Check Point Adds Yet Another Hardware Platform for its VPN-1 Power VSX Gateway

| Feb 19, 2009 | Enterprise Security | Competitive Update

| Analyst: Paula Musich

Current Perspective: Neutral
Vendor Importance: Neutral
Market Impact: Moderate

Event Summary

February 17, 2009 – Check Point Software Technologies announced a new family of dedicated hardware appliances designed to run its VPN-1 Power VSX virtualized security gateway software. The new VSX-1 line allows large enterprises and service providers to consolidate up to 150 security gateways in a single appliance that can operate firewall, IPSec and SSL VPN, intrusion prevention, VoIP security and URL filtering functions.

Analytical Summary

• Current Perspective: Neutral on Check Point Software Technology’s addition of a family of dedicated hardware appliances for its VPN-1 Power VSX security gateway, because while the market is clearly trending toward easier-to-implement appliances, Check Point is now awash in different hardware platforms with its bid to acquire the Nokia security hardware business, which almost exclusively runs Check Point software (see “Check Point Buys Nokia Security Hardware Business on the Rebound,” December 24, 2008.) Check Point has a compelling ROI story to tell with the new appliances, which allow from ten to 150 security gateway instances to run on a single appliance, but the breadth of different platforms that run the security gateway software could confuse potential customers.

• Vendor Importance: Moderate to Check Point, because it marks yet another deliverable in the strategy Check Point embarked on two years ago to deliver more form factor choices to the market for its security software. The new VSX-1 line of appliances joins the UTM-1 appliances for SMBs and Power-1 appliances for large campuses and data centers, adding a hardware family for the virtualized gateway, which provides firewall, IPSec and SSL VPN, intrusion prevention, VoIP security and URL filtering. Now Check Point offers dedicated hardware appliances for its VPN-1 Power VSX, allowing Check Point to gain a greater share of wallet in the sale of that virtualized security gateway.

• Market Impact: Moderate on the enterprise firewall and unified threat management market, because while the new appliance line offers a compelling ROI story in consolidating the number of physical devices that must be bought and managed in the data center, it also has the potential to confuse customers as well as channel partners because the increasing overlap of hardware platform choices customers now have from Check Point.

Recommended Competitor Actions

• Competitors should make hay with the fact that Check Point will soon have overlapping hardware platforms and operating systems for the VPN-1 Power VSX gateway, and question which platform Check Point is ultimately committed to taking forward in the future.

• Although Check Point is perceived to be one of the most expensive network security providers in the market, it now as a fairly compelling ROI story to tell with the new VSX-1 appliances and their ability to consolidate multiple gateways in a single appliance. Competitors should be prepared with their own ROI arguments to counter the TCO benefits the VSX-1’s have to offer. Those that have been more aggressive in marketing the green aspects of their competitive offerings can point to Check Point as a Johnny-Come-Lately to green computing.

• Competitors should question the actual performance that users will see in production settings with the VSX-1 appliances. Check Point is historically a software company – not a hardware designer – and its weak underbelly with these appliances could be how well they stand up under increasing loads and as more functions are activated.

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