Avnet Technology Solutions Debuts Dedicated Cloud Solutions Team

Avnet also enters a strategic alliance with Savvis to deliver cloud and managed services solutions to channel partners in the U.S. and Canada

CompTIA Breakaway 2012

TEMPE, Ariz. --(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Avnet Technology Solutions, the global IT solutions distribution leader and an operating group of Avnet, Inc. (NYSE: AVT), today introduced Avnet Cloud Solutions, a dedicated team focused on off-premise cloud solutions for value-added reseller (VAR), managed service provider (MSP) and integrated software vendor (ISV) partners in the U.S. and Canada. The Avnet Cloud Solutions team is developing a portfolio of integrated and packaged offerings designed to be delivered on an annuity basis by partners, minimizing their development costs and fostering repeatability.

The focus of this portfolio is on the areas of cloud computing that are in demand among end users and best served by off-premise cloud delivery models. Initially, Avnet will provide partners with offering in workload categories, such as productivity and collaboration; backup and disaster recovery; test and development; security; application hosting and management; remote management and monitoring; and data center as a service.

"Avnet invested more than a year of research and development into the creation of Avnet Cloud Solutions, analyzing the short and long-term cloud computing opportunities in the data center" said Tim FitzGerald, vice president of Avnet Cloud Solutions group, Avnet Technology Solutions, Americas. "Avnet Cloud Solutions will leverage this knowledge to help our partners capitalize on cloud computing opportunities that are in the greatest demand among customers today. The Avnet Cloud Solutions team will work with our partners to accelerate their growth and build successful off-premise cloud solutions businesses."

To develop its portfolio of integrated and packaged solution offerings, Avnet works with industry-leading cloud providers. Cloud providers selected for their ecosystem align with the workloads that the Avnet Cloud Solutions team has determined are in high-demand areas. Additionally, these providers meet specific requirements that ensure the best interests of Avnet's partners are protected and bring the greatest value to the end customers.

"In alignment with this strategy, Avnet entered into a strategic agreement with Savvis, a global enterprise-class cloud and managed services provider. Savvis was selected based on meeting specific channel requirements and its reputation for best-in-class cloud and managed services capabilities," said FitzGerald.

"We're pleased to deliver cloud and managed services to enterprise customers through Avnet's channel community because they have proven ability to build an ecosystem of knowledgeable partners that understand end customer's business challenges," said Jaywant Singh Rao, vice president of global alliances at Savvis. "With the launch of Avnet Cloud Solutions, Avnet reinforces its commitment to managed services and the high-growth cloud market".

Avnet Cloud Solutions will help partners determine the quickest path to becoming trusted advisors for cloud solutions by developing domain expertise in off-premise cloud computing and bridging gaps as partners transition more of their business to an annuity revenue model.

"Cloud computing continues to evolve at a rapid pace, and Avnet's strategy is in lockstep and aligns well with high-growth market opportunities for partners," said Marco Mohajer, executive vice president at Technologent, a leading global provider of technology infrastructure solutions and Avnet partner. "At Technologent, we recognize that to be successful long-term, we need to develop our off-premise cloud computing business. Since this is more services-focused and annuity-based than traditional solutions sales, Avnet Cloud Solutions' approach will help us quickly pursue off-premise cloud computing opportunities with offering that are specifically for the channel and match the needs of our customer."

Partners can learn more about Avnet Cloud Solutions at CompTIA's Breakaway 2012 on July 30-August 2, 2012 in Las Vegas. FitzGerald will be a panelist in the session titled, "Distributor Power Panel: The Role of Distribution in the New Channel" on August 1, 2012 from Noon-1:30 pm PST.

For more information about Avnet Cloud Solutions visit www.avnetcloudready.com.
Follow Avnet Cloud Solutions on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/AvnetCloudReady.
Join the Avnet Cloud Solutions LinkedIn group at: Avnet TS CloudReady.

Follow Avnet Technology Solutions, North America, on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AvnetAdvantage.

About Savvis:

Savvis, a CenturyLink company, is a global leader in cloud infrastructure and hosted IT solutions for enterprises. Nearly 2,500 unique clients, including more than 30 of the top 100 companies in the Fortune 500, use Savvis to reduce capital expense, improve service levels and harness the latest advances in cloud computing.

About CenturyLink:

CenturyLink is the third largest telecommunications company in the United States. The company provides broadband, voice, wireless and managed services to consumers and businesses across the country. It also offers advanced entertainment services under the CenturyLink™ Prism™ TV and DIRECTV brands. In addition, the company provides data, voice and managed services to enterprise, government and wholesale customers in local, national and select international markets through its high-quality advanced fiber optic network and multiple data centers. CenturyLink is recognized as a leader in the network services market by key technology industry analyst firms, and is a global leader in cloud infrastructure and hosted IT solutions for enterprises through Savvis, a CenturyLink company. CenturyLink’s customers range from Fortune 500 companies in some of the country’s largest cities to families living in rural America. Headquartered in Monroe, La., CenturyLink is an S&P 500 company and is included among the Fortune 500 list of America’s largest corporations. For more information, visit: www.savvis.com or www.centurylink.com.

About Avnet Technology Solutions:

As a global IT solutions distributor, Avnet Technology Solutions collaborates with its customers and suppliers to create and deliver services, software and hardware solutions that address the business needs of their end-user customers locally and around the world. For fiscal year 2011, the group served customers in more than 70 countries and generated US $11.5 billion in annual revenue. Avnet Technology Solutions (www.ats.avnet.com) is an operating group of Avnet, Inc.

About Avnet:

Avnet, Inc. (NYSE: AVT), a FORTUNE 500 company, is one of the largest distributors of electronic components, computer products and embedded technology serving customers in more than 70 countries worldwide. Avnet accelerates its partners' success by connecting the world's leading technology suppliers with a broad base of more than 100,000 customers by providing cost-effective, value-added services and solutions. For the fiscal year ended July 2, 2011, Avnet generated revenue of $26.5 billion. For more information, visit www.avnet.com.

Contacts:
Brodeur Partners, for Avnet Technology Solutions Marcia Chapman
480-308-0284
mchapman@brodeur.com