Microsoft Aims New Azure MSP Program at Cloud Networking

Microsoft Azure is partnering with several networking vendors like SD-WAN company Aryaka and colocation firm Equinix to make it easier for partners and customers to connect to the Azure public cloud. At its Inspire 2019 show this week in Las Vegas, the giant tech vendor unveiled the Microsoft Azure Networking MSP Program, part of a larger push not only by Azure but also other major cloud vendors to improve connectivity into their environments. The program aims to enable network-focused MSPs and other partners like systems integrators and network carriers to leverage their own networking capabilities with Azure’s expanding lineup of network products and services, according to Yousef Khalidi, corporate vice president of Azure Networking for Microsoft. “Azure’s networking services are fundamental building blocks critical to cloud migration, optimal connectivity, and security of applications,” Khalidi wrote in a blog. “New networking services such as virtual WAN, ExpressRoute, Azure Firewall and Azure Front Door further enrich this portfolio allowing customers to deploy richer applications in the cloud. The Networking MSP partners can help customers deploy and manage Azure Networking services.”