Momentum to Get Microsoft Teams Boost with G12 Acquisition

Managed services and managed network solutions provider Momentum on Tuesday said it would acquire Seattle-based G12 Communications. The firm provides voice-enabled Operator Connect solutions for Microsoft Teams, and the purchase will grow Momentum’s portfolio, giving it more weight in the Microsoft Teams sphere.

As it stands, Momentum already supports a full range of Microsoft Teams capabilities, such as direct routing. Now it will extend support for Operator Connect, which has garnered much popularity lately.

The acquisition will expand Momentum’s communications portfolio and merge the two teams to position Momentum as what the company calls a “premier voice-enablement platform for Microsoft Teams.”

Todd Zittrouer, CEO of Momentum, said the acquisition is about assisting customers in optimizing their hybrid work environments.

“By integrating G12 Communications’ expertise in voice-enabled Microsoft Teams and Operator Connect solutions into Momentum’s portfolio, we are going to offer an unparalleled suite of services to customers,” he said.

Microsoft Teams Fastest-Growing Company Application

With solutions for SD-WAN, managed network connectivity, cloud voice, collaboration and contact centers, partners have plenty of possibilities on which to capitalize.

S&P Global Market Intelligence’s Raul Castanon

“The acquisition of G12 Communications should help Momentum accelerate its road map with support and expertise with Microsoft Teams Operator Connect,” unified communications and collaboration (UCC) industry analyst Raul Castanon, S&P Global Market Intelligence, told Channel Futures.

He believes that the move represents a big opportunity for Momentum.

“Microsoft Teams is a relative newcomer to unified communications as a service (UCaaS), as it got introduced in 2016, while Operator Connect, which became generally available in October 2022, is the newest addition to the Teams Phone strategy,” added Castanon.

This fresh-faced nature of Operator Connect is integral to the appeal of the offering, he shared.

According to a Microsoft earnings conference call from earlier this year, Microsoft Teams is the collaboration giant’s fastest-growing application, topping 280 million monthly active users in 2022.

All this denotes promising news for partners, notes Castanon, and for the marriage of Momentum and G12, pending regulatory approval.

“Together with the recently announced initiatives that include the general availability of Microsoft Teams Premium and the launch of Verizon Mobile for Microsoft Teams, its rapid growth and extensive footprint give Teams a strong foundation to capture a significant share of the UCaaS market,” Castanon said.

Acquisitions Galore and We Can Expect More to Come

Last month, Momentum completed another acquisition — Savannah, Georgia-based managed network provider, Asset Black. It appears to showcase that acquisitions are an essential part of Momentum’s strategy moving forward, a buyout that should enable it to stay afloat in a crowded market.

As we have come to learn in recent months, with many high-dollar acquisitions in the UCC space, consolidation is crucial for survival.

Just last month, Cisco said it would buy Splunk, a strategic move that surprised few. It does, though, indicate a pattern of purchases in the UCC area and the strategy behind them — enhancing product lines to capture more of the market and hopefully stand out.

That was on full display when NICE said it would acquire LiveVox for a reported $350 million, a play that assured its AI capabilities would get a boost.