MSP Technology News Headlines for the Week of 10/27/2025
The 2025 ASCII Cup Winners, Kaseya’s 2025 Global IT Trends and Priorities Report, and startup Flamingo’s new OpenFlame AI platform lead this week’s headlines. Plus, we have lots of other interesting technology news from all over the industry. From product enhancements to partnerships to telling industry reports, you’ll need to stay in the know. Ready for a quick rundown of this week’s MSP news and partner program updates? Scroll on down!
2025 ASCII Cup Celebrates Innovation and Excellence in the Channel
The 2025 ASCII Cup Awards run by The ASCII Group recognize top tech vendors selected by the MSP community for outstanding performance and support.
Key quote from the press release:
“The ASCII Cup reflects the voice of MSPs. Recognizing RYTHMz as Vendor of the Year, along with the other companies honored, underscores the vital role our industry partners play in helping MSPs succeed.” — Jerry Koutavas, CEO, The ASCII Group
🏅See all the 2025 ASCII Cup winners in ChannelPro Network’s coverage.
Kaseya Releases 2025 Global IT Trends and Priorities Report
New survey reveals a shift toward leaner IT teams driving enterprise-scale success.
Key findings from the report include:
- Nearly one in five companies earning over $500 million annually now operate with 25 or fewer IT employees. This signals a major shift in enterprise staffing models.
- An 8-percentage-point year-over-year increase in small IT teams at high-performing organizations shows growing adoption of lean, efficiency-driven models.
- The rise of “high-revenue, low-headcount” organizations reflects a new paradigm for scaling tech operations efficiently.
- Findings challenge the traditional assumption that enterprise-scale revenue requires equally large IT departments. It emphasizes automation and smarter resource allocation instead.
- The report frames 2025 as a turning point for IT strategy. It’s less about cost-cutting and more about redefining how companies achieve scalability and performance.
Flamingo Launches from Stealth to Transform the $380B MSP Market with AI-powered Open Source Platform
Miami-based startup introduces OpenFrame to help MSPs slash costs and scale profitably through AI automation and open source infrastructure.
Key quote from the press release:
“MSPs are paying twice for the same problem: once to vendors and again to technicians. OpenFrame fixes both. Open source cuts the vendor tax, and AI eliminates repetitive work. The result is freedom, efficiency, and real profitability.” — Michael Assraf, CEO and founder, Flamingo
Service Leadership Launches Benchmark Essentials for Smaller IT Solution Providers
New offering delivers simplified financial benchmarking and insights tailored to IT solution providers with under 10 employees.
Key quote from the press release:
“S-L Benchmark Essentials is more than just a financial benchmarking tool. It’s a catalyst for organizational growth and competitive advantage. Running a smaller MSP is tough, and too many don’t make it financially. This will empower smaller organizations to deepen their financial understanding and make business success much more attainable.” — Peter Kujawa, executive vice president and general manager, Service Leadership & IT Nation, ConnectWise
Acer Debuts New Premium Chromebook Plus Enterprise 714 Line
Acer launches its latest business-class Chromebook Plus solution with high performance, premium design, and enterprise-grade features.
Key highlights from the press release include:
- The Acer Chromebook Plus Enterprise 714 (model CBE794-1/T) is designed for large-scale business deployment.
- It will be available in North America in Q4 2025, starting at $1,499.99.
- Powered by Intel® Core™ Ultra processors, it offers up to 20.5 hours of battery life for demanding multitasking environments.
- Features a durable aluminum chassis certified to MIL-STD 810H standards, with reinforced ports and hinges tested for up to 20,000 open/close cycles.
- Equipped with enterprise-ready connectivity and security. That includes Gigabit Ethernet, dual Thunderbolt ports, HDMI, fingerprint reader, and ChromeOS with Chrome Enterprise Upgrade for streamlined IT management.
- Built with sustainability in mind: EPEAT registered, Energy Star certified, and includes an OceanGlass™ touchpad made from ocean-bound plastics.
