MicroScope articles from May 2005

MicroScope archives from May 2005

4IPR Web site communicates counterfeit issues.(For Intellectual Property Respect)
May 2, 2005... Roanna Avison roanna.avison@rbi.co.uk Vendors, channel players and law enforcement agencies are being encouraged to sign up to a pan-European Web site designed to ensure information about counterfeiting is shared across the region. 4IPR...

Ageing network security kit provides opening for dealers.(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... simon quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk Resellers specialising in network security could find the time is right to go back to existing firewall customers to promote products that can counter emerging threats. Vendors focusing on that market...

Big Blue cuts European management.(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk IBM is set to cull up to 13,000 employees worldwide, a move which will see the eradication of its pan-European management layer as it seeks to make itself more profitable in the slow growth...

Blades remain niche sale.
May 2, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk The opportunity for PC blades in the UK remains niche and increasing penetration will be a challenge for the channel with high deployment costs and only one vendor developing the technology after...

Consultancy is focus for channel.
May 2, 2005... simon quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk Speakers at the recent Straight Talk event outlined their vision for the channel if it is to remain successful Resellers face the challenge of walking the tightrope of being told to offer consultancy...

Consumer and mobile shine for Ingram Micro.(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Ingram Micro has not yet abandoned all ties with Dell, claiming that the direct vendor needs distribution to stimulate its entry into new markets. When asked how the winding down of Dell sales...

Enterasys lays off staff.(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk With pretty much every networking equipment vendor hailing from the US, the quarterly Wall Street reporting season always gives an indication as to the current state of the industry, with a...

HP pressed to shun non-accredited resellers.(Hewlett-Packard )(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... Resellers have urged Hewlett-Packard to move to selective distribution and protect their investment in accreditation by preventing those that do not formally train their staff from standing behind distributors' certifications to sell high-end...

Juniper extends offering to gain market share.
May 2, 2005... Juniper's perpetual crusade to take market share from Cisco took a new twist last week after the vendor unveiled a raft of new data centre products to create a secure, controlled layer on top of any vendor's core networking environment....

Microsoft must change for CRM.
May 2, 2005... karl Flinders karl.flinders@rbi.co.uk Microsoft will take the CRM market by storm if it gets its approach to this sector right, according to Steve Brazier, CEO at analyst firm Canalys, speaking at Straight Talk last month. He said the...

Months left on secure deal.
May 2, 2005... karl Flinders karl.flinders@rbi.co.uk Distributors are getting ready to pounce as exclusive sales agreement between Integralis and InTechnology comes to a close Integralis' business with InTechnology is up for grabs as an exclusive...

Price overshadows value.
May 2, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk With deals being struck increasingly with short-term gain in mind, businesses are finding services fall short of expectation Taxpayers and enterprises have been warned they face losing out on the true...

Reseller failures diminishing.(Graydon UK)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Despite anecdotal evidence of a tough first quarter in the channel and a rise in the number of late payers, the level of reseller liquidations for the first three months of 2005 is at its lowest for six...

SAM standard proposal enters next stage.(Software Asset Management)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... The proposed international standard for software asset management (SAM) will soon move to the next committee phase after fine tuning. The draft proposal, which was initiated by an industry group that includes resellers such as Teksys and Bytes,...

SAP gets serious with; partner-friendly label.(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... karl Flinders karl.flinders@rbi.co.uk Software vendor changes the way it works with the channel and makes products easier to sell SAP has set itself a target to become the most channel-friendly software vendor in the industry as it...

Access to focus on partnerships.(Access Distribution )
May 23, 2005... Roanna Avison finds out that according to one distributor, single distributor focus is sustainable and specialisation is the way to go Access Distribution has vowed to continue with its Sun Microsystems-focused model, suggesting that...

DiData highlights concerns over delivery of higher value.(Dimension Data PLC)
May 23, 2005... Christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk As the pricing of traditional networking equipment consistently erodes, a debate over the stability of the systems integrator model and who can add the most value to a new wave of...

FSC to boost awareness with configuration tools.(Fujitsu Siemens Computers)
May 23, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk One of the biggest challenges facing Fujitsu Siemens Computers (FSC) in the reseller channel and among users is a lack of knowledge about its products, but the vendor is developing more on-line...

Microsoft points out flaws in Becta study.(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... karl Flinders karl.flinders@rbi.co.uk British Educational Communications and Technology Agency OSS rubber-stamp warning Schools should take care when making judgements based on the latest Becta report on open source software (OSS) in...

Multifunction printers ready for SMEs.(Small and Medium-sized Enterprise)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... Oki Printing Solutions has launched the first laser-based multifunction product (MFP) for the small business sector. "There are applications where an office-in-a-box type approach is required, so we are providing hardware and software that...

Peribit adopts Juniper model.(Brief Article)(Column)
May 23, 2005... Peribit's senior management has admitted that a two-tier distribution model will be the result of its recent acquisition by Juniper as the vendor looks to consolidate its enterprise offerings for the channel. Jef Graham, president and CEO at...

