MicroScope articles from May 2004

MicroScope archives from May 2004

Adtran appoints Anixter to support launch into UK.
May 3, 2004... dominic hall dom.hall@rbi.co.uk US carrier and enterprise network player Adtran is set to launch into the UK and European market after signing an exclusive distribution agreement with Anixter. The company, which recently reported a 32...

Brocade to cut SAN costs.(storage area network)
May 3, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk After targeting the SME market last month, storage switch vendor Brocade has shifted its attention to the enterprise arena in an effort to reduce the lifecycle management costs of a storage...

Bullish Acer to push into server space.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Acer has prepared the channel blueprint for its drive into the Intel server space but, with three rival manufacturers owning the Emea market, the Taiwanese vendor will need to work on brand recognition. This is not the first time Acer has tried...

Care in the reseller community.
May 3, 2004... Davey Winder We take a closer look at the emergence of on-line reseller communities and how they are being received by various figures in the industry While there isn't anything new per se in the idea of collaborative working within...

Channel seeks future briefings from HP after logistical bother.
May 3, 2004... paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk The logistical problems which have dogged Hewlett-Packard's supply chain may be coming to an end, but distributors have called on the vendor to communicate future changes more clearly. Over the past two...

Comstor adds depth via its Technology Solutions Group.(Brief article)
May 3, 2004... Comstor has shed more light on its recently formed Technology Solutions Group, a new division which aims to identify and develop emerging technologies around convergence and security technology, designed to sit alongside its primary Cisco...

Dixons to quit high street for out-of-town retailing.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... dominic hall dom.hall@rbi.co.uk Underperforming high street stores lead retailer to retreat from its traditional territory Retail giant Dixons has sounded a retreat from its traditional territory with the closure of 106 high street...

EGA to push grid computing.(Enterprise Grid Alliance)
May 3, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk The push for grid computing in the enterprise market gained a further boost last week with the formation of the Enterprise Grid Alliance (EGA) in the US -- a vendor-independent forum designed...

Enterprise-level players advised being selective is key to survival.(Brief article)
May 3, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Get big, get niche or get out: the old adage used to be thrown at distributors, but at last week's Gartner Outsourcing and IT Services Summit enterprise-level providers were told to heed the...

Flotation seen as exit route for OpenPSL.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... High-end Hewlett-Packard distributor OpenPSL is believed to be preparing to float on the Alternative Investment Market as part of an exit strategy from its arrangement with venture capital group Apax. The development would thwart advanced...

Growth in IT leasing predicted.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk IT leasing is expected to grow by approximately 5.5 per cent this year, according to a white paper published by Siemens Financial Services. But despite the expected growth, just 15 per cent...

IBM encourages cross-selling by; streamlining channel schemes.
May 3, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Big Blue's creation of a single channel programme in a bid to nurture cross-brand selling goes down well with partners IBM has merged its four PartnerWorld channel programme tracks into a...

IP demand helps Avaya turn a loss into a profit.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Roanna avison roanna.avison@rbi.co.uk Riding the growing tide of IP-related demand in the industry and working closely with its channel has helped Avaya turn last year's losses into profits in the second quarter of 2004. The vendor reported...

Keefe leaves Logicalis after clash.(integrator and services group Logicalis)(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Jeremy Keefe, UK sales director of Datatec-owned integrator and services group Logicalis, has left his position after a year with the company. Keefe joined Logicalis last March after a stint as commercial sector business development director...

NAI changes back to McAfee.(Network Associates)(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... KAren Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk Network Associates (NAI) is to undergo a major transformation after selling off its Sniffer intrusion detection business and reverting back to the McAfee name. The vendor has decided to cast off its Network...

Partners respond positively to; Microsoft incentive scheme.
May 3, 2004... karen gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk Microsoft has begun an offensive to win the hearts and minds of its channel partners through a revamped partner programme. It has set the wheels in motion to level out the playing field for its scores of...

Police crack largest ever Internet software piracy ring.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Software pirates received a crippling blow last week after the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU), the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) and the Business Software Alliance (BSA) cracked the largest ever global Internet software piracy...

Resellers could struggle to install orders in second round of funding.
May 3, 2004... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Becta has released the second round of AV funding for local education authorities prematurely and runs the risk of encountering problems with installation, according to market specialists. The first round...