Netrio Appoints Bobby Hall as Vice President of Channel Sales
Experienced channel sales leader joins to expand Netrio’s partner-driven growth strategy.
Key quote from the press release:
“Having the right leader in place to guide our channel partner program efforts is essential to realizing the tremendous market opportunity that exists for Netrio and our channel partners. Bobby has an established track record and is the perfect leader to help take Netrio to the next level in the channel. He’s known across the channel as a passionate, respected leader who gets the best out of people.” — Mike Cromwell, chief revenue officer, Netrio
Dashlane Passkey Report 2025
Survey and usage data reveal rapid growth in passkey adoption and ongoing challenges for credential security.
Key findings from the report include:
- Passkey authentications grew more than 400% since the beginning of the year, reaching 200,000 per month.
- E-commerce sites dominate passkey usage, accounting for roughly 42% of all authentications.
- Users prompted to use passkeys are 70% more likely to successfully sign in versus traditional passwords.
- One-in-five active Dashlane users now stores at least one passkey in the credential vault.
Commvault Introduces Conversational AI as the Interface for Backup and Cyber Resilience
New capabilities let enterprises safely automate data protection with the simplicity of GenAI assistants.
Key quote from the press release:
“We’re moving beyond conversational interfaces to enable agentic resilience, where AI can act on behalf of teams, safely and transparently. By adopting the Model Context Protocol, we’re giving enterprises the foundation to automate recovery and protection workflows within the guardrails of the NIST Risk Management Framework: auditable, policy-driven, and role-based access controlled.” — Pranay Ahlawat, chief technology and AI officer, Commvault
More Headlines from Commvault
➡️Commvault Launches Data Rooms to Safely Connect Enterprise Data with AI Platforms
Channel Marketing Association Honors 2025 Channel Marketing Excellence Award Winners
Annual awards celebrate innovation, creativity, and measurable impact in channel marketing across the technology industry.
Key quote from the press release:
“Channel marketers are the unsung heroes of the channel. They’re the ones working tirelessly behind the scenes to help partners succeed. This year’s awards not only spotlight their contributions but also support future changemakers in tech through our partnership with Tech4Change.” — Amy Bailey, co-founder, Channel Marketing Association
GoTo Empowers Schools with Secure, All-in-one Communications Platform Tailor-made for Educational Institutions
Introduction of GoTo Connect for Education brings integrated communications and safety features to schools and universities.
Key quote from the press release:
“Managing multiple, outdated communication systems is a challenge for schools and universities, often creating a complex IT environment. With GoTo Connect for Education, we’re giving teachers and administrators a single dashboard to oversee communications from individual schools all the way up to the entire district. GoTo Connect for Education takes out the guesswork and streamlines the buying process with straightforward pricing and a solution that can easily scale at no additional cost. GoTo Connect also integrates seamlessly with existing setups, such as bell and paging systems, so educators and staff can collaborate more efficiently and minimize disruption.” — Damon Covey, general manager of UCC, GoTo
Barracuda Releases 2025 Email Security Breach Report
Report highlights evolving email-based attack vectors and the changing threat landscape for organizations of all sizes.
Key findings from the report include:
- 83% of malicious Microsoft 365 documents contain QR codes that lead to phishing websites.
- One-in-four HTML email attachments is identified as malicious.
- 20% of organizations experience at least one account takeover (ATO) incident each month.
- 12% of malicious PDF attachments are linked to Bitcoin sextortion scams.
NordStellar Introduces Brand Protection to Help Companies Combat Fraud and Impersonation at Large
New service monitors fake domains, social media accounts, and counterfeit apps to protect brand integrity and customer trust.
