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Apri l 2008
NEC predict s a boom
t his year p13> >
Econom y slow s dow nIT spend p22> >
Chipm akers cont inue t osupp ort local deskt op PC p53> >
SAs energy cr isis opens upopp ort unit ies f or resellers p13> >
Inside This IssueInside This Issue
This month CRNprof i les t he t opchannel execsas voted by SA
resellers p25> >
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At this years Hewlett-Packard Preferred Partner Conference held in San Francisco
recently, the vendor urged its preferred partners to remain focused despite a
recession in the US economy and turmoil in global markets. The vendor was
quick to point out that remaining focused and maintaining vital customer
relationships during a tumultuous economy will help them to keep their
numbers on the upswing.
The vendor says its counting on partners to keep the company in growth mode.
To this end, the vendor has launched a new Virtualisation specialisation bringing to
13 the total number of specialisations it is offering its preferred partners.Solution providers in the local channel have welcomed the Virtualisation
specialisation as it comes at a time when the vendor has been expanding its
alliance with virtualisation software vendors, namely VMware, Microsoft and
Citrix. In addition, the new specialisation has been launched at a time when
solution providers are turning server virtualisation, one of the fastest-growing
segments in the IT market, into their own gravy train.
HP has also unveiled a new Gold Specialisation for its partners on the HP
Preferred Partner Programme, which will come into effect on 1 November 2008.
The new Gold Specialisation is being mapped and readied for the financial
year 2009, and is part of the companys broad initiative to upgrade the number
of partners on the Gold Specialisation and expand the number of partners in the
transactional business space.
According to the vendor, details of the new Gold Specialisation programme will be released in the EMEA region starting the
week of 5 May 2008 and partners will have until10 September 2008 to familiarise themselves with the stringent criteria, get
trained and certified as Gold partners.
Sean Gallagher, director SPO at HP in EMEA, says the introduction of the HP Preferred Partner Gold Specialisation follows
months of rigorous planning based on partner feedback.
Gallagher says the programme is open to both specialists and non-specialist partners although there will be more benefits for
partners with a specialisation.
Gallagher adds the programme will not only segment partners but also increase partner coverage in the various markets.
Our partners have been telling us they cant differentiate themselves and this programme has been designed with this in mind,
he says.
Solution providers at the conference were delighted to see HPtaking the bold stance of growing its business through the channel.
Whats your take on the two new specialisations from HP? Are you ready for the two specialisations? Let me know at
EDITORS: NOTE
HP touts
new special isat ions
Manda Banda publisher
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CRN Contacts:
Publisher:
Manda Banda
Online editor:
Kaunda Chama
Journalist:
Port ia Shaba
Intern:
Dominic Khuzwayo
Brand executive:
Hellen Murahwa
Sub-editor:
Jenny Bastomsky
Designer:
Spencer van Graan
Database and subscriptions:
Daisy Mulenga
copyright notice
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SystemsPublishers(Pty) Ltd. The copyright of all
material in thisp ublication is reserved by the proprietors,
except where expressly stated. The publisher, however,
will consider reasonable requests for the use of material
by otherson condition that t he source and author
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Private Bag X12, Rivonia, 2128Tel: (011) 234 7008Fax: (011) 234 7025Registered with the Audit
Bureau of Circulation
News & Analysis
4 What s News
6 Comings and goings
10 Hi Five
12 Demand Generator takes a look at how Novartis SA has
upgraded to VoIP. By Dominic Khuzwayo
13 Display vendor NEC is predicts a boom this year with its newly
launched large format LCDs, plasma screens and Vista-compliant projectors.
By Dudu Shaba
14 Networking solutions vendor starts creating a collaborative
channel. By Kaunda Chama
20 Intel still sees great potential in indirect sales model.
By Kaunda Chama
22 State of the economy slows down IT spend.
By Dudu Shaba
25 -45 Channel execs: CRN profiles this years top
channel executives
Features48 Monitors: Early indications in 2008 are that sales of
wide-screen LCD display panels would start outpacing square and
CRT displays in PC bundles. By Dudu Shaba
53 Local Brand s: A few years ago, the question was whether
local brands would take off. Today, this is no longer a subject for debate,
chipmakers AMD and Intel continue to support the local desktop PC,
notebook and server market. By Dudu Shaba
56 Security: Although virtualisation is now officially
mainstream, industry pundits are cautioning against a rush to virtualise
without considering the security implications of doing so. Traditional
security architectures and products are inadequate for this
new topology. By Kaunda Chama
Product and technology63 Product reviews, Vosonic multimedia viewer, HP
Photosmart A441, Microsoft ergonomic keyboard and mouse
Parting shots64 Snapshot: Nicola Homewood, Ingram Micro SA
64 Dilbert
Contents
10
12
Scans in this publication have been reproducedon the EPSON PERFECTiON 2450 phot o
23
54
63
2 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
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WHATS NEWS
Westcon p rovide sk ills programmeConfronted with the growing skills shortage in the ICT industry, Westcon SA has launched
the Westcon SA Graduate Programme.