Rock Direct rapped by OFT.(Office of Fair Trading )(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... karen gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk Computer retailer Rock Group, trading as Rock Direct, has had its knuckles rapped by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) after it published an advertisement offering nought per cent finance facilities which...

Security channel out in force.
May 3, 2004... Dominic Hall reports from Infosecurity 2004 where resellers and distributors tapped into a healthy turnout Depending on who you spoke to and how many times the magic pen handlers swiped your registration card near the entrance to...

Shedding some light on the subject of selling replacement projector lamps.
May 3, 2004... There are great margin and relationship-building opportunities in selling projector lamps, and Maverick managing director Jon Sidwick knows the perfect partner Everyone knows that printer sales are seen as an opportunity to sell ink. With...

Sun tackles grey without legal action.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Sun Microsystems is using mediation rather than litigation to prevent grey marketers from promoting its products and claims life has become a lot harder for the unauthorised channel. The grey market was...

Syscap dangles subscription carrot to increase SME leases.(Small and Medium-sized Enterprise )(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Subscription leasing to allow small business users the chance to adopt Oracle, Sage and PracticeWorks software Leasing specialist Syscap is to offer resellers and ISVs a software...

The Fox receives eight years for MTIC fraud.(missing trader intra-community )(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... The luxury holidays, extravagant cars and Surrey mansions will have to be put on hold for one flamboyant fraudster after he was sentenced to eight years imprisonment for masterminding a [pounds sterling]16m VAT fraud. Also known as The Fox,...

Twohig latest to part company with Ideal.(Delta Industrial Co.)(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... simon quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk Ideal has continued to shake up its management team in the wake of bidding farewell to European president Ian French in February. The distributor appointed Graeme Watt as European president last week,...

War chest opens as Compel buys Sysao.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Compel has continued its acquisition strategy by picking up Oracle consultancy business Sysao for [pounds sterling]2.175m, following hot on the heels of its December 2003 purchase of Syscap Computer Rentals. Sysao will be fully integrated into...

Will grey flood channel?
May 3, 2004... dominic hall dom.hall@rbi.co.uk Industry players fear EU expansion will lead to an influx of cheap kit from Eastern Europe Despite assurances from vendors that this week's widening of the European Union will have no negative impact on...

Zultys to raise brand profile with roadshows.(MX25 extended the VoIP functionality)(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... Roanna avison roanna.avison@rbi.co.uk Less than a month after creating a two tier channel programme with the appointment of DCM as its first UK distributor, Zultys has launched an SME product to attract smaller resellers into its fold....

3Com claims victory after grey court win.(Zorin International Ltd.)(3Com Corp.)(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... 3Com has claimed to be winning the battle against grey market kit in the channel after winning $6.5m ([pounds sterling]3.6m) in damages from defunct Canadian reseller Zorin International Ltd. The victory comes just three weeks after the vendor...

Avaya vindicates channel position.(Avaya Inc.)
May 10, 2004... Message from Sardinia includes commitment to enterprise and SMEs Avaya has defended its sales model, stressing that there is still room for channel partners to provide high-margin service in both enterprise and SME accounts. Speaking at...

BT to target SMEs with broadband proposition.(British Telecommunications PLC.)(short message entity)(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... BT has stepped up attempts to increase the number of broadband users with a proposition aimed at SME users. The telecoms giant is looking to resellers to increase SME sales through its Connected and Complete scheme, which offers broadband as...

Check Point looks to channel to push secure gateway.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... Check Point has said it aims to make the channel central to the push behind Connectra -- its new secure gateway product -- and new Web Intelligence technology. Check Point channel director for Northern Europe, Viv Francis, said the new...

HP outlines direct future for enterprise desktops.(Hewlett-Packard Co. contracts with British Telecommunications PLC.)
May 10, 2004... Pressure from Dell and enterprise customer demand driving a move to sell desktops into large corporates direct In the biggest indication yet that Hewlett-Packard intends to take its desktop business direct in the enterprise space, the head...

Ingram first quarter sales up by 15 per cent.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... Ingram Micro has released figures for the first quarter of 2004 showing net income of $37.6m ([pounds sterling]20.9m) against $10m for the same quarter last year. Sales for the quarter were $6.2bn, a rise of 15 per cent over the same period...

