Kaspersky recently announced the launch of a new MSSP channel program at its North American partner conference. Although the program had been in beta, the security vendor has now made the program available to all its resellers.
The new program will offer MSSPs a central management console, from which the partners will be able to monitor, manage, and configure devices, as well as compliance reporting. On top of the service enabling options, the new program will allow MSSPs to easily enter the managed security practice with a flexible pricing model that is designed to encourage participation on the part of the provider, without penalizing them (or the end user) with punitive up front fees.
I like where Kaspersky is going with this program. While they won't get extra points for being a first mover in this regard (other security vendors have long ago developed MSSP programs), Kaspersky does appear to be paying attention to the MSP community by incorporating two key elements important to MSPs: 1) pay as you pricing, and 2) true remote management capabilities.
However, the big question will be what will Kaspersky do with this MSSP channel? Some vendors in the past have used their channel programs as mechanisms to reach the end user and ultimately bypass the channel provider. At first glance, Kaspersky seems to be shying away from this model by creating management console tools that are chiefly of use for MSSPs and not for end users. This is a good sign. Another question will be whether Kaspersky will seek to cultivate larger and more mature MSSPs into their channel program.
For now, let's just be happy that more attention is being paid to the managed security sector. The more service providers that can be brought into the MSSP fold, the better off we will all be. Managed security services is still an important segment of managed services and Kaspersky is willingly helping to advance the cause.
