Latest M&A: Datto, 8x8, Microsoft, Google Cloud, Zayo More
M&A reached record levels in 2021 and the activity has spilled over into 2022.
February 11, 2022
![EY39s Global Technology MampA 2Q2015 report revealed that mergers and acquisitions deals reached 1272 billion in the second EY39s Global Technology MampA 2Q2015 report revealed that mergers and acquisitions deals reached 1272 billion in the second](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt10e444bce2d36aa8/bltb47475f1f407b93b/6524360328ff125fae81d63a/Mergers-and-Acquisitions-Insurance-1011_0.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
EY's Global Technology M&A 2Q2015 report revealed that mergers and acquisitions deals reached $127.2 billion in the second quarter of this year, higher than any quarter since 2000. The IoT, big data and mobility fueled M&A value and growth during the quarter, according to EY.
It’s a jaw-dropping amount of money. Vista has acquired Citrix Systems for $16.5 billion and is combining it with Tibco.
The acquisition, which should close in the second half of 2022, will take the company private. The combined company creates a software giant with 400,000 customers, including 98% of the Fortune 500, according to Citrix.
Read more about this mega deal here.
This was one of Channel Futures’ most-read acquisition stories in January. 8×8 completed its purchase of rival Fuze for approximately $250 million in stock and cash.
Increasing its global market footprint is likely the key driver for the 8×8 acquisition.
“8×8 holds its own when it comes to technology and innovation,” one expert said. “And even though it has reported double-digit growth in the past five years, it was facing mounting pressure from competitors such as RingCentral that are aggressively expanding their global presence.”
Discover the motives behind 8×8’s purchase.
Upstack has a growing list of acquired partner firms. This includes Florida-based consulting operation Texium. Upstack didn’t disclose how much it paid for Texium, but Upstack has acquired more than 15 partner firms in the last year.
As Channel Futures reported: “New York-based [Upstack] is harnessing a $50 million private equity investment from Berkshire Partners and a $100 million line of credit from MidCap Financial and Morgan Stanley Private Credit.”
Learn more about Upstack’s acquisition spree here.
IBM sold health care data and analytics assets, part of Big Blue’s Watson Health business, to global investment firm Francisco Partners.
It may be the beginning of the end for Watson Health.
“In the current competitive landscape, IBM would not be considered a significant player in health care,” one expert said. “Selling off the data assets essentially means an end to the Watson Health experiment. However, it may allow IBM as an organization to refocus and develop a new approach to health care.”
Officials at IBM say the sale allows the company to become even more forced on its platform-based hybrid cloud and AI strategy.
Read here to discover what the critics of this deal have to say.
By acquiring managed network service provider QOS Networks, Zayo Group couples its fiber network and QOS’ managed SD-WAN capabilities. The move provides edge networking services with global reach, real-time control and visibility and consistent security. California-based QOS will operate as a division of Zayo and retain its brand.
Colorado-based Zayo didn’t say at publication time how much it’s paying for QOS Networks; however, learn more about the company here.
Datto has acquired Infocyte, the threat detection and response provider. It improves Datto’s security position to thwart cyberthreats found within endpoints and cloud environments. Infocyte was founded by threat intelligence experts from cybersecurity institutions within the U.S. military. Datto plans to integrate Infocyte’s technology into its RMM platform.
Go here to discover more about Infocyte’s technology.
Monalytic has long been a trusted partner of SolarWinds, providing SolarWinds’ public sector customers with professional services, the companies said. Now, SolarWinds has acquired Monalytic, which will give SolarWinds federal customers with around-the-clock support to help optimize and secure their dynamic IT environments.
Read the full story here.
It’s an enormous amount of money to pay for a game developer. But Microsoft didn’t mind shelling out nearly $70 billion for Activision Blizzard. The acquisition also bolsters Microsoft’s Game Pass portfolio with plans to launch Activision Blizzard games into Game Pass, which has reached a new milestone of over 25 million subscribers. With Activision Blizzard’s nearly 400 million monthly active players in 190 countries and three billion-dollar franchises, this acquisition will up Game Pass’ “game” with more diverse content.
Read more about how Activision bolsters Microsoft’s portfolio.
Proofpoint has acquired data security startup Dathena. Proofpoint strengthens its cloud-based security solutions by adding artificial intelligence (AI)-based data classification to its information and cloud security platform.
The acquisition also increases Proofpoint‘s presence and investment in Asia. Dathena is based in Singapore.