MBS updates accreditation scheme and combines rules of engagement.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... In a move designed to bring it in line with the rest of the company, Microsoft Business Solutions (MBS) has revamped its partner accreditation scheme and consolidated its rules of engagement. The MBS unit has historically had its own channel...

Midwich dropped from FSC line-up.(Fujitsu Siemens Computers)(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... The decision by Fujitsu Siemens Computers (FSC) to rationalise its distribution channel has seen the vendor end its long-standing agreement with Midwich. After a six-month review to decide which distributors would be part of its future,...

Nortel offers business development rewards.
May 10, 2004... Nortel Networks has overhauled its Emea channel programme in a move to help its gold-level resellers shift their sales models to a more converged environment and reward business development and loyalty. The programme changes, which will be...

Reasons for InLite collapse.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... Crawley-based PC assembler InLite Computers, which went into liquidation in March, failed because of an over-reliance on invoice discounting, a creditors report has found. The report by accountancy firm Benedict Mackenzie, which was appointed...

Red Hat launches Linux Desktop to compete with MS Windows.
May 10, 2004... Red Hat has made its first foray onto the desktop with the launch of its client computing strategy. The Red Hat Desktop operating system, which is to ship on 15 May, will be the Linux vendor's first push outside the back office and will take...

Toshiba aims to grow PC shipments by 1m.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... Toshiba has warned its notebook rivals that it is aiming for a further one million PC shipments in the next 12 months, pushing sales from 4.5m units to a total of 5.5m. The Japanese vendor has continued to press into the notebook space after it...

3Com trial of new ROI tool tempts enterprise partners back on board.
May 19, 2004... 3Com is to start putting cost differentiation and return on investment (ROI) at the centre of its channel strategy after kick-starting a programme with partners to use an ROI and cost comparison tool. The networking vendor, which is currently...

A glance at How the industry is performing.
May 19, 2004... Fujitsu Siemens Computers reported an eight per cent increase in pre-tax profits to e62m ([pounds sterling]41.6m) for the year to March 2004. Revenues were nearly flat at e5.28bn, compared with e5.3bn the previous year. CEO Adrian von...

Agility is new metric for HP's Adaptive Enterprise concept.
May 19, 2004... The concept of the Adaptive Enterprise seems to make a lot of sense -- users do not buy an infrastructure, they build or rent one which grows in line with their business needs. But this is one of those blue sky scenarios, which has a habit of...

Avaya partners dissatisfied with its direct sales strategy.
May 19, 2004... Christopher Walton reports on the Avaya Forum in Sardinia where the vendor emphasised its channel strategy With convergence resellers broadening their service portfolios in response to falling margins in IP telephony kit, the rise of Avaya...

Benefits of IWBs neglected outside education market.
May 19, 2004... The strength of the interactive whiteboard (IWB) market in education is well documented, with the installed market topping 100,000 after a strong first quarter, but the opportunity in the corporate market continues to be underdeveloped....

C&E cleanses bad eggs from industry.
May 19, 2004... A lot of the "bad eggs" that were involved in operating a VAT carousel or missing trader intra-community fraud have been kicked out of the industry, according to tax experts. MicroScope has covered the issue of VAT evasion in the IT channel for...

Certance keeps faith with DDS.
May 19, 2004... Balking in the face of rivals' claims that digital data storage (DDS) was moribund, Certance has unveiled a next-generation licensing agreement with Hewlett-Packard and believes the technology will continue into the next decade. In 2002, Sony...

Cisco aiming to make further inroads into enterprise space.
May 19, 2004... Cisco has moved to ring-fence the growing enterprise wireless networking space through the release of a Wireless LAN Service Module for its Catalyst 6500 series multi-layer switch. The product release is important for the vendor because it...

ClearCube offers chance to claw back enterprise share.
May 19, 2004... PC blade manufacturer ClearCube is courting UK enterprise resellers in an attempt to win back the corporate desktop space for the channel. Utilising the same fundamentals behind blade technology used in the server space, ClearCube centralises...

DMSL points to convergence as key revenue maker.
May 19, 2004... IT resellers should be looking to commission-based broadband and VoIP sales to boost their business rather than relying on low-margin product sales, according to specialist convergence distributor DMSL. John Carter, managing director at DMSL,...

Dell steals control of UK PC market from HP.
May 19, 2004... Dell has seized control of the UK PC market after taking advantage of Y2K corporate desktop replacements, a strong public sector year end and Hewlett-Packard's logistical problems. According to Gartner, shipments of PCs in the UK for the first...

Missing out?
May 19, 2004... With the market for digital cameras expanding rapidly, there is a prime opportunity for resellers to take a slice of the action -- but they need to be quick When digital cameras first appeared on the market, industry analysts predicted a...

Direct vendor steals the education show.
May 19, 2004... The channel has taken a beating recently in the education sector after direct schools specialist RM revealed it had won two private finance initiative (PFI) projects in Newham and Warwickshire totalling [pounds sterling]36m and was the sole...

EMC to expand partner base.
May 19, 2004... EMC is looking to recruit a further 15 to 20 resellers over the course of the year as the storage giant looks to plug vertical market and geographic gaps in its partner portfolio. At the same time, the vendor will double the number of staff in...

Hello, ; me old China.
May 19, 2004... As Meinie Oldersma packs his bags for his Far Eastern adventure, what can he expect when he touches down in China? China has travelled 100 years in less than a decade and any visitor's initial impression is that its 5,000-year-old culture...

IBM cuts software TCO.
May 19, 2004... Big Blue denies middleware product Workplace Client is designed to cut Microsoft out of the loop IBM has hit back at claims that its latest middleware technology -- Workplace Client -- will allow corporate customers to bypass Microsoft...

Mobile rewards offered by healthcare sector.
May 19, 2004... Resellers have been told they could reap the rewards from a boom in healthcare spending on mobile technology and applications. According to the white paper Mobile Healthcare: mobile and wireless strategies for future healthcare provisioning,...

Now is the time to start selling digital cameras.
May 19, 2004... Resellers are being urged to get involved in the digital camera market by selling solutions before competition in this area increases in corporate accounts. With improved versions of mobile phones incorporating cameras to be released next year...

Past to present.
May 19, 2004... With the emergence of ever-changing technologies, present day China is almost unrecognisable from its former self The Chinese are responsible for bringing the world a number of technologies, as well as maintaining an air of secrecy from the...

Progress takes the unified channel approach to Europe.
May 19, 2004... Progress Software is relaunching its partner programme in an attempt to unify its offering across Emea. Frank McIlroy, who has just been promoted from UK and Ireland managing director to the post of Emea vice-president at Progress, said: "We...

Resellers face fight with independents.
May 19, 2004... The practice of using advisors to guide IT buyers is prevalent in all sectors Resellers have been warned that IT buyers wary of high-profile failed IT projects are increasingly relying on independent third party advisors to guide them...

Sasser worm outbreak was good for business.
May 19, 2004... Distributors and vendors operating in the security channel have seen a spike in business on the back of global media interest in the recent Sasser worm outbreak. The virus, which has re-emerged in different variant forms as Sasser.E and...

Small firms easy target for fraud.
May 19, 2004... The FSB warns of a Health and Safety legislation scam that aims to defraud small businesses by hundreds of pounds The channel has been warned it is an "easy target" for fraudsters posing as government agencies who are attempting to defraud...

Software resellers are not alone promises HP.
May 19, 2004... The new head of Hewlett-Packard's Emea channel software organisation wants to take a more "hands-on" approach with partners and has increased the number of feet on the street. Eight weeks into his role as HP Emea software partner director,...

UK companies strong in IT project services.
May 19, 2004... Home-grown IT services providers continue to hold their own against US and European competitors in the UK project services market, with the eight largest British companies accounting for 36 per cent of the market. BT Syntegra (now BT Global...

Unipalm results reflect upturn in IT spending.
May 19, 2004... Unipalm parent Computerlinks has released first quarter figures which show the security distributor grew its turnover by 26 per cent during the first three months of the year. The company, which also owns hardware distributor ISI, grew...

Vendors urged to address 'ship and debit' practices.
May 19, 2004... Distributors across Europe are struggling under an 'administrative burden' as special pricing deals impact cash flow Distributors across Europe have called on vendors to address the escalating use of price support and 'ship and debit' -- a...

