Ingram Micro Aims To Boost Unified Communications And Collaboration With NetXUSA Acquisition

Ingram Micro Inc. has acquired unified communications and collaboration distributor NetXUSA Inc., Ingram said Thursday, aiming to boost its portfolio of IP communications products to strengthen its UCC business -- a wise move, one Ingram partner said.

"It's a good move for them," said David DeCamillis, vice president of sales and marketing at Platte River Networks, a Denver-based Ingram Micro partner. "It makes sense. The market is demanding it and dictating it."

Jeff Yelton, the Irvine, Calif.-based distributor's director of specialty technologies, said in a statement to CRN that the acquisition will bring Ingram unparalleled provisioning capabilities and a new set of solutions, as well as access to new vendor partners and customers.

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"For NetXUSA, we will help broaden and lengthen the company's reach through cross-selling opportunities from our expansive portfolio and leverage our economies of scale to enhance and grow their business operations," Yelton said.

Details of the deal were not released.

This acquisition comes one month after Chinese logistics firm Tianjin Tianhai said it will be acquiring Ingram for $6 billion, folding the $46 billion distributor into the $29 billion HNA Group, expanding Ingram's geographic reach and adding more capabilities for the distributor around high-value IT solutions, mobility life cycle services, cloud, and commerce and fulfillment solutions.

The NetXUSA acquisition was no surprise, DeCamillis said, as Ingram has been building on its telecom and VoIP portfolio in recent years.

Telecom and VoIP are growing in importance for managed service providers like Platte River Networks, which have to meet greater demands for connectivity, bandwidth and cloud solutions from customers, DeCamillis said. The acquisition of NetXUSA shows that Ingram Micro recognizes that need in the marketplace and is investing to help its partners fill the void for customers, he said.

According to a statement by Ingram Micro CEO Alain Monie, Ingram will gain immediate access to a new telecom service provider customer set, and will look to leverage those relationships throughout the distributor's entire global organization.

The South Carolina-based UCC distributor will be adding nearly 100 people to Yelton's Advanced Solutions group, keeping the name NetXUSA as an Ingram Micro company.

NetXUSA supports 1,200 customers in the United States, including more than 300 independent telecommunications service providers and 800-plus resellers.

Following the close of the deal, NetXUSA's management team and associates are expected to remain in their current positions within the company. NetXUSA will operate as an integrated division of Ingram Micro and is expected to contribute more than $125 million in annual revenue, according to a statement from the company.

Sarah Kuranda contributed to this report.