Microsoft Canadian Data Centres Expand Softchoice's Canadian Footprint

TORONTO, May 11, 2016 /CNW/ - David MacDonald, president and CEO of Softchoice, a leading North American IT solutions and managed services provider, welcomed the official opening of Microsoft's new data centers in Canada, which will deliver Azure, Office 365, and Dynamics CRM Online to more Canadian organizations, helping them realize the benefits of Microsoft Cloud.

With this announcement, Microsoft Azure is generally available from local data centre regions located in Toronto and Quebec City, and Office 365 is now offering data residency for Canadian business customers. In addition, Dynamics CRM Online is scheduled to go live by September 2016 to bring the most complete cloud, with leadership across IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, and hybrid scenarios, to enable people and organizations to achieve more.

This announcement marks a significant expansion of Microsoft's trusted cloud services into Canada. Azure and Office 365 customers gain the benefits of Microsoft's trusted cloud services combined with data residency in Canada. This includes data redundancy in multiple locations within Canada for business continuity and the option of a fast and private connection to the cloud with Azure ExpressRoute.

"Bringing Microsoft Cloud over Canadian soil addresses the data residency concerns that were holding some Canadian businesses, banks and government entities back from leveraging cloud technologies," said Mr. MacDonald. "This announcement immediately opens up opportunities for us to work with our customers and help them to take advantage of Microsoft Cloud, something Softchoice is particularly well positioned to support."

As the largest Microsoft partner in Canada, and number one in terms of deployments of Office 365 and Azure, Softchoice has developed unique offerings to help organizations drive business transformation through Microsoft Cloud technologies.

Softchoice has a team of cloud, licensing and pre-sales consultants as well as proprietary services like the Workload Analyzer and Azure TechCheck, which provide fact-based insights around current infrastructure and applications to facilitate the migration process. In addition, Softchoice's Keystone Managed Services for Microsoft Cloud help clients unlock the full potential of offerings such as Office 365 and Azure by reducing the risk of outages, managing configurations and improving time to value through unlimited staff mentorship.

"From today on, our goal is to create Canada's best and most complete cloud, enabled by world-class technology and world class cloud ecosystem," said Janet Kennedy, president of Microsoft Canada. "We're privileged to work with our team of Canadian partners who are perfectly positioned to help our Canadian customers innovate, grow and transform their businesses."

About Softchoice

As a leading North American provider of IT solutions and managed services, Softchoice combines the efficiency and reliability of a national IT supplier with the personal touch and technical expertise of a local solutions provider. Softchoice's holistic approach to technology includes solution design, implementation, asset management and cloud services, as well as access to one of the most comprehensive and cost-effective technology distribution networks in North America. With over 1,300 employees, Softchoice manages the technology needs of thousands of corporate and public sector organizations across the United States and Canada.

SOURCE Softchoice Corporation

Media Contact: Joel Hoidas, Communications Manager, Softchoice, 416-588-9002 ext. 222590, joel.hoidas [at] softchoice.com