Does Broadcom’s Acquisition of VMware Create an Unfair Playing Field?

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• The proposed Broadcom and VMware deal could create a conglomerate effect in the server virtualization market.

• The uncertainty of the deal will impact customers on their decisions on current and future VMware investments, resulting in some customers switching to competitors.

Broadcom has a Checkered M&A History
GlobalData previously provided commentary questioning if Broadcom had the right profile, but more importantly, the right pedigree to be the company acquiring VMware. After all this is one of the largest potential acquisitions resulting in VMware being acquired by Broadcom for approximately $61 billion in a cash-and-stock transaction, together with VMware’s net debt of $8 billion.

Cybersecurity Providers Must Approach 2023 with Product Simplicity and Consolidation in Mind

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Vendors with wider portfolio and high growth product suites should focus on enterprise portfolio consolidation, with strong supporting business case.

• Vendors must factor in their revenue projections longer sales cycles and project delays on more complex cybersecurity deals in 2023.

Enterprise Trends:
As 2023 progresses, enterprises continue to face tough economic conditions. This year has already witnessed mass layoffs in technology and other sectors as organizations look to cut costs and streamline operations ahead of what is expected to be major reductions in consumer and corporate spending. IT budgets are expected to suffer as planned projects get shelved and executives reassess priorities.

2023 Update on Cybersecurity Investment Trends and Considerations for Investors

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in cybersecurity continues to cause uncertainty in the investment community, but latest Q4 2022 projections show investments have picked up.

• Success for investors will entail investing in the right cybersecurity technology segments and ensuring investors back companies that are visionaries and have strong customer alignment.

Cybersecurity Revenues Remain High, but Investment Reservations Exist
GlobalData’s deals database highlights that in value, cybersecurity deal activity decreased previously by 98% in Q3 2022 compared to the Q3 2021 total of $7.7 billion. Similarly, deal volume also remained flat in Q3 2022, compared to Q3 2021, and was even lower by 33% in the same quarter in 2021. These trends indicate that although revenues among cybersecurity companies remain positive, there are still investment reservations in cybersecurity due to the unsettling economic climate and a possibility that cybersecurity stocks could follow in a similar fashion to tech stocks.

What Can Technology Companies Learn from the Evolution of Music Across the UK?

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Diversity should not be approached solely with metric quotas in mind.

• Diversity should ultimately start at the heart of a corporate’s ethos for what they stand for in society, and in nurturing an inclusive working environment.

Learn From the Music Industry: Understanding Challenges in Society, and What Brings People Together

Growing up in the UK in the 70s and early 80s presented many challenges and opportunities for adolescents of ethnic backgrounds. For many it was an alien country, as families struggled to survive and fit in culturally, overcome language barriers, be given equal opportunities, and most of all overcome racism. But between all of these challenges in society, amongst all fellow adolescent acquaintances of English, Irish, West Indian, Italian, and South Asian heritage, there was something amazing happening, and that was music. 

Practical Sales Initiatives for Security Providers in the Economic Downturn

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Cybersecurity providers must differentiate and be relevant by assisting enterprise customers during the recession, with a business outcome led security approach that includes portfolio business cases.

• Commercial deals should include innovative pricing, offering better commercial initiatives and discounts between 10-20%.

The Global Telecom Sector in the Current Economy

A number of telecom operators have reported a decline in B2B revenue of up to 10% compared to the previous year. To add complexity, the majority of providers are simplifying their portfolios, digitalizing their operations and customer interfaces to reduce OpEx and improve customer experiences in a digital enterprise setting. Within this backdrop, recent announcements on the economy going further in the red will create turmoil in the telecom sector in the next two years, and result in companies failing to meet their projected forecasts.

Considerations for Telecom Operators to Tackle Telecom Fraud

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Telecom operators need to focus upstream on the network by strengthening their ‘know your customer’ (KYC) processes, focusing on incident reduction, and reducing illegal network entry.

• Network heads need to devise innovative measures utilizing fraud analytics on call data and fraud scenarios and implementing third-party tools with automation and machine learning.

