Fortinet's SD-WAN capabilities have been tapped by a slew of new managed security service providers (MSSPs) in an effort to provide secure connectivity services.

The new MSSPs under Fortinet's belt include B.Online, Cirion, ngena, PT&T, and Telefónica. According to the Spanish telecom operator's Director of B2B Marketing Carolina Navarrete, the hybrid IT architectures of modern distributed workforces have outlined a need for reliable networks and faster speeds.

Telefónica is addressing that niche by combining Fortinet's SD-WAN with Spain-based carrier Movistar Empresas' managed security and cloud services. This provides "agile connection for users while guaranteeing security and reducing IT costs for our customers," Navarrete said.

ngena and its zero-trust network lifecycle platform is also tapping Fortinet's SD-WAN offering. CEO Bart de Graaf noted this integration will "support our partners both in reach and incredibly fast time to market with a fully managed turn-key solution."

Fortinet EVP of Products and CMO John Maddison noted its SD-WAN services – including secure access service edge (SASE), zero-trust network access (ZTNA), secure web gateway (SWG), cloud access security broker (CASB), and firewall-as-a-service – are "built on a common operating system" and "allow our global MSSP partners to easily grow their business and deliver new services."

Fortinet was deemed a leader in Gartner's latest SD-WAN Magic Quadrant report. According to Senior Director Analyst Jonathan Forest, an SD-WAN “leader is one who’s got a complete product that serves across various market segments, a vendor who’s going to be able to address the majority of customer needs well, and also has the product to do it,” he told SDxCentral in an earlier interview.

And while the SD-WAN market is “mainstream and maturing,” the analyst firm said its 70-odd suppliers render that side a crowded landscape, leaving large established vendors and smaller providers from multiple segments to compete for market share.

“There’s a lot of vendors in this space. It’s still quite fragmented, even though it’s becoming more and more top heavy,” Forest said. “This market is dominated at the high end by a handful of vendors, but it’s got a long tail. Niche players are very valuable competitors in this market.”

Gartner’s predicts the SD-WAN market will grow at a 14% compound annual growth rate for the next four or five years. “I would say there’s growth opportunities for every vendor, not just the leaders,” Forest added.