7. Massive Consolidation Among Microsoft’s Licensing Solution Providers

Acquisitions have thinned the ranks of Microsoft’s Licensing Solution Providers (LSPs) as the Redmond, Wash.-based vendor places a greater emphasis on cloud, mobility and services sales.

LSPs are the only Microsoft partners authorized to handle software volume licensing transactions, and Microsoft had roughly 15 of them at the start of the 2015.

But PCM, No. 29 on the CRN Solution Provider 500, drove consolidation in the ranks, acquiring fellow LSPs En Pointe, No. 42 on the 2014 SP 500, in March and Acrodex, No. 92 on the 2015 SP 500, in October. And SoftwareONE, No. 14 on the SP 500, in March bought the LSP business of CompuCom, No. 23 on the 2014 SP 500.