Connector Systems has inked a deal which will see it becoming a master managed service provider for Seagate's Cloud Systems and Solutions.

The deal will see Connector Systems hosting Seagate's cloud systems and solutions within Connector Systems' own AO platform and enabling resellers to onsell the service, for a monthly fee, adding their own margins on top.

Mark Dasent, Connector Systems' ANZ general manager, says resellers will also be able to set up their own managed services provider offering if they have the facilities to do so.

Dasent says the company will initially offer Seagate storage and backup, but additional services, including an endpoint security offering and a long-term storage or archiving offering, will be added further down the track.

“We will be set up to be the master managed service provider, and resellers can buy the services off us on a monthly basis and then sell it with their margin on top,” says Dasent. “But if they are interested in becoming their own managed service provider, we can set that up for them too.

Connector Systems will not be selling the offering direct to end users.

Dasent says pricing for Seagate cloud will be ‘aggressive' even against the likes of Amazon Web Services.

He says the AO cloud platform ‘will be a big focus for us this year'.

“It's part of our overall story,” he adds.

Dasent says having a heavyweight brand like Seagate aligned to AO and investing in this market will help drive the AO offering forward in the market.

The distributor has also inked a deal to distribute Seagate's full NAS range, with Dasent saying that part of the deal also provides strong opportunities for the New Zealand market.

“Our priority is to continually provide new and unique opportunities that will benefit our partners,” Dasent says.

“For this reason, it is hugely exciting to work with Seagate. Seagate has had vast experience at the forefront of the worldwide storage market. And now, they lead the way extending innovation from the device into the information infrastructure, onsite and in the cloud,” he says.

“With this sort of pedigree, Seagate is an integral addition to our storage and backup portfolio and we are delighted to have the opportunity to offer the brand and its huge benefits to our customers.

Connector Systems will hold an introductory launch event in mid-May.