Acronis has launched Acronis Files Cloud, a proven file sync & share solution that enables Service Providers to offer public-cloud-like services from their own infrastructure. It enables Service Providers to expand their product portfolio, realise incremental revenues and reduce customer churn.
Initially Acronis Files Cloud will be available for partners who manage their services through Odin Automation or other platforms via a REST API. Full support and integration with the Acronis Cloud provisioning portal is expected in 2017.
The world is becoming increasingly digital and dependent on continuous data availability and secure file sharing between devices. This puts extreme pressure on companies and organisations faced with a challenge to open access to their data, for example, through a Bring-Your-Own Device (BYOD) program, while staying in control of user permissions and the physical location of shared data.
For Service Providers, it presents a billion dollar opportunity. According to the latest IDC Worldwide SMB Business File Sync & Sharing Forecast, revenue from SMB consumption of business file sync & share services is expected to reach $1.3 billion in 2019, growing at an average annual rate of 18%. It is driven by the ever-increasing demand for BYOD solutions that allow employees to use their own devices while ensuring the safety of company’s data.
Traditionally, public cloud file sync & share services have not been popular with Service Providers because of low margins and the inability to prevent customers from moving data from one public file sync & share service to another. Acronis Files Cloud changes that.
First, it enables Service Providers to utilise their own data storage infrastructure, rebrand the service, and bundle it with their existing services and data protection products such as backup or disaster recovery. Bundled services increase customer retention rates. With Acronis Files Cloud, customers not only have complete control over their data, but also the knowledge where the data is physically stored. This is critical when complying with local or national data sovereignty regulations.
Second, Acronis Files Cloud, similar to other Acronis products, has a simple licensing model. It lets Service Providers to set their own margins and start providing services without any upfront investment in software. Acronis helps Service Providers to offer the most services at the best possible prices, enabling them to focus on building their customer base.
The technology behind Acronis Files Cloud has already been in production for almost a decade, powering Acronis Access Advanced, which is an on-premise enterprise class solution trusted for security and performance by a number of Fortune 500 financial, insurance, pharmaceutical, and public sector firms, with hundreds of thousands users.
Acronis Files Cloud is also future proof. For data storage, it is integrated with the recently released Acronis Storage, the world’s leading software-defined storage solution with built-in Acronis CloudRAID™ redundancy and Acronis Notary™ with blockchain data watermarking.
Christoph Herrnkind, CEO of myLoc managed IT AG, who participated in the Acronis Files Cloud beta program, shares his experience: “As an innovative provider of hosting and data protection solutions, we have seen strong demand from our customers for a File Sync & Share service offering. Through our long standing collaboration with Acronis we have had great success with Acronis Files Cloud and we are excited to expand our adoption to meet customer demand.”
