Networking News
Extreme Networks CEO: ‘We Are The Little Guy’ That’s Moving Ahead Of Cisco
Gina Narcisi
The networking specialist is smashing records and beating out the ‘largest player’ with its simple licensing structure for its entire cloud networking portfolio that is turning heads of partners, customers and, even, Gartner, Extreme Networks CEO Ed Meyercord tells CRN.
Joining The Giants
Extreme Networks bought Aerohive Networks in 2019 and has since become the second-largest cloud networking player in the industry. But for the first time, Extreme came out ahead of the “big company,” aka, Cisco, in the most recent Gartner Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Wired and Wireless LAN Infrastructure report because of its cloud-native roots and simplified licensing structure, Ed Meyercord, Extreme Networks president and CEO, told CRN.
The San Jose, Calif.-based networking specialist is taking market share and gaining new customers who never considered Extreme before, Meyercord said. During the company’s most recent fiscal quarter—first-quarter 2022—the company reported revenue of $267.7 million, up 14 percent year over year. SaaS subscription bookings grew 71 percent during the quarter, with SaaS annual recurring revenue totaling $78 million, up 54 percent year over year. A record number of customers—43—booked more than $1 million in business with Extreme during first-quarter 2022, a 40 percent increase over fourth-quarter 2021, according to the company. All of this growth, Meyercord said, was driven primarily by the company’s channel base.
From the company’s new SD-WAN offering, to the addition of automation into the partner process, to its simplified approach to licensing for partners and end customers, here’s what Meyercord had to say.
