Google Buys Actifio — Who Knew Backups Were So Juicy?
Last week, Google announced the acquisition of Actifio and plans to integrate Actifio’s technology as a first-party data protection solution akin to Azure Site Recovery. In comparison, AWS’s CloudEndure Disaster Recovery and Azure Site Recovery are more limited in functionality and scope than the capabilities Actifio gives Google. Google Cloud Platform (GCP) plus Actifio could serve as a hub for hot/warm multicloud disaster recovery (DR), with all the expectations of integration with other Google products.
Google’s Focus On Dependable IT Brings Opportunity For GCP And Actifio Customers
As part of the deal, Google gets a stream of revenue from Actifio, reported to be around $100 million per year, and a built-in client base to which it can market GCP, if those organizations don’t already use Google Cloud.
While Actifio reported that Q1 2020 was its best quarter ever, TechCrunch also reported that in June, the copy data management company sought to raise funds at a 60% discount to its earlier $1.3 billion-plus evaluation after a 2018 round of fundraising. The need for more funding seems at odds with Founder/CEO Ash Ashutosh’s January 2020 statement to CRN that it expects to stabilize profitability in 2020. The integration of Actifio into the Google portfolio guarantees that Actifio’s customers will be well supported and that its product will stay competitive — at least for now.
This Deal Opens New Fronts In Both The Cloud And DR Wars
Google is now in the middle of an increasingly competitive data recovery and protection market. Many of those vendors have significant installed client bases in GCP. Google will need to make sure it doesn’t cause too much of a stir to keep partners happy. Google also inherits an intellectual property lawsuit Actifio filed against Rubrik this summer — not to mention the prodding it is giving its main cloud competitors at AWS and Azure to decide if they will begin upgrading their own first-party DR tools.
Google Is Primed To Lead By Example With DR Security
Hopefully, Google will implement a security-by-default stance related to backup and archival. Features such as multifactor authentication enabled for backup tasks and immutable storage targets preconfigured for clients would build on Google’s existing capabilities. If you are curious why it matters, my colleague Naveen Chhabra goes into depth in his report, “Four Technologies Combine To Protect You From Ransomware Attacks.”
I would love to hear from you on the Actifio acquisition and how it might affect your business.