WAN optimization's transition from niche specialty to hot opportunity has meant not only big WAN optimization vendors looking to shore up their leads, but a collection of smaller players looking to eat into market share with differentiated messaging and finely tuned channel strategies.
One of those is Boulder, Colo.-based Circadence, which has cultivated a modest, but loyal channel following around WAN optimization technology tailored for both physical and virtual deployments -- as well as mobile devices. Circadence provides a mobile software client that works with a wide range of mobile platforms, including Google Android and Apple iOS. That's something Circadence says gives it a leg up in the Bring Your Own Device trend currently dominating enterprise buying discussions.
"We are the only WAN op company in the world today that we're aware of that has enterprise clients for both Android and Apple iOS," said Rob Shaughnessy, Circadence's CTO, in a recent CRN interview. "We see those capabilities as representing whole new business opportunities for partners that encompass not only traditional enterprise but also this emerging mobile opportunity as well. WAN op is a big component of that mobilization. Mobile has proven the value of the cloud."
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Its full range of WAN optimization offerings -- branded Circadence MVO -- covers physical and virtual appliances, related software and an API for tying Circadence's software to third-party applications. Circadence doesn't rely on caching techniques for its WAN optimization technology, instead using what it says is a patented optimization protocol, the Transport Morphing Protocol, to push through network congestion and accelerate traffic across the WAN.
The company has garnered kudos for how that technology helps customers maximize performance across "lossy" networks.
Justin Hill, director of operations at Pine Cove Consulting, a Billings, Mont.-based solution provider, said reliable, high-speed connectivity can be a problem for many of his Northern Rockies-based customers. Circadence's WAN optimization tools proved their usefulness pretty quickly.
"Most of the data accessed across the WAN in the environments we support is unique data and would not achieve a great result from caching," Hill said. "We need it optimized as much as possible on the first pass."
Circadence in October expanded its Spark Partner program to organize solution providers into three levels and provide deeper access to sales and marketing resources, deal registration and more via a new partner portal. Solution provider recruitment has been gradual -- it has about 25 partners in North America it would consider strategic, company executives said -- although that number doesn't count the hundreds of partners it touches through various OEM relationships.
Customer spending on WAN optimization inevitably will take into account how well various solutions cover a range of mobile clients, said Chris Blisard, Circadence's COO.
"Everything is pushing all the way down to the smartphone and tablet, and we are in a unique position to be successful there," he said. "So we looked at how we could build better partnerships and a better channel with people focused on delivering our products."
