Channel Chatter, Oct 9 - 16-2024
Dave Sobel
Outspoken Host of the Business of Tech and leading voice in the delivery of IT Services
Channel Chatter is the parsing of the listening posts that the Business of Tech podcast has around the MSP community across discussion forums and groups to bring together insights and discussions that I think are worth considering.?? In considering the needs of MSPs by listening to them for the podcast, there are insights specifically for vendors serving the space to be shared.? That is this newsletter.??
Enshittification is one of my favorite words of modern tech analysis. Enshittification is a term that describes the gradual decline in the quality of online services and products. It's also known as platform decay or crapification. The term was coined by Cory Doctorow, author of The Internet Con, in a blog post. It describes how platforms start by offering high-quality products to attract users, then degrade those products to serve business customers better, and finally degrade their services to both users and business customers to maximize profit.
And it’s been asked now about Pax8, specifically. The anger is around credit card fees, where they now charge fees to the MSP if they do not use ACH .
We did the math on our account. The surcharges were more than we would make in credit card rewards. It sucks.
"this has been highly requested, and we are excited to deliver it." Uh huh so we get to pay more but we asked for this? and yeah, I bet you are excited to deliver this!
hey maybe now then they can forward my support requests to Microsoft a few days earlier than a full week.
For a low margin, high volume business, this makes tons of sense.
I'd be okay with this of they gave us a 3% discount for using ACH, but now saying it's 3% for CC after years of it being baked into their pricing isn't cool.
Now, interestingly, the pushback is not universal.
Owners who are upset about the credit card points: You are paying for those bonuses upfront. Just as you should account for that 3% in your price to your clients, vendors are doing the same to you.
Pax8 does millions every month in transactions, but their margins as a distributor are really thin. Sure, they probably pay less than 2.9% for V/MC. Let's pretend for a moment that they're doing 1.9% in V/MC. Let's pretend that they do $100MM in Microsoft 365 licenses every month and that every MSP pays them using their MasterCard. That means $1.9MM a month is going away due from credit card fees. Sure, you could call it a cost of doing business, but we're talking millions of dollars that this company could be losing in credit card fees.
ACH doesn’t give me 4x points like Amex Gold card does. ACH also takes money instantly not giving me 30 days of float. Looks like my company will be “Titan” level… once NCE is up I’d switch to another vendor over losing rewards. Margins for this stuff suck overall.
I'm on board with the move to the tiers - we were talking with our rep and apparently there are quite a few small MSPs out there that abuse pax8 support and spend less than 100$ a month with them
But I think this discussion is more interesting.
lol! They are going to loose so much business.
I think that's the point..
Yeh they probably doing this to get rid of smaller accounts. I don't see point of changing on this. MSPs are busy already. No one wants to change csps unless there is massive benefit
Smaller account here... basically a one-man shop. You're probably right, and it's effective. I did the math, and this is going to cost me about $1000 a year. Because I'm a one-man shop that's basically a direct pay decrease. I don't want to switch. I'd much rather negotiate this with pax8 and move on with life, but if they are unwilling to budge, for a $1000 a year, it's worth me making some calls.
Is this about making more money or about removing smaller partners? The answer looks like “Yes”. In fact, do both at the same time. This enshittification process is reliable, as small organizations become bigger ones, looking to maximize profit on their larger business customers and reduce their churn and chaos at the lower end. Pax8 offered a high quality, easy to use offering to all customers, and now adjusts to offer slightly less to serve larger business customers better.
So to answer “Pax8 Enshittification?”. The answer appears to be “yes, they have entered stage two.”
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Topics of Interest
This section is a high-level summary of the major topics of discussion within the community during the time period. This gives you a sense of the questions the community is raising and what they are discussing.
Product Gaps
This section is intended to highlight “gaps” that appear to exist in the market, where a specific weakness or need is highlighted in terms of product offerings. This can also include potential gaps in the market. If you wondered what MSPs “wish things did”, that’s this section.?
1. Cost-Effective Automation Tools with Simplified Implementation
领英推荐
2. Simplified Vendor Relationship Management
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Vendor Discussion
This section is designed to give you insights into who was “discussed” this week. These are vendors that were mentioned or commented upon, and not necessarily a specific set of complaints about the vendor. This may be a good opportunity to learn about a new name, or get a sense of who is in the zeitgeist.?It’s long. It’s intentionally long, to give you the firehose.
