VMware Acquires Boxer for Email Security Smarts

VMware (VMW) will acquire email management solution provider Boxer to create a suite of services aimed at providing AirWatch users with secure access to email, content and applications.

The acquisition was announced this week during VMworld Europe, and will see the Austin, Texas-based company and its employees merged with AirWatch once the deal is complete. No financial terms of the deal were disclosed.

VMware’s Noah Wasmer said Boxer was of particular interest to AirWatch because of its “mature personal information management solution for enterprises that offers a container approach to mobile application management and security.”

Boxer also has strong ties to other industry leaders in social networking and productivity solutions including Box, Dropbox, Evernote, Facebook, Gmail and more. These relationships will surely help AirWatch to capture a larger audience for its mobile suite and aid in the development of a platform that combines the simplicity of consumer tech with the security of enterprise solutions.

“For years, AirWatch has delivered mission-critical business information to mobile users, while enabling best-in-class enterprise security and a good user experience,” said Wasmer, in a blog post. “However, we believe that we have only scratched the surface of the potential for business mobility, and we are taking it to the next level by further driving our vision of consumer simple, enterprise secure with Boxer.”

While Boxer will be absorbed formally by AirWatch, the company will continue to sell and develop its consumer solution, which will be available via the Apple and Google App stores, according to Wasmer.

The acquisition comes on the heels of this week’s enormous Dell and EMC merger, wherein the PC hardware and software giant agreed to pay $67 billion for EMC. The deal marks the largest technology company acquisition in history, and has some huge implications for the future of both Dell and the EMC Federation.