Accuvant-FishNet Picks Out New Name From 1,200-Plus Options
The world's largest security solution provider will soon have a new name: Optiv Security.
Accuvant and FishNet Security unveiled a new identity for the $1.5 billion information security behemoth at the RSA Conference 2015 in San Francisco on Tuesday, less than three months after closing their blockbuster merger.
"Optiv" (pronounced AHP-tihv), a newly coined word derived from "active" and "operative," emerged victorious from more than 1,200 options after the merged company conducted extensive linguistics screenings and legal searches and considering feedback from customers, vendors and its own workforce. The new brand will be adopted officially over the summer.
[Related: Accuvant-FishNet Merger Complete, $1.5B Security Behemoth Is Born]
"I'm excited about the name 'Optiv,' " Steve Perkins, chief marketing officer for Accuvant and FishNet, said in a statement. "It's concise, descriptive and speaks to today's security needs. We feel confident that Optiv and all that it stands for will result in an identity that is extremely meaningful to our clients, employees, partners and shareholders, and will stand the test of time."
The Optiv name is intended to allude to intelligent collaboration, the company said, referring to how the security solution provider will give end users a clear field of vision, help them understand their options and provide them with what's needed to effectively fight the cybersecurity battle.
End users working with the company will experience no immediate changes, the company said, as contracts, invoices, statements of work and other materials will continue to be branded as either Accuvant or FishNet until at least July. Clients and vendors will be provided with more information regarding the brand change after Optiv officially launches this summer.
The company also decided that Accuvant's base of operations in Denver will serve as the global headquarters for the combined organization. FishNet's Overland Park, Kan., headquarters will become the company's showcase facility because of its state-of-the-art executive briefing center and security operations center, the company said.
The headquarters news follows the February decision to bring over three-fourths of the new executive team from Accuvant. Two FishNet executives not given leadership roles with the new company – Chief Technology Officer Brandy Peterson and Marketing Vice President John Van Blaricum – joined partner network security intelligence company FireMon in those same roles.
Accuvant was No. 48 on the 2014 CRN Solution Provider 500, while FishNet was No. 46. Dan Burns, the former Accuvant CEO now leading Optiv, said in a statement that the nearly 1,500-employee company will continue to expand in Denver, Overland Park and its more than 60 locations across the United States and Canada.
Burns said Optiv would also ultimately be looking to expand its presence globally. FishNet has a single office in London that accounts for just 2 percent of its overall revenue, leading former FishNet CEO Rich Fennessy to suggest in November that any further expansion into Europe or Asia is likely to happen via merger or acquisition rather than organically.
Getting FishNet customers access to Accuvant's product line (and vice versa) has been a priority of the combined company, President and Chief Operating officer Mark Williams told CRN in February. Optiv has also been reorganizing its sales territories and harmonizing its more than 100 service offerings.
The majority owner of the combined company is the Blackstone Group, a private equity firm that acquired a majority stake in Accuvant in March 2015. Minority interests in Optiv include Investcorp, an international investment firm that acquired a majority stake of FishNet in January 2013; Sverica International, a longtime Accuvant shareholder; and management of the new, combined company.
Both companies have enjoyed tremendous growth in recent years, with Accuvant achieving a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32 percent from 2009 to 2013 and FishNet achieving a CAGR of 22 percent over that period.
PUBLISHED APRIL 21, 2015