Read here to learn about how Proofpoint is entering into the Asian market.
MSP Dataprise has acquired Global Data Vault, a provider of backup and disaster recovery as a service. Global Data Vault’s mission is to protect organizations’ critical data with modern data protection strategies. This is to ensure business continuity and eliminate downtime. Headquartered in Dallas, Global Data Vault protects hundreds of clients across the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.
This marks Dataprise’s second acquisition as the company executes on its strategy to build the broadest managed services portfolio.
Learn more about Dataprise’s new footprint.
In January, global hybrid cloud managed services provider Ensono snapped up ExperSolve, a mainframe modernization specialist. ExperSolve focuses just on mainframe modernization — a need that, by many accounts, is soaring. Even Amazon Web Services, a purely cloud-centric vendor, now offers mainframe modernization.
It comes at a critical time, as 98% of IT leaders would consider getting away from mainframes.
Learn more about the effort to modernize mainframes.
Distributor Pax8 bought TVG, a cloud services and software distributor in northeastern Europe. TVG has been operating in the Baltic States for more than 20 years and serves more than 1,000 partners. TVG’s solutions portfolio includes Adobe, Corel, Altaro, TeamViewer, ManageEngine and several other global technologies. TVG shares Pax8’s goal to drive digital transformation and focuses on the small-to-midsize business market.
To learn about TVG’s influence in Europe, read more here.
Google Cloud plans to invest in SOAR (security orchestration, automation and response) capabilities with its purchase of Israel-based company Siemplify. The tech giant dished out $500 million for the acquisition. Siemplify is one of the last pure-play SOAR vendors. The acquisition clearly signals the beginning of the end for SOAR as a viable standalone market segment, one expert said.
Discover more about what makes Siemplify a desirable purchase.
ODP (Office Depot) sold its CompuCom Systems subsidiary to an affiliate of Variant Equity in a transaction worth up to $305 million. The experts we interviewed for this story couldn’t believe this was the highest offer. In 2017, Office Depot acquired CompuCom for $1 billion.
To learn more about a deal many have called a channel fail, read here.
Virginia-based Risk Based Security (RBS) is now part of Flashpoint, the provider of threat intelligence and risk prevention. The integration of RBS’ collections and technology into the Flashpoint platform offers a wide range of cybersecurity practitioners the contextual threat intelligence and automation they need to detect, prioritize and thwart emerging cyber risks rapidly, the companies said. Flashpoint did not divulge the financial details of the transaction.
Irish power management company Eaton bought Royal Power Solutions, a U.S.-based manufacturer of high-precision electrical connectivity components used in electric vehicle, energy management and industrial and mobility markets. Eaton paid $600 million for Royal Power Solutions, which has approximately 450 employees and manufacturing facilities in Illinois and Mexico, along with a sales and engineering office in Michigan. The addition of Royal Power Solutions enhances Eaton’s ability to capitalize on the secular growth trend across eMobility, aerospace and electrical businesses, the company said.
Irish power management company Eaton bought Royal Power Solutions, a U.S.-based manufacturer of high-precision electrical connectivity components used in electric vehicle, energy management and industrial and mobility markets. Eaton paid $600 million for Royal Power Solutions, which has approximately 450 employees and manufacturing facilities in Illinois and Mexico, along with a sales and engineering office in Michigan. The addition of Royal Power Solutions enhances Eaton’s ability to capitalize on the secular growth trend across eMobility, aerospace and electrical businesses, the company said.
In this month’s edition of the latest channel-impacting M&A, we discuss deals by Datto, Pax8, Microsoft, Google Cloud and more. Mergers and acquisitions reached record levels in 2021 and the activity has spilled over into 2022. Channel Futures has covered the influx and the following stories provide analysis:
We even created a standalone feature highlighting the specific transactions happening among MSPs.
In January alone, we reported more than four-dozen deals in the U.S. and abroad, or more than one deal per day. It was a busy month. In this edition, we highlight some of the biggest transactions we covered last month.
Whether it was Vista’s mega Citrix acquisition or IBM selling off part of Watson Health, we focused on a diverse selection of mergers and acquisitions. Check out our slideshow above to read more.
If you’d like to view the full selection of the deal-making coverage, please visit our webpage dedicated to the topic. You can also check out last month’s edition, featuring ConnectWise, 8×8, Ingram Micro and more, here.
Want to contact the author directly about this story? Have ideas for a follow-up article? Email Claudia Adrien or connect with her on LinkedIn. |
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