Police spread wings with launch of dedicated anti-organised IT crime unit.(Information Technology)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) will launch a unit to become the fifth flying squad, dedicated to tackling organised criminals involved in the theft of computer chips and memory while in transit. In...

Resellers flock to sell RMS from Microsoft.(Retail Management System)
May 23, 2005... karl flinders karl.flinders@rbi.co.uk Microsoft's expansion in the retail sector is gaining momentum, with the vendor unveiling a half-century of new UK reseller partners in this market segment. The software giant revealed its intention...

SAP to give partners Edge.
May 23, 2005... karl Flinders karl.flinders@rbi.co.uk After flirting with the channel for years, vendor shows commitment and formalises its first partner programme SAP's bid to become the most channel-friendly software vendor has taken a major step...

Trading conditions normal.
May 23, 2005... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk The current economic conditions, with forecasts of low to zero growth, are set to continue for the long term with warnings by vendors and distributors that the market will not see a quick...

weighing up the figures.(DCC)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... It was a busy week in the City on the IT front last week, with some large players reporting figures. Leading the way was Mark Hurd's maiden quarter at Hewlett-Packard, where turnover was up seven per cent (or $1.5bn) to $21.6bn ([pounds...

Arrests follow Operation Grafton investigation.(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... As part of a massive crackdown on air freight crime named Operation Grafton, individuals arrested in a stolen vehicle near Heathrow have been charged with two counts of burglary. As exclusively revealed last week, Operation Grafton -- which has...

BTIC makes channel changes.(BT Indirect Channels )
May 30, 2005... Simon Quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk BT Indirect Channels (BTIC) has set out its plans for the next financial year, emphasising the need for resellers to increase efforts on the broadband front and defend its line sales against competitors....

Cisco set to refine SMB Select.(Cisco Systems Inc.)
May 30, 2005... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Cisco has moved to tweak its SMB Select programme, less than 12 months after it was launched, with a mixture of financial rebates and learning credits on offer to resellers which meet specific...

Competition hots up as WAN optimisation goes mainstream.(Wide area network)
May 30, 2005... Christopher Walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk The market for WAN optimisation, once a bleeding-edge, emerging technology, has been validated into the mainstream after Juniper's $337m ([pounds sterling]184.2m) acquisition of Silicon Valley...

Contract hurdles too high.
May 30, 2005... Simon Quicke simon.quicke@rbi.co.uk The hurdles barring resellers from getting a slice of the public sector action continue to be too high and government procurement specialists admit it is still difficult for small suppliers to break into...

IBM employees protest about job cuts.
May 30, 2005... christopher walton christopher.walton@rbi.co.uk Employees at IBM staged a one-day protest last week with unions and employees' groups across the world coordinating individual actions on 23 May to demonstrate their anger at the proposed...

Kingston sells off French division to make way for clear focus on UK market.(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... Kingston Communications, parent company to Affiniti, has sold the French division of what was once Omnetica to rival Telindus for e47m ([pounds sterling]32m) as the group seeks to focus exclusively on the UK market. The Belgian giant's intent...

Laser price drop fuels services.
May 30, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Revenues in the UK laser printer market have plummeted, providing resellers with a greater impetus to embrace print management solutions. But channel sources have warned that uptake has been limited, even...

Legislation adds tougher measures with Fraud Bill.(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Criminals will risk tougher measures under changes proposed in the Fraud Bill which the Government has published, including a maximum sentence of ten years for obtaining and using stolen credit cards to pay...

Lenovo to launch convertible tablet PC into UK.
May 30, 2005... Lenovo's push into the UK retail market is still under evaluation, but the first new product to come out of the acquisition of IBM will be a convertible tablet PC, according to channel sources. Earlier this year, Gareth Hansford, who was IBM...

Nortel to extend its focus on SMEs.(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... Nortel has appointed Computer 2000 as a distributor for its SME solutions range and looks set to build the number of VARs and direct market resellers in its SME channel. The enterprise market giant strengthened its SME portfolio last week with...

Partnership for Unipalm and FaceTime.(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... Roanna Avison roanna.avison@rbi.co.uk It was musical chairs in the instant messaging (IM) space last week as FaceTime and Unipalm teamed up after the vendor parted company with e92plus and Unipalm terminated its distribution deal with IM...

Redstone looks for improved sales from its Xpert purchase.(Xpert Communications )(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... Xpert Communications acquirer Redstone revealed that it had struggled to boost revenues and reduce losses in the year before it acquired the systems integrator in April for [pounds sterling]25.55m (see MicroScope, 11 April). Revenues for the...

Report shows that IWB benefits remain unclear.(interactive whiteboards)(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk The Government has ploughed [pounds sterling]50m into improving classroom learning through interactive whiteboards (IWBs) in the last two years, but a report has claimed that while users preferred the...

Toshiba introduces rebate scheme in response to partner margin woes.(Brief Article)
May 30, 2005... Paul kunert paul.kunert@rbi.co.uk Toshiba is heading off complaints that its products offer little margin by launching a rebate scheme which requires distributors to agree to aggressive targets that might result in channel stuffing. At...