While the deal makes perfect sense in hindsight, this deal was out of left field in a number of ways. Setting aside the valuation issue, which has very little impact on MSPs or our industry (unless you are a software/hardware vendor), what does an Intel/McAfee deal mean for the average MSP?
1) It certainly signals the rise of cloud computing, if that was ever in question. McAfee already bolstered its own credentials as a cloud provider when it acquired MX Logic a short time ago but the fact that a chip manufacturer is jumping into the online services space with such vigor is noteworthy. We haven't seen this type of movement from Intel competitors so it is nice to see a non-traditional player validating the cloud computing and managed services model in such a direct way.
2) vPro. Intel's remote management chipset which has received a lot of buzz in the MSP world probably will benefit from a deal with McAfee. Even if there is no technical relation between the two products (which I'm betting won't be the case), this deal will undoubtedly keep Intel very close to the MSP channel. It will be curious to see if any of the McAfee products begin to interact in any way with the vPro functionality.
3) Intel, again, is interested in services. For those of you who don't remember Intel's hosting ambitions a decade ago, this is not the first time Intel has dabbled in the IT managed services game.
No matter how Intel integrates a company like McAfee into its offerings, my mind is spinning at the possibilities of a chip manufacturer and a cloud security vendor working together. Whatever it is, it's probably going to be exciting.