Acronis – Discussed in the context of backup solutions, with some users expressing dissatisfaction over Acronis focusing on too many services beyond backup. The sentiment is mixed, with positive feedback on backup features but negative views on its expanded focus.
Amazon Glacier – Mentioned in the context of a costly issue experienced during a data restoration process. No specific sentiment was noted.
Avanan – Mentioned as part of the technology stack integrated with CW Manage for billing reconciliation. No specific sentiment was noted.
Azure – Mentioned in various contexts, including integration with CW Manage and as part of security processes. No specific sentiment was noted.
Barracuda – Discussed as a reseller of SentinelOne with no minimum spend. This was mentioned as an alternative to other vendors imposing higher spending thresholds.
Blackpoint Cyber – Preferred by some users over Huntress for identity monitoring in government environments. Positive sentiment towards Blackpoint’s features, though concerns about cost were noted.
BitTitan – Mentioned as a tool for Office 365 migrations. Its cost-effectiveness and ability to handle multiple migration attempts were appreciated. No specific sentiment was noted.
Commvault – Known for its reliable and ransomware-resilient backup services, though one user reported an expensive data corruption issue during a restore. The sentiment is mixed, with users acknowledging Commvault’s reliability but noting concerns about isolated incidents.
ConnectWise Manage (CW Manage) – A platform integrated with Rewst for billing reconciliation. Discussed positively for its role in automating complex billing processes.
DisplayLink – Mentioned as requiring PPPC settings management for compatibility on MacOS, especially with tools like Screen Connect. No specific sentiment was noted.
Entra IDP2 (eidp2) – Speculated to be necessary for receiving risky user alerts through Microsoft Lighthouse. No specific sentiment was noted.
Gradient MSP – Mentioned as a possible alternative to Rewst for billing reconciliation. Discussed positively as a solution integrated with many tech stacks.
Huntress – Used for identity monitoring in non-GCC environments. While some users consider switching to Blackpoint Cyber, there was no strong negative sentiment towards Huntress.
Ingram Micro – Considered an alternative to PAX8, praised for offering competitive financial incentives and better service, like a more user-friendly marketplace. Positive sentiment toward Ingram’s improvements.
Intune – Used to manage Mac devices and enforce settings such as PPPC for remote control tools. No specific sentiment was noted.
Microsoft – Frequently discussed across multiple conversations, including issues with Microsoft Lighthouse, M365 MDR, and general service degradation. The overall sentiment is negative due to frustration with unexpected alerts and lack of communication.
Microsoft Lighthouse – Criticized for its handling of risky user alerts, with users expressing dissatisfaction over the historical nature of the alerts and the system’s inefficiency. The sentiment is negative, with users frustrated over the confusion caused by these alerts.
NinjaRMM – Part of the tech stack for billing reconciliation and automation but also mentioned in other contexts, including discussions on security and backup. No specific sentiment was noted.
Nilear – Highlighted for its capabilities in automating monthly invoicing processes and group-based synchronization. No specific sentiment was noted.
PAX8 – Criticized for introducing credit card transaction fees, with users expressing dissatisfaction over the change. The sentiment is negative, with users viewing the new fee policy as unfavorable and disingenuous.
Proofpoint – Included in the stack integrated with CW Manage for automation. No specific sentiment was noted.
Rewst – Discussed for its potential in automating billing reconciliation but also noted for the high level of customization and technical resources required for full implementation. The sentiment is mixed, with positive views on its capabilities but concerns about ease of use.
Screen Connect – Mentioned in the context of technical issues on MacOS 15, where users reported bugs and system lockups. The sentiment is negative due to user frustration over the unresolved issues with Screen Connect on this platform.
SentinelOne – Resold by various vendors like PAX8 and Barracuda. Discussed in terms of pricing and service offerings, particularly regarding minimum spend policies. No specific sentiment was noted.
SIEM providers – Mentioned in the context of monitoring risky user lists. No specific sentiment was noted.
Splashtop – Discussed as a less reliable alternative to Screen Connect for remote control. A user expressed preference for Screen Connect over Splashtop. The sentiment towards Splashtop is negative.
ThreatLocker – Used for managing PPPC settings and blocking remote viewing software. Mentioned positively in terms of providing security controls for managing software installations.