The Impact of Telecom Fraud on Operator Revenues
In terms of figures, organizations like the Communications Fraud Control Association (CFCA) have estimated total global telecom revenues to be in the $1.8 trillion region in 2021, with telecom revenue loss due to fraud to be estimated at 2.22%, resulting in $39.89 billion losses. With this in mind, telecom fraud is a major issue for telecom operators.

How Can Cybersecurity Providers Create Differentiation with Future Digital Enterprise Customers?

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Security heads continue to be challenged in implementing effective cybersecurity strategies and continue to want positive and measurable business outcomes with their cybersecurity investments.

• To stay relevant and drive growth, providers will have to reposition sales and marketing efforts in front of customers, emphasizing value-based selling addressing business challenges.

The Challenged Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), and Vendors Riding on the Current Cybersecurity Growth Wave
It is clear that cybersecurity is high on the agenda for businesses of all sizes ranging from small-to-medium enterprises to multinational corporates and government establishments. In recent years, the public has seen exponential growth in cyberattacks across a range of verticals covering finance, government, and utilities to name a few. On the one hand, this has resulted in healthy revenue growth in the cybersecurity segment, with stock valuations and revenues on the rise alongside advances in technology.

Geopolitical Impact on the Future Global Financial Sector: How Cybersecurity Providers Should Realign

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• The global financial sector continues to experience exponential increases in cyber-attacks, influenced by geopolitics and the recent Russia invasion of Ukraine.
• Cybersecurity vendors should not be complacent because of recent positive performances if they are to stay relevant and drive future growth in the financial sector.

Exponential Cyber-Attack Increases in the Financial Sector

The global financial sector has experienced an exponential rise in cyber-attacks over the last four years.  Today, this is even more of an issue both from sector and geopolitical perspectives, and Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine further impacts geopolitical order with a high number of DDoS attacks on both Russian and Ukrainian targets, including the Ukrainian Defense Ministry and Ukrainian banks PrivatBank and Oschadbank.

For the UK Government to Be Successful with Its New Cybersecurity Initiative, the Public Sector Needs to Change

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• The UK government’s strategic announcement on its public services cybersecurity strategy is a positive, as there is a real need to address cyber threats in the public sector.
• For the new cybersecurity strategy to succeed, key departments responsible for implementing the strategy within authorities and the public sector require operational transformation and greater agility.

Threat Level Across UK Public Sector

The UK Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Steve Barclay announced on January 25 that the government will launch what it calls the “first ever government cybersecurity strategy” to counter increased cyberattacks on IT systems and associated services within public services.  The government’s strategic initiative aims to address the sheer volume of cyberattacks on the UK public sector.  Figures taken from the National Cyber Security Centre between September 2020 and August 2021 suggest that approximately 40% of cyberattacks were aimed at the public sector.  Some of the authorities believed to have been compromised include the Redcar & Cleveland, Wealden District, Gloucester City, and Hackney Councils.  Additionally, it’s believed that councils across the UK reported more than 700 data breaches in 2020 to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).  This, in the context of future increased digitization of public services encompassing technologies like Internet of Things and smart cities, could be a future catalyst in the exponential increase of cyberattacks in the public sector at a local and regional level.

Telefónica Empowers Service Providers to Deliver Tailored Security Solutions to Enterprises

R. Muru

Summary Bullets:

• Telefónica delivers a strong commitment and makes its cybersecurity solutions and professional services capabilities available through partnerships to assist third-party service providers and capture new revenue streams.
• Telefónica’s differentiated value proposition includes empowering third-party service providers with limited security capabilities to deliver bespoke security solutions in less than 12 months.

The Challenged Enterprise in the New Norm

Telefónica (Telefónica Global Solutions), together with GlobalData, delivered a webinar in October 2021 highlighting the impact of cybersecurity attacks on both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and global corporates.  To put this into context: in 2020, businesses made ransomware payments of more than $400 million in cryptocurrency, a 300% increase compared to 2019.  However, the average cost to a business in terms of financial impact, downtime, and lost opportunity is far greater, with some enterprises in the private healthcare sector, for example, highlighting post-cyberattack revenue losses in the millions and damage to brand and shareholder value.