5 Companies That Came To Win This Week

The Week Ending June 26

This week's roundup of companies that came to win include NetApp's new flash storage array system that challenges competitors with its low price, Docker's new enterprise software and push to create standards for container software, an impressive round of venture financing for security software developer Checkmarx, a savvy acquisition in the mobility arena by a key Microsoft channel partner, and a new focus on the channel by a supplier of service assurance analytics software for cloud and virtualized data centers.

Not everyone in the IT industry was making smart moves this week, of course. For a rundown of companies that were unfortunate, unsuccessful or just didn't make good decisions, check out this week's 5 Companies That Had A Rough Week roundup.

NetApp Challenges Traditional And Startup Competitors With $25K All-Flash Storage

NetApp went on the offensive this week when it debuted a family of all-flash storage arrays with a stunningly low starting price of $25,000. With the new All Flash FAS 8000 Series, NetApp is throwing down the gauntlet to traditional competitors such as EMC and Hewlett-Packard, as well as to startups developing flash storage systems.

The move comes at a pivotal time for NetApp. Earlier this month the company named George Kurian as CEO following the departure of Tom Georgens after a lackluster fourth fiscal quarter.

Certainly the new AFF8000 was under development long before Kurian took the CEO helm. But the product's ultra-competitive pricing shows that Kurian intends to play hardball in the flash storage arena.

Docker Expands Product Lineup, Leads Effort To Create Container Industry Standard

Docker, the hot industry startup that develops Linux container technology, gained even more momentum this week when it debuted software designed to help businesses be more comfortable using the technology.

The new software, Docker Trusted Registry, is for storing and sharing Docker images. It supports Active Directory and LDAP, as well as role-based access control and audit logs -- all of which are major items for corporations concerned with regulatory compliance.

And in a sign of Docker's growing market influence, the company is leading an effort to develop container technology standards. The Open Container Project, unveiled at this week's DockerCon conference in San Francisco, already has backing from Amazon Web Services, Cisco Systems, Google, EMC, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft, Red Hat, VMware and others and is housed under the Linux Foundation.

Security Tech Developer Checkmarx Raises $84M To Drive Growth

Application security developer Checkmarx got everyone's attention this week when the company said it had raised $84 million in Series D funding. CEO Emmanuel Benzaquen told CRN the money would be used to sustain the company's "hyper growth," including expanding its operations globally and doubling employee head count by hiring more salespeople and development staff.

Checkmarx develops tools software developers use to check their code for vulnerabilities and unknown back doors that can lead to security breaches when an application is run on a PC or mobile device. By finding the vulnerabilities before an application is put into production, developers can save themselves and their customers from the kinds of IT security horror stories that have become all too prevalent lately.

Champion Solutions Group Takes Aim At Enterprise Mobility Market With Acquisition

Champion Solutions Group, one of Microsoft's top cloud solution providers, has set its sights on the fast-growing enterprise mobility market with the acquisition of the assets of all-star mobile/cloud developer allAware.

Plantation, Fla.-based allAware develops innovative mobile applications for large companies based on Microsoft platforms. Champion Solutions Group CEO Chris Pyle said the acquisition sets up the company to move mission-critical applications to mobile devices using Microsoft Enterprise Mobility Suite and Microsoft Azure.

Champion Solutions Group, a Microsoft Azure Partner of the Year and Microsoft Cloud Practice award winner, has been growing its Microsoft business about 50 percent a year. This bold step will take that business to the next level.

Xangati Embraces The Channel To Accelerate Growth

Xangati, a developer of service assurance analytics software for hybrid cloud and virtualized data centers, launched a channel program this week with the aim of boosting its indirect sales.

With the new partner program, called XSP, Xangati will recruit VARs, managed service providers and systems integrators who have experience working with virtualization technologies and hybrid cloud services. While the company now has more than 400 customers it reaches directly, executives realized that in order to grow the company needed to embrace the channel.

"This really represents a shift in our go-to-market strategy and thinking," Marketing Vice President Atch Frazer told CRN. As part of the transition, the company has switched from perpetual pricing to a subscription model and is empowering solution providers with ways to wrap their own services around Xangati's platform.