Key quote from the press release:
“NordStellar’s new brand protection service continuously monitors and detects fraud and impersonation, automatically removing violations such as look-alike domains, fake accounts, and counterfeit apps before attackers can exploit the business’ customers’ trust and damage their reputation. This service is another significant development in our journey to provide companies with a comprehensive approach to cybersecurity based on clear and dark web coverage.” — Vakaris Noreika, head of product, NordStellar
1Password Appoints Larissa Crandall as Global Vice President of Channels & Alliances
Industry veteran joins 1Password to strengthen global partnerships and expand the company’s channel-led go-to-market strategy.
Key quote from the Crandall’s social media post:
“Throughout my career, I’ve focused on building and scaling partner-led ecosystems that empower teams, foster trust, and drive meaningful outcomes. That’s why 1Password’s approach to reimagining identity security for the modern world of SaaS and AI deeply resonates with me. It combines my passion for innovation with a people-first mindset to solve complex security challenges.” — Larissa Crandall, global vice president of channels & alliances, 1Password
SellYourMac Expands to Canada, Offering a Trusted Way to Sell, Reuse, and Recycle Apple Devices
SYM, a subsidiary of the Other World Computing (OWC) family, launches a Canadian site to extend its re-commerce and IT asset transition services for Apple products.
Key quote from the press release:
“Expanding to Canada allows us to extend our mission of reuse and sustainability to a new community of Apple users. We’ve helped more than 100,000 customers in the U.S. recoup value from their devices, and now Canadians can experience that same level of trust, convenience, and service — right in their own backyard.” — Jon Murphy, general manager, ITAD, Other World Computing
Informatica Announces Fall 2025 Release with Latest Innovations to Intelligent Data Management Cloud
New release enhances AI automation, governance, and cloud-scale data management capabilities.
Key quote from the press release:
“The world is entering the era of agentic AI, where autonomous agents collaborate with humans to solve complex business challenges. With our Fall Launch, Informatica empowers every organization to connect trusted, AI-ready data to these intelligent agents helping them innovate faster, operate smarter and build AI systems their businesses can trust.” — Krish Vitaldevara, chief product officer, Informatica
Cloudbrink Brings Secure, Compliant, High-performance AI to Enterprises
New AI-ready SASE platform delivers the control, visibility, and performance needed for safe and efficient enterprise AI adoption.
Key quote from the press release:
“AI is the biggest transformation enterprises have seen in decades, but adoption has been slowed by security, compliance, and performance concerns. Cloudbrink now removes those barriers. IT and security teams get the control they need, while developers and employees enjoy the speed they expect. We’re giving organizations the clarity, control, and speed they need to embrace AI responsibly.” — Prakash Mana, CEO, Cloudbrink
➡️ See more on Cloudbrink’s reseller program.
BeyondTrust Experts Reveal Top Cybersecurity Predictions for 2026 and Beyond
Annual forecast highlights technology inflection points where identity, agentic AI, and geopolitics will reshape security strategies
Key findings from the report include:
- With nearly every connected device expected to embed agentic AI, the attack surface will expand dramatically as oversight struggles to keep pace.
- The concept of “AI Veganism” will emerge, as individuals and organizations opt-out of AI products over concerns about privacy, ethics and environmental impact.
- Governments will introduce “digital tariffs” on cross-border digital services, reshaping data sovereignty and regional innovation markets.
- Legacy VPNs will enter their end-of-life phase as identity-based remote access solutions become the new standard for secure connectivity.
- Account poisoning — automated manipulation of trusted financial accounts — will become a widespread threat vector demanding tighter identity and transaction integrity controls.
- Emerging long-term trends include biological computing powered by living neurons, emotionally intelligent AI companions, and continuous biometric authentication becoming the new cryptographic key.
As ChannelPro’s online director and tech editor for over a decade, Matt Whitlock has spent years blending sharp tech insight with digital know-how. He brings more than 25 years’ experience working in the technology industry to his reviews, analysis, and general musings about all things gadget and gear.
Image Credit: The ASCII Group, Kaseya, Acer, DashLane, Barracuda
