Infineta Launches Pay-As-You-Go WAN Optimization Service: Page 2 of 2

While nothing has been finalized, Budhani says, the company is actively working on lining up partners, with EMC topping the list. "We're working very closely with them on a number of things, but there is nothing to announce yet." He says there are both service and product opportunities with the storage giant, and that something could be in place as early as the first quarter of 2012.

ESG senior analyst Bob Laliberte says Infineta is a product company, and by offering the service it has another go-to-market way to leverage its technology in a meaningful way. "Data migration is a huge pain point, a dirty little secret not well advertised but starting to come into vogue." He believes it is a great foot in the door to enable potential customers to see the benefits in a real-world scenario.

It's a significant market, he adds. "Data migration is a real part of everybody's life and pretty much constant." Another trend that should fuel further growth is the massive data center consolidations that have become the norm of the last few years.

Given Infineta's size, Laliberte says, a partnership with a company like EMC or HP can play a huge role in validating the company's value and alleviate any fears it is too small. "The best way to establish that trust ... is to be associated with a partner, ... so it will be important to establish those relationships to establish that credibility in that space."

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