Ben de Klerk, national sales manager at Westcon SA says: To support the growth that
Westcon SA is experiencing and aggressively driving, we need to ensure that the correct
resources are incorporated into the company. And we made a strategic decision toinvest in the industry and our own future by developing a graduate programme.
COMINGS
&GOIN
GS
Timm bids farewell toFaritec
Allan Timm, sales director at Faritec
Holdings, a JSE-listed IT company, has
resigned from the board of directors. To
ensure a smooth transition, Timm will leave
the company at the end of April 2008.This doesnt mean the end of the world for Timm; he will
be pursuing other business interests with
the appreciation of the board.
New marketing head atNok ia Siemens Networks
Nokia Siemens Networks has appointed
Frederic Astier as head of marketing.
Astier will be responsible for overall
marketing activities in all the regions and across the entire
portfolio of products and services.
He was previously a management team
member of the Vodafone Customer
Business Team at Nokia Siemens Networks.
Nthab iseng Mokone joinsGoldenRule
GoldenRule, a company within Amabubesi
Capital Technologies (ACT), has appointed
Nthabiseng Mokone to its board. Holding a BCom Honours
degree with CTA, Mokone began her career in 1996 at
Transtel. In 2002, she moved to Transnet Group Finance to
start her training outside public practice. Then, she joined
ABC South Africa, a subsidiary of African Banking
Corporation Holdings.
Angus Young, CEO of ACT says, Mokone has cemented
strong relationships across the board and brings with her a
wealth of experience from the banking and financial sector.
What do you have to say?HPrecently launched its What do
you have to say? campaign aimed
at engaging SME customers in its
Print 2.0 strategy. Thierry Boulanger,
IPG country manager, HP, says the
strategy focuses on areas such as
delivering a next-generation digital
printing platform that increases print
speeds and lowers the cost of
printing for high-volume commercial markets. The
campaign is designed to inspire HPs customers and
empower them with new ideas and online tools to help
them think about what they have to say.
Konica SA introduces bizhubC650Konica Minolta SA (KMSA) has announced the
completion of its InfoLine designed trio of devices, with
the introduction of the bizhub C650.
Marianna Gdanis, KMSA colour division manager says
that the bizhub C650 printer targets CRDs and corporate
office environments with high volume requirements. She
claims that the bizhub C650 provides 100 percent duplex
productivity for the fast completion of double-sided jobs in
both colour and monochrome. The automatic duplexing
is standard and includes the processing of 256 gsm from
any paper tray says Gdanis.
New Lenovo 3000k desktopsTarsus Technologies has unleashed the new Lenovo 3000K
range of consumer-focused desktops. This comes after the
launch of the highly anticipated Lenovos ThinkPad X300
notebook. Brett Walter, Lenovo product manager at Tarsus,
says that the 3000K range benefits from a mix of the
highest-end components available on the market today
and a number of innovative advancements from Lenovos
Lab in China. According to him, Lenovo has dealt with this
need by making the illumination of the desktops front
bezel change colour according mode.
Crystal laptop by PinnaclePinnacle Micro launch MSI PR200 Crystal range of laptops.
It comes in a shiny UV glossy coating dominated by a white
and silver colour scheme and a finely detailed MSI logo.
Measuring at 30cm in length and 23cm in width, along
with a weight of 1.8 kg (including battery), the PR200
Crystal Collection is slim and portable. According to the
distributor the ACV technology gives the user the most
detailed and intricate images, resulting in high saturation
and high definition quality for a luxurious visual sensationthats easy on the eyes.
4 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
Thierry Boulanger
Allan Timm
Frederic Astier
Yasmin Forbes
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WHATS NEWS
McAfee, VMware advancevirtualisation securityMcAfee, has announced that it has entered into a
broad relationship with VMware to advance
virtualisation security. Chris van Niekerk, regional
director, Africa, McAfee says as part of the
relationship, his company plans to embed the
newly announced VMware VMsafe security
technology into future security solution offerings.
McAfee has also signed an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)
agreement with VMware to utilise its VMware ESXServer 3i technology in
future security solutions. In addition, McAfee has also announced the
availability of its new e-mail and web securityvirtual appliance, which is built
from the ground up for the VMware platform.
Symantec Announces New
Norton AntiVirