CafeX Communications, Proofpoint, TeleMessage, Staffbase: News Roundup for February

This month I attended the Cisco Collaboration Analyst Summit, which I covered in a separate post. I was also scheduled to attend MWC 2020 but the event was cancelled due to concerns about the coronavirus outbreak. Published reports include coverage of Synacor, Sonos, TeleMessage, Proofpoint and CafeX.

A highlight this month was collaborating with TeleMessage CEO Guy Levit on a user deployment report covering their partnership with Proofpoint. Below is an excerpt; 451 Research subscribers can access the full report here.

• Proofpoint adds TeleMessage Mobile Archiver for capturing text, voice and WhatsApp messages. Regulatory changes are influencing how organizations manage and control security and privacy in workplace collaboration, including the use of mobile communications. In the finance sector, regulations requiring mobile communications surveillance include FINRA in the US and the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) in the EU; in the government sector the Freedom of Information Act and the National Archives and Records Administration now require the capture and archive of text messages. We look at how its partnership with TeleMessage enables Proofpoint to help organizations address these requirements with a comprehensive, cloud-based archiving solution for a wide range of content types including mobile communications.

Other reports published this month include:

• Staffbase provides workplace communications to enable the digital employee experience. We look at the company’s positioning as an internal communications app, a ‘front door’ intranet and HR portal that can help large organizations engage with a distributed workforce. 451 Research subscribers can access the report here.
• CafeX Communications tackles secure internal and external collaboration with Challo. We look at how the company leveraged its trajectory with voice, video and collaboration technologies to launch Challo, a new cloud-based enterprise collaboration application that aims to help organizations address modern workplace requirements with features such as interoperability between collaboration tools and external collaboration. 451 Research subscribers can access the report here.
• Synacor expands video capabilities in its SaaS collaboration portfolio with Qumu buy. The target should round out Synacor’s enterprise collaboration offering with video capabilities and provide cross-selling opportunities for its partner network of video, internet and communications providers. Qumo’s solid customer base includes Global 2000 and Fortune 500 companies and well-known global brands. 451 Research subscribers can access the report here.
• Sonos acquires data-over-sound startup Chirp. The smart speaker manufacturer has acquired Chirp, which uses audio technology to enable M2M communications. The target could help Sonos enhance the user experience in its product line — it could also enable it to expand beyond the consumer segment, targeting a wide range of use cases such as proximity marketing, mobile payments, IIoT and gaming. 451 Research subscribers can access the report here.

In press coverage, I was interviewed by Matthew Finnegan of Computerworld for two articles:

• Why HyperloopTT uses Facebook’s Workplace for team communications. Companies looking to better connect workers spread across time zones have a variety of options; Microsoft, Google, Slack and Facebook all compete in the collaboration arena. Sometimes, one of those options stands out among the others.
• CERN bails on Facebook’s Workplace, cites cost. The research organization, which operates the large hadron collider, will instead opt for open-source messaging app Mattermost to replace its trial test of Workplace.