Data Protection Providers Arcserve, StorageCraft Agree to Merge

Prominent data protection vendors Arcserve and StorageCraft, which deliver their respective solutions only through channel partners, have agreed to merge. The companies announced the deal Wednesday, though they have not disclosed terms. Pending regulatory approvals, look for the deal to close next month.

The combined company is poised to become a more competitive player in the backup and disaster recovery (BDR) market. Arcserve and StorageCraft’s respective BDR offerings are complimentary, as each company’s portfolio is different and designed for different customer segments.

Partners and customers know StorageCraft best for appliances and data protection software for small and midsize businesses (SMBs). Its primary customers are in the U.S., with much of its growth coming from managed service providers (MSPs).

Arcserve designed its backup and disaster recovery platform for midsize companies and enterprises. The vast majority of Arcserve’s sales have been in Asia and Europe. Approximately one-quarter of Arcserve’s sales are in North America. But Arcserve predicts its North American business will rise 28% this year.

Extending Platform and Market Reach

Merging with StorageCraft will extend both companies’ geographic reach and provide a stronger combined platform, Arcserve CEO Tom Signorello said.

Arcserve’s Tom Signorello

“After these two businesses come together, you will find a broader set of use cases that the combined entity will solve,” he said.

Phil Goodwin, research director for IDC’s cloud data management protection practice, agreed.

“This has the potential for both of them to broaden their appeal to a wider market of organizations in terms of size,” he said.

While Signorello described the deal as a merger of equals, the combined company will take on the Arcserve name. Signorello will lead the consolidated company. Douglas Brockett, president of StorageCraft, will remain in his role. Brockett will oversee that business, which will be known as StorageCraft, an Arcserve Company.

Both executives, who together discussed the deal with Channel Futures, said they will evaluate potential rebranding options later this year.

“You could very well see a rebranding of the entire entity in three to four quarters,” Signorello said. “We wanted to get out of the gate fast, given the complimentary nature of our businesses, and wanted to be thoughtful around branding.”

Maintaining Channel Continuity

For now, both Arcserve and StorageCraft will retain their respective logos to ensure channel partners don’t experience disruption, Signorello said.

“We have different channels, different partners and we want to be mindful of that,” he said.

Signorello emphasized that the consolidated Arcserve will continue to provide its offerings only through the channel.

“We will continue to be 100% channel-focused,” he said. “You will not find us having a direct sales motion. I spent a couple years prior to this role running OnX Enterprise Solutions, a sizable VAR-LAR-MSP Toronto. I understand what it takes to motivate the channel. And Doug and I are 100% committed to making that happen.”

While some partners carry both vendors’ portfolios, the companies designed and priced them for different types of customers. Among those who are currently both Arcserve and StorageCraft partners is …