How BlackBerry is building a new-look channel

Trade

Image: BlackBerry

BlackBerry has signed up more than 140 new partners during the last quarter, as the vendor continues to enhance channel capabilities.

Of the new additions – representing both local, regional and global players – key areas of expertise include cloud computing, data security and applications as opposed to traditional mobile devices.

Unveiled during the vendor’s Security Summit in London, the BlackBerry ecosystem also boasts an increased independent software vendor (ISV) base of more than 25%, backed up by a global network of value-added integrators.

Key ISV partners include Blue Cedar, Check Point Software Technologies and Micro Focus, alongside OpsGenie, Symantec and Tableau Software.

Such focus on indirect operations is designed to drive wider adoption of BlackBerry Spark, billed as an enterprise of things (EoT) platform housing increased security offerings.

“As companies race to lead in the EoT, the winners will be those that can interoperate with the widest array of partners and provide end to end secure solutions,” said Mark Wilson, CMO of BlackBerry.

“As more partners choose to work with BlackBerry, our global ecosystem grows to offer our customers cutting-edge solutions to complex business problems.”

Specifically, the new BlackBerry Spark EoT platform offers “snap-in” hooks to add any of the leading public and private cloud and other computing services, with Amazon Web Services (AWS) now on-boarded as a partner.

“Enterprises already look to AWS to help them unlock value from data gathered by IoT devices,” said Dirk Didascalou, vice president of IoT at AWS. “With BlackBerry Spark running on AWS IoT, they now have the ability to connect all aspects of their business to new and existing workflows.

“It enables our mutual customers to quickly integrate any ‘thing’, from a consumer device, to a simple sensor, to complex industrial equipment, while applying the appropriate enterprise policies protecting their data, brand, and people.”

To further trigger channel growth, the vendor has also unveiled “numerous enhancements” to the BlackBerry Enterprise Partner Program, including the new Shield Advisor, crisis communications, managed hosted services and workspaces specialisations.

IDG News Service

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