MSP Acquisitions: Alentus Buys Linux Hosting Firms

Mergers and acquisitions continue at a rapid pace in the managed services industry. The latest deal involves Alentus — a managed service provider with software as a service expertise — acquiring two Linux-centric hosting firms.

Based in Laguna Niguel, Calif., Alentus snapped up Austin, Texas-based Website Source, Inc. and SpeedFox, Inc., which specialize in Linux website hosting. The acquisitions reinforce the growing popularity of hosting both open source and closed source applications under one roof.

Alentus’s acquisitions are the latest in a growing list of MSP buyouts followed by our MSPmentor M&A Tracker.

Although financial terms were not disclosed, Alentus will gain about $2.6 million in annual revenue from the acquisitions. Alentus already specializes in Windows and Red Hat Linux web hosting, plus SaaS applications such as SharePoint, SQL Server, MySQL and Exchange Server.

Plenty of companies are moving in Alentus’s direction. Ingram Micro’s Seismic team recently announced hosted options for Exchange, Dynamics and SharePoint. And Red Hat says it is exploring ways to more aggressively engage MSPs and hosting providers.

Alentus’s strategy also shatters the myth that open source SaaS will completely obliterate closed-source SaaS applications. Anecdotal evidence suggests that scores of Microsoft solutions providers are transitioning to SaaS-centric Microsoft applications, while hedging their bets with open source alternatives.