By samdizzy

google apps reseller

The transition, described in a Google Enterprise blog, isn’t surprising. But for VARs, MSPs and cloud service providers (CSPs) there’s an important lesson here: Over the long haul, email filtering and email security platforms will gradually fade away, folding into larger, all-in-one cloud collaboration platforms like Microsoft Office 365, Google Apps and so on.

SaaS providers and channel partners will need to evolve accordingly. You can bet companies like Exchange Defender, Reflexion Networks and Spam Soap — all channel focused, and all apparently thriving — will continue to add more and more capabilities to their messaging protection platforms. (Those three companies, by the way, have won substantial business from Google Postini defectors over the years, I’m told.)

Plus, we’ll see more and more cross-company relationships linking email protection to encryption, cloud storage, mobile access. Look behind the curtains at Intermedia, and you’ll see numerous cross-company relationships — designed to protect Hosted Exchange customers and partners — in place.

Even as the cloud services market grows, it consolidates. Point products must become best-of-breed, all-in-one cloud suites. Ultimately, customers want anywhere, anytime access to their desktops — from any device. As a VAR or MSP, I suspect you only have about one year left to find a great partner for VDI (virtual desktop integration), collaboration and other hosted apps.

Don’t delay the journey because Google isn’t standing still.