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Pertino, which debuted its cloud-based network-as-a-service solution in February, is expanding its capabilities with, among other things, a networking app store.
The company’s AppScape app store is part of its Cloud Network Services efforts, and eventually will offer a range of free and paid network services apps not only from Pertino but also from partners and other third-party developers. Through the app store, customers will be quickly able to buy and activate networking services that not only will be easy to deploy, but also—because they’re housed in the cloud and user-based—will be accessible to Pertino network users no matter where they are or what devices they’re using, according to the company.
The first available app is a real-time networking mapping tool called GeoView, according to Pertino. More apps that address such areas as network visibility, security and optimization from both Pertino and third-party developers will begin to launch in early 2014, officials said.
The company, which is aiming its Cloud Network Engine technology at small and midsize businesses (SMBs), also is bringing its solution to devices running Google’s Android mobile operating system, expanding the range of ways users can access their cloud networks.
The new AppScape app store, Cloud Network Services and Pertino for Android are part of a larger effort by the vendor to make networking for SMBs less complicated and costly while still offering them enterprise-class networking capabilities, according to Todd Krautkremer, vice president of marketing.
“As companies adopt more cloud-based services and their employees demand more mobile options, they quickly reach a tipping point where moving their network, and all of its essential services, to the cloud just makes sense,” Krautkremer said in a statement. “It’s more economical and effective.”
Pertino leverages cloud computing, virtualization and software-defined networks (SDNs) to give SMBs greater networking capabilities. Customers essentially can use Pertino’s Cloud Network Engine and other technologies to create secure virtual networks that are hosted on such cloud platforms as Amazon Web Services and Rackspace.
With an Internet connection, a Pertino subscription and an email address, businesses can quickly create a WAN, deploy it, add people to it and shut it down when it’s no longer needed. With such capabilities, SMBs can meet the demands of an increasingly changing business environment that is dealing with such trends as workforce mobility, bring-your-own-device (BYOD), cloud computing and globalization, according to company officials.
In addition, creating a cloud-based networking environment is less expensive and less complex than having to spend money up front for infrastructure and integrating the technology themselves. Programmability is made easier via SDN capabilities, and with the cloud, businesses don’t have to worry about the money and expertise needed for a traditional WAN environment.
Mobility is a key driver, according to Pertino officials. Pointing to a survey by Spiceworks, they said that 75 percent of SMB IT professionals said the number of remote and mobile workers has grown in recent years, and that 96 percent of those workers need access to data that sits behind the corporate firewall. Mobile device security was a concern to 42 percent of those surveyed, and more than 60 percent said they are spending more on networking and security.
Pertino is aggressively adding to the devices that its Cloud Network Engine supports. In August, the company announced that it was extending support to Apple Mac platforms and Linux devices, adding to the Microsoft Windows devices it already supported.
The company’s Pertino for Android initiative extends that support even more, integrating the company’s cloud network VPN with Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and file browser services, enabling mobile Android device users access to corporate applications and files. Pertino for Android is in private beta and will be generally available in the first quarter of 2014.
Along with the app store and Android support, Pertino also is offering a new pricing model for Cloud Network Engine that is based on the number of devices being deployed on the Pertino network. The prices range from $29 per month for 10 devices, or for $290 a year, customers can upgrade plans as they go.