NETconsent master of own destiny following MBO

UK policy management specialist pledges R&D push after splitting from Swedish parent

Brit security vendor NETconsent claims its partners will benefit from increased product investment following its management buyout (MBO) from Swedish parent Cryptzone.

The policy management specialist will plough £500,000 into product development next year after completing the deal, which was led by chief executive Dominic Saunders on 1 December.

Talking to ChannelWeb, Saunders said the MBO was driven both by his desire to control NETconsent's destiny and the decision by Cryptzone's new management to retrench and refocus on its core products.

It acquired NETconsent in December 2010.

"We have got what we wanted out of this, which is expansion into the global market," he explained.

"Cryptzone wanted all product development to happen in Gothenburg, but the product management for NETconsent was here, so it would not have worked."

The buyout was bankrolled by Saunders and a Saudi Arabian partner that had previously sold NETconsent's tools in the Middle East.

NETconsent's headcount will immediately be expanded from 15 to 22 and the firm has pledged to shell out £500,000 on R&D annually.

"[The MBO] gives us the ability to determine the destiny of NETcontrol as a smaller, more agile organisation," Saunders said.

NETconsent, whose policy management tools are designed to help firms demonstrate compliance with regulations such as PCI and Code of Connection, has about 200 customers, 50 of which are based outside the UK.

Next April, the vendor will extend the functionality of its product set to encompass Android and Windows 8 phones. It is now consulting partners and customers on how its technology should evolve in the longer term in a move Saunders said would mark it out from the competition.

"We are moving back to customer-focused innovation, which will enable the channel to add real value to their end users," he said.