WatchGuard opts for Vigil partner.
May 19, 2004... WatchGuard has shuffled its UK distribution pack and replaced Azlan with London-based newcomer Vigil Software. Speaking to MicroScope about the channel reorganisation, WatchGuard Emea managing director Richard Reid said Vigil had been...

Westcoast results boosted by channel development initiatives.
May 19, 2004... Westcoast has attributed healthy revenue and profit growth in 2003 to a raft of channel development programmes aimed at driving and increasing its reach in the SME market. For the year to 31 December 2003, the UK national distributor grew...

Alcatel and IBM offer integrated software applications.
May 24, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Alcatel has signed a partnership agreement with IBM whereby the convergence vendor will offer integrated software applications through both companies' channels. The European convergence giant...

Biometrics next killer app.
May 24, 2004... dominic hall dom.hall@rbi.co.uk Channel architects responsible for building routes to market for Check Point and MimeSweeper have kick-started an enterprise reseller recruitment campaign to underline a sales push for ISL Biometrics. The...

Customers warned to check supplier track records.
May 24, 2004... simon Quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk Managed services providers have warned against cheap competition with those suppliers unable to provide evidence of experience or accreditations that are competing on price. Large and mid-sized...

GFS offers services-led EDS to the enterprise channel.
May 24, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Global outsourcing monolith EDS has rarely been quiet about any part of its business, but enterprise resellers should take note as the Texan giant makes more noise about its Global Field...

HP divides partners by customer focus.
May 24, 2004... Hewlett-Packard has reclassified its UK partner base into resellers selling to SMEs and those focusing on the corporate space, rather than segmenting its network based on volume. As part of the new structure, 12 resellers including...

ISVs pool skills to create Portal Partnership and provide customers with single point of contact.
May 24, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Four IBM centric ISVs and software specialists have created the Portal Partnership, a virtual systems integrator of four niche skill sets which will sell through the Portal Partnership brand....

MS goes public with ISV push.
May 24, 2004... roanna avison roanna.avison@rbi.co.uk Independent software vendors (ISVs) have been attracting a fair amount of attention recently with the likes of IBM championing their cause, and it seems that Microsoft is the latest vendor to jump on...

MailController sales boosted.
May 24, 2004... Service provider altoHiway has claimed the recent Sasser worm outbreak has caused a spike in channel sales of its recently launched MailController managed e-mail service. Speaking to MicroScope, the company's UK marketing director Chris Wood...

Multi-Tech deal with Westcon will offer choice of gateways.
May 24, 2004... Dominic Hall dom.hall@rbi.co.uk Convergence specialist Multi- Tech has signed a pan- European distribution agreement with Westcon to handle its IP telephony gateway product. The deal will see Westcon sell Multi-Tech's MultiVOIPT gateway in...

No treasure at end of public sector rainbow.
May 24, 2004... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Channel frustrated by red tape and bureaucracy involved in selling to government bodies The promise of a public sector gold mine for the channel has become lost under a flurry of red tape...

PACS roll-out raises question of roles.
May 24, 2004... Picture archiving and communications systems (PACS) will be rolled out in UK hospitals this summer, allowing health workers to look at X-rays or scans digitally. The project, which is part of the government's [pounds sterling]6bn NHS IT...

PCWB finalises e-tail purchase.
May 24, 2004... Paul Kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk The long-running saga over the future ownership of e-tailer MicroWarehouse appeared to be reaching a conclusion last week after claims PC World Business (PCWB) had finally acquired the reseller. The...

Partners opting for brands over white box notebooks.
May 24, 2004... paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Uptake of notebooks in Intel's white box programme has been slow because resellers are put off by the historically high failure rates associated with buying unbranded systems. That was the frank...

Police are not trained to deal with e-crime.
May 24, 2004... Simon Quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk A lack of understanding about digital crime is holding back police efforts to reduce e-crime, according to the European Information Society Group. According to its Supplying the Skills for Justice...

RFID technology is best suited to box and pallet.
May 24, 2004... Simon Quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk One of the leading names involved with RFID technology -- which is used to radio tag warehouse stock to track and record its movements -- has called for realism about where the technology can best be...