The VAR Guy

Eucalyptus Systems, the open-source private cloud platform that’s making major channel moves, has completed a $20 million round of funding led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA). Also part of the announcement: NEA Partner Peter Sonsini has joined the Eucalyptus board of directors. Here’s the scoop and potential implications for channel partners.

Also contributing to this round of funding — Eucalyptus’ second — were existing investors Benchmark Capital and BV Capital. This news means that Eucalyptus has raised $25.5 million in investment capital to date, according to the press release.

Leading the way with investors, says Eucalyptus Systems CEO Marten Mickos, is increased demand for cloud computing solutions.

“The market for private and hybrid cloud computing is poised for massive expansion this year, and we are honored that NEA, one of the world’s largest and most respected venture capital firms, along with current investors Benchmark Capital and BV Capital, will finance the next, high growth, phase for Eucalyptus,” Mickos said in a prepared statement.

As a privately-held company, The VAR Guy is a little in the dark as to whether or not these investors’ faith is well-placed. But Eucalyptus Systems reports strong momentum, consistently ups the ante technology-wise, and has entered into partnerships with heavyweights like HP and Dell.

But can Eucalyptus Systems emerge as a profitable player? We’ll be watching.

Sign up for The VAR Guy’s Newsletter; Webcasts and Resource Center; and via RSS; Facebook; Identi.ca; Twitter and VARtweet.

Read More About This Topic

• SUSE Linux Prepares Partner, Customer Surprises
• Dell Extends Multi-Vendor Support for European Customers
• Dell, HP Unleash Separate Virtualization Client Offerings
• Brocade Goes Ethereal with Cloud-Optimized Networking Wares
• In a Post-PC World, Are Vendors Looking to Close Windows?