In keeping with its moves over the last several months to increase its worldwide footprint and gain direct engagement with customers in critical geographies, Indiana-based Interactive Intelligence Group, a global provider of unified IP business communications software and services, announced the purchase of the customer support agreements of its New Zealand reseller, Amtel.
While no financial terms were disclosed, under the terms of the agreement, effective April 1, 2013, Amtel's 24 customers will now directly be served by the Interactive Intelligence sales, marketing, support and services organization in New Zealand.
"This acquisition benefits former Amtel customers by giving them direct access to our local, regional and global support and services staff, which number about 450 worldwide," said Interactive Intelligence founder and CEO, Dr. Donald E. Brown. "At the same time, it will help us launch our cloud-based communications-as-a-service offering in New Zealand."
Interactive Intelligence also noted that it now plans to expand its Auckland (NZ) staff to total between eight and 12 employees by the end of the year, and will relocate the office to a larger facility within the next 12 months.
As done in other regions, Interactive Intelligence will continue its "sell-through-partner" strategy throughout the Australia and New Zealand markets, according to Dr. Brown. "We remain committed to our reseller channel and will continue to support existing partners in the region, which is in keeping with our combination of a direct and partner distribution model that we've operated successfully throughout the world since our founding in 1994," he said.
The move comes on the heels of the company’s recent announcements of staff expansions of its Indiana HQ operations to meet growing demand , particularly in the areas of the hot cloud-based contact center where it is experiencing explosive uptake, the recent addition to its portfolio of its CaaS offering for small to medium business (SMBs), and the formal launch of its apps Marketplace.