This morning I read one of the better, more measured analyses of the growing MDM space that I’ve come across since beginning research into this industry. Tom Kemp, a contributor to Forbes magazine, gave a great overview of what’s happening in the Mobile Device Management space: lots of VC money, more than 80 vendors in competition (something I’ve mentioned in previous posts), and the high likelihood of some serious consolidation occurring throughout the next few years.
One of the more difficult realities (for vendors of MDM) of the space is that feeling of “sameness” one gets when researching the myriad vendors. From the Forbes article:
In addition, in this crowded market, analysts are also saying that the MDM vendors are struggling to differentiate. As noted by Gartner in its Magic Quadrant report, one of the top mobile OS vendors Apple has strict restrictions on what a third party can manage and secure on the Apple iOS platform, and requires that “all MDM providers use the same method for managing iOS devices …” and adds that “Because of this, all MDM providers will provide similar features.” This fixed API has in effect created a level playing field and a low barrier of entry in the MDM market, which is one of the reasons the market is flooded with vendors. This also however means their capabilities are to some degree commoditized.
We’ve been researching vendors for nearly a year now, and have been actively using several for more than 6 months. The above quote is absolutely true, and has become more so as vendors add features their competitors already added, add programmers to speed up their software release sprints, and expand platform coverage. What TechOrchard has concluded (and what we tell our clients) is that because of this commoditization or these feature-sets, and because you are likely to see a rapid contraction of the marketplace over the next few years, you really need to work with a vendor that has a history of stability — one that isn’t necessarily keeping its doors open with venture capital. Thus far, the leader in the space (and our current partner) is Fiberlink’s MaaS360 platform.
Another critical concern of our clients is the cost, complexity and deployment length of installation of any MDM service. Again, from the Forbes article:
The final concern is the fact that MDM vendors require installation within IT of another management infrastructure and/or a new set of processes and procedures that is separate from the management of other IT assets such as Windows PCs.
Your MDM solution needs to be quick and relatively painless to deploy, particularly in this “Wild West” period of the industry. The MDM solution needs to be able to deliver a layer of security without having to purchase extra racks of hardware, without having to manually install software agents, and without having to pay huge sums of capital to open the castle gates. This, again, is why (currently) we feel that Fiberlink is the front-runner in the consumerization race.
