Optical Laser To Combine IM, Security And Storage

The Huntington Beach, Calif.-based value-added distributor, which specializes in storage management and data distribution products, is looking to enhance its storage product line with security. FaceTime, Foster City, Calif., represents the first move in that direction, said Arsenio Batoy, Optical Laser president.

"This leverages our archival and compliance market with IM archiving and with IM security," Batoy said.

Optical Laser expects its solution provider customers to plug FaceTime's IM Auditor and RTG 500 perimeter security for P2P and IM software into their storage management and content management offerings.

The software archives P2P, VoIP and instant messages directly to applications from EMC's Legato, Veritas' KVS, Filenet, and OpenText, as well as direct to EMC's Centera content-addressable storage array, said Batoy. "We will be offering bundles with some of these products," he said.

The FaceTime software is already available from Optical, and Optical's technicians have been trained. It is now in solution provider recruitment mode, Batoy said.

Optical Laser will initially support its customers' customers until solution providers can handle the FaceTime software themselves, said Batoy. "Resellers can leverage our engineering and sales team while they ramp up their own business," he said.

With more than 500 customers and over 30 solution providers worldwide, FaceTime is looking to its agreement with Optical Laser to expand its channel, said Christopher Dean, senior vice president of the software vendor.

The core problem FaceTime is trying to solve is the explosion of IM and P2P networks, Dean said. He estimates 35 million people, or one of every three e-mail users, now uses IM in U.S. businesses, and expects IM users will equal e-mail users by 2006 or 2007.

Such usage accounts for an upswing in trojans, viruses, and spyware, said Dean. Worse, most customers have no IM policies. "It's a large compliance risk," he said. "[IMs] need to locked, controlled and audited."

FaceTime software is also available through Bristol, Pa.-based distributor Mackin Imaging Systems.