Forsythe Buy Secures NBG's Nokia Sales

"The deal closed Monday, and already we've found opportunities neither of us would have found alone," said David Nolan, vice president of services and networking at Forsythe. "There's a big upside for growth. They're strong in security, we're strong in infrastructure. They have strong relationships with many of the same vendors we do."

This marks the second security acquisition for Forsythe, Skokie, Ill., following the February 2002 purchase of Telenisus, Chicago.

The deal positions Forsythe as the nation's largest reseller of Nokia products, and possibly of Check Point software as well, Nolan said. The acquisition adds 60 people, annual revenue of about $40 million, and a strong Southeastern presence for Forsythe's storage and disaster-recovery services, he said.

At least one of Forsythe's competitors doesn't seem concerned, however. "I don't know that [this] acquisition is going to make them successful," said Gary Fish, CEO of FishNet Security, Kansas City, Kan., which also claims to be among Check Point's largest,if not the largest,North American resellers. "We'll see."

Fish said integrators such as FishNet that focus on security have the edge over network integration firms that add security to their practices. "Who should you trust with your security?" he said.

Nolan said it is actually better to trust security to a solution provider who can make security a part of the entire infrastructure solution. "Who would you trust?" he said. "I would think you would trust someone who understands the entire infrastructure."

John Longwell contributed to this story.