Palo Alto Networks: Sales Process for SASE

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Regarding SASE, do you view it as invaluable, or do you see the firewall as a core part of the SASE stack? Alternatively, do you think that SASE will eventually replace firewalls for most of the customers you've dealt with?

Honestly, and this is consistent with what I've been saying at Ericom, I don't see the firewall being replaced by any of these new technologies like SASE or isolation. The firewall is a crucial security infrastructure tool for internal traffic. That's one aspect. However, to connect the outside world with the users and their networks, technologies like SASE, SD-WAN, or Prisma Access are emerging from the detection-based, signature-based security approach. They cover this aspect, but with additional costs for customers, especially from a Palo Alto Networks perspective. I wasn't able to win all my deals with customers who already have a next-generation firewall in place to convince them to buy the SASE stack additionally or to replace their traditional VPN solutions.

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In terms of SASE competition, let's start with a high-level question. What's your level of optimism on Palo Alto's SASE approach versus Zscaler or Fortinet? Or even Netskope for that matter. Who do you think is best positioned in SASE and who do you think would follow that?

It's also a question of cost. When you're talking to mid-market customers, ranging from 500 to 5,000 users, and retailers for example, then Fortinet will make its way. Simply because Fortinet, even from a firewall perspective, is positioned exactly to fulfill the needs and the cost for these types of businesses. They don't provide all the high-cost benefits that Palo Alto Networks does. But from a technological perspective, I think Palo Alto Networks is the most advanced. They offer more security than any other vendor. Zscaler is still seen as a SWG and not a SASE. And their business model is not really switching from SWG and traffic only to focusing on users.

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When you say they offer their products at a significantly lower cost, do you mean half the price of Palo Alto's offerings?

No, it's not exactly half the price. Especially in the SASE market, I can't say that I directly competed against Fortinet. However, I know that Fortinet has positioned itself well. They have a 5G router in their product portfolio and other features that make their offerings more customizable for the mid-market. This allows them to offer a better price point for mid-market customers than Palo Alto. I see Palo Alto as a solution for larger enterprises that have a higher risk appetite than mid-market companies. Mid-market companies are unlikely to pay for a solution that offers 99% security at a high cost when Fortinet can offer them 92% to 95% security at half the price.

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