New-gen data management provider Egnyte and old-timer Microsoft are becoming close marketplace buddies.
Thirteen months ago, Egnyte, which specializes in automated enterprise file services inside storage, announced an integration with Microsoft Office 365, combining to enable business users to seamlessly access, manage and share all of their Windows files across a network.
Over time, other integrations between the two companies have been developed, including Azure AD, Azure Key Vault, Microsoft Office 2016, Microsoft Office Mobile and Microsoft SharePoint Online. These all enable Egnyte to offer its users end-to-end solutions for building digital workplaces.
On Oct. 3, Egnyte revealed a new go-to-market strategy involving web and mobile access to make the Microsoft Azure cloud the preferred storage option for new Egnyte customers.
Don’t be confused: Egnyte is a cloud storage-agnostic system with the new business agreement designating Azure as the first go-to storage option when putting a solution together. However, this also means that if the customer already has a license or licenses with other cloud storage providers, such as Amazon, IBM, Google Cloud, Hewlett Packard Enterprise or anybody else, Egnyte will still honor those licenses.
Web access integration means users can open Egnyte files directly from Microsoft Office Online for viewing and editing; changes are automatically saved back to Egnyte. Mobile access integration allows users who are on the go to remotely access and edit Egnyte files from any of the native Office Mobile Apps.
Egnyte expects to gain a lot of new business by being able to integrate with Microsoft at any point in its ecosystem—both on the apps side (for users) and the IT side (for infrastructure). Azure has become a hot commodity in the enterprise, with customers and prospects specifically asking for integration there.
“At Egnyte our strategy has always been around openness. We want to empower businesses to build their digital workplace with an ecosystem of best-in-class applications that fit the needs of each employee to get work done efficiently,” CEO Vineet Jain said.
“Microsoft has been a leader in the enterprise for many years, providing the strongest suite of services for business on the market. By developing a complete end-to-end collaboration with Microsoft we are able to offer businesses of all sizes an opportunity to build their digital workplace with the best solutions on the market today.”
As a part of the strategy, Egnyte is also making its Egnyte Connect solution available to Azure users in the Azure Marketplace, Jain said.