jasper. “Her experience building disruptive technology and scaling global platforms make her the perfect fit for Jasper's next phase of growth. Melody will not only own our technical vision, but will also be a vital voice in the industry, helping us accelerate product delivery and customer success.”

Jasper's Melody Meckfessel

Meckfessel said she is “excited to lead our efforts in shaping the future of enterprise AI with our customers by bringing more creativity and productivity to their businesses.”

Leostream, one of the companies targeting unhappy VMware by Broadcom channel partners and end users, just released the latest version of its platform.

Perhaps with VMware in mind, the newest edition of the company’s remote desktop access software includes more support for more third-party products. Leostream did cite HP Anyware and PCoIP remote workstations, specifically, as well as Windows 365 and KubeVirt centers with container integration.

There’s also more control over policies and connection management.

“The latest version of Leostream is our best yet, and underscores how essential the platform has become in modern enterprises,” said Karen Gondoly, CEO of Leostream. “As workforces, applications and computing evolve, Leostream remains dynamic and adaptable to a broad spectrum of user requirements.”

Leostream's Karen Gondoly

Leostream said its channel partners can learn about the new features directly from the company’s experts. Partners also now have access to training courses, enablement collateral, and sales and marketing materials related to the new release.

C3 AI, which sells through the channel, just released its generative AI application for federal, state and local government users.

The C3 Generative AI for Government Programs platform helps agencies deliver and distribute information quickly around health care, employment, financial assistance and other initiatives. C3 AI also said the platform streamlines access for citizens so they can more easily navigate systems and services.

Outcomes, C3 AI says, look like reduced wait times, eliminated service delays, more effective contact centers and improved end-user experiences.

"Understanding and accessing vital services and benefits programs can be an overwhelming process for many, and C3 Generative AI for Government Programs provides an easy way to get clear and quick answers to questions about the intricacies of these services," said Thomas Siebel, chairman and CEO of C3 AI. "Government programs and services make the most impact when those who need them can smoothly use them.”

The application features a natural language search and chat interface, C3 AI said.

C3 AI runs its new platform on Google Cloud and uses the Gemini language model.

Google Cloud's Kevin Ichhpurani

"Partnering with Google Cloud enables C3 AI to deliver innovative generative AI applications spanning multiple industries, with the security and privacy controls required by the most demanding of customers," said Kevin Ichhpurani, corporate vice president of global ecosystem and channels at Google Cloud. 

C3 Generative AI for Government Programs is now available.

RapidScale has joined Google Cloud’s Partner Advantage Program. 

That means RapidScale, a provider of various cloud solutions, now may offer the hyperscaler’s AI-centric services, data analytics and cost optimization. The company opted to participate in the Sell and Service engagement model.

"Adding Google Cloud to our solutions portfolio marks a significant milestone in our mission to empower businesses with versatile and robust cloud services," said Jason McKay, chief product officer at RapidScale, which Cox Business bought in 2018. “Google Cloud technology is enabling a wider set of businesses to innovate faster with their AI and data processing capabilities.”

RapidScale said its cloud engineers collectively hold more than 50 Google Cloud Platform certifications. When it comes to provisioning the hyperscaler’s offerings, RapidScale’s experts will oversee efforts including migrations to Google Cloud, data insights and processing, Vertex AI capabilities, and cloud cost controls.

IT and cloud consultancy Globant has teamed with Amazon Web Services to help joint customers move their legacy SAP environments into the cloud.

The companies will work to migrate users to Rise with SAP on AWS. The platform delivers managed cloud services.

“AWS and SAP are both innovative leaders in the digitization space, and their technology solutions have helped many of our customers unlock a new level of business success," said Diego Tártara, chief technology officer at Globant. "Through our longstanding relationships with both AWS and SAP, we have developed essential knowledge of and deep expertise in both companies' solutions, and are uniquely positioned to assist customers in implementing these end-to-end solutions to complete their migration to the cloud.”

Globant's Diego Tártara

Globant has worked with AWS since 2011. This week’s news capitalizes on growing demand for cloud capabilities around SAP’s decades-old enterprise resource planning software. Rather than replace SAP, many organizations are choosing to move their on-premises SAP environments into the cloud.

"Securely migrating to the cloud can be an intimidating and time-consuming process for any business,” said Leandro Estanga, chief partner officer for Latin America at SAP. “We are confident that with the power of Rise with SAP − matched with partners like Globant that have the expertise to accelerate a smooth migration − more businesses will be able to leverage and scale the cloud than ever before.”

Globant, based in Argentina, is an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner and an SAP AppHaus Partner.

Another vendor-sponsored study shows that organizations need help implementing hybrid cloud — and that they want to do so, post-haste, especially amid the AI rise.

This time, the findings come from channel-only Nasuni in its report, “The Era of Hybrid Cloud Storage.”

Nasuni’s data platform operates in hybrid cloud environments.

The company said it surveyed more than 1,000 IT purchasing decision-makers in the United States, the U.K., and Germany, Austria and Switzerland about hybrid cloud, digital transformation, security, and artificial intelligence.

"As hybrid cloud storage takes center stage, organizations need strategies to capitalize on their most valuable asset: data,” said David Grant, president of Nasuni. “In tandem, they need strategies for addressing critical IT issues including ransomware attacks and the introduction of AI integrations to the market. Legacy storage solutions cannot keep up with these demands.”

Nasuni's David Grant

Key takeaways that could prove useful to channel partners’ wallets include the following:

Nasuni partners with public cloud providers, including AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

Another vendor-sponsored study shows that organizations need help implementing hybrid cloud — and that they want to do so, post-haste, especially amid the AI rise.

This time, the findings come from channel-only Nasuni in its report, “The Era of Hybrid Cloud Storage.”

Nasuni’s data platform operates in hybrid cloud environments.

The company said it surveyed more than 1,000 IT purchasing decision-makers in the United States, the U.K., and Germany, Austria and Switzerland about hybrid cloud, digital transformation, security, and artificial intelligence.

"As hybrid cloud storage takes center stage, organizations need strategies to capitalize on their most valuable asset: data,” said David Grant, president of Nasuni. “In tandem, they need strategies for addressing critical IT issues including ransomware attacks and the introduction of AI integrations to the market. Legacy storage solutions cannot keep up with these demands.”

Nasuni's David Grant

Key takeaways that could prove useful to channel partners’ wallets include the following:

Nasuni partners with public cloud providers, including AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.