BakBone acquisitions herald strategy shift

Vendor claims acquisition of ColdSpark and Asempra will expand reseller opportunity

Chris Ross: there is a link for resellers now between message management and data protection

Storage vendor BakBone is rebranding itself as a ‘universal data management’ specialist following its double swoop on Asempra Technologies and ColdSpark.

BakBone had billed itself as an ‘integrated data protection’ outfit but has updated its messaging to encompass the newly acquired products.

After acquiring certain assets from data protection vendor Asempra, BakBone has integrated the vendor’s developer team with its storage management division.

Message management vendor ColdSpark will be run as a separate division within BakBone.

Chris Ross, vice president and general manager for EMEA of BakBone Software, said: “We have expanded our data protection disk-to-disk portfolio with Asempra and moved into a new area with ColdSpark’s message management technology.

“The email policy protection engine that drives ColdSpark’s technology can be used in data in general, not just for messages. There is a link for resellers now between message management and data protection.”

Jon Collins, service director at analyst FreeForm Dynamics, said: “A more comprehensive portfolio will ensure BakBone comes out of the recession stronger than firms that did not add value to their portfolios.

“A more integrated offering makes sense, but this can be difficult for customers to implement.”