NetScout Spinoff Debuts with 100% Channel Sales Model

NetAlly, a new company spun out of NetScout and owned by private investment company StoneCalibre, launched Wednesday with portable network test solutions and a 100% channel-focused sales strategy.

Formerly a NetScout business unit and previously part of Fluke Networks, NetAlly also is announcing new Wi-Fi 6 capabilities and Live-Link cloud platform updates that centralize tester management and data visibility for network engineers and technicians. It has a growing community of IT solution provider partners.

NetScout is a provider of service assurance, cybersecurity and business intelligence products.

Mike Parrottino, NetAlly’s CEO, tells us while NetScout and its handheld network test (HNT) business often shared similar customers, the tool portfolio was no longer aligned with its increasingly services-focused business model. StoneCalibre then acquired the HNT assets last September because it aligned with its objective to build a technology portfolio delivering long-term growth opportunities, he said.

NetAlly’s Mike Parrottino

“With the creation of NetAlly, StoneCalibre has helped relaunch the industry’s most trusted network testing technologies along with a new organization specifically designed to meet the changing needs of today’s networking professionals,” he said.

NetAlly is releasing version 4.0 of its software for the AirCheck G2 Wi-Fi tester. This adds visibility of Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) networks for installation, validation and troubleshooting. It also makes AirCheck G2 the first tool to integrate with new Link-Live cloud service enhancements, according to the company. Link-Live is a centralized management workspace for network test results and site data capture, and offers results management, site data management, and user and tester management.

“We have an excellent network of leading distribution partners around the world,” Parrottino said. “In addition, we have roughly 80 partners across the globe with active contracts and assigned territory sales managers and channel account managers. Beyond that, we also have resellers that are interested in selling NetAlly products more opportunistically, who can do so through open deal registration on our partner portal.”

Under the new NetAlly brand, the company’s partners have the opportunity to sell network testing solutions that have been well-established favorites among networking professionals for years, he said. Partners can access deal registration, rebate opportunities, sales support and training resources, and more through the company’s partner portal, he said.

“The competitive landscape in this space has contracted significantly over the past several years,” Parrottino said. “We’re seeing less competition than ever before, and when we do, it’s typically vendors offering highly targeted solutions. So, our competitors in the wireless testing space are different from those on the wired side. The reason NetAlly is well-positioned to come out ahead is that simply put, the siloed solutions offered by other vendors are not what network engineers and network operations departments are looking for today. No other vendor offers a portfolio of solutions that spans both wired and wireless technologies, and tests end-to-end network connectivity and performance across access points, the internet, the core network, the data center and remote sites.”

“These testers set the standard in the industry, and as a network analyst, I rely on them for accurate insight when testing today’s complex networks,” said Mike Pennacchi, president and owner of Network Protocol Specialists, a network consulting company. “I’m excited by the new NetAlly brand, and know their team is dedicated to delivering innovative new features and technologies.”