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Trend Micro, Obscure Technologies sign distribution deal

Sibahle Malinga
By Sibahle Malinga, ITWeb senior news journalist.
Johannesburg, 22 Nov 2016
The SADC region has been experiencing exponential growth of and demand for hybrid cloud solutions, says Trend Micro's Darryn O'Brien.
The SADC region has been experiencing exponential growth of and demand for hybrid cloud solutions, says Trend Micro's Darryn O'Brien.

Security software company, Trend Micro SA has signed up Obscure Technologies as a distributor of its full suite of security products in the SADC region.

Obscure Technologies is a specialised security distribution business, primarily focused on brand and channel development.

According to Trend Micro, the appointment of Obscure Technologies is part of a strategic channel drive for the company.

The deal is part of its commitment to provide its partners with the much-needed security skills and resources required to fast-track end user deployments throughout the region, it adds.

Francois van Hirtum, CTO at Obscure Technologies says: "Obscure only launched in April this year, but is built on years of experience of the individuals who started the business, and is a pure play security distributor servicing a handful of key large system integrators in the local and neighbouring markets."

The partnership with Trend Micro, adds Van Hirtum, is a conscious choice to provide a holistic security solution (rather than a point solution) with hybrid cloud as a focus. It was key that the solution should be from a trusted vendor with a proven track record and a clear vision for the future. This was particularly important following the recent flux, acquisitions and concomitant confusion in the security market, he continues.

"The range of products we offer is designed to complement rather than compete with each other. With us being very new, we were looking for that one technology that would complement our existing stack of Symantec and Radware solutions, and be able to go into different verticals, from a reliable vendor," he explains.

According to Obscure Technologies, cloud adoption is accelerating at a rapid rate within the SADC region, and as a result Obscure will be aligning with Trend Micro to assist its channel with helping to deliver hybrid cloud (offered as-a-service) solutions that enable them to move away from the legacy tin of the past.

"We will be helping our existing channel to sell more into the 250- to 1 000-seat midmarket, where it is no longer about selling new tin, but about securing rented infrastructure. We know the notion that 'if you can't see it, it can't be trusted' is falling away, and we help the channel to provide value without the physical equipment in place," explains Van Hirtum.

Darryn O'Brien, country manager at Trend Micro Southern Africa, says the SADC region remains an important region for the company.

"SADC is a region in which we have been experiencing exponential growth and demand which as a channel-only company, we can only sustain with a healthy channel and a strong distributor. We believe with its specialised focus, solutions approach and relationships with some of the leading integrators in the region, that our relationship with Obscure Technologies will provide us with the further foothold we need in the region," he notes.

Obscure says it plans to expand into neighbouring countries in 2017 through channel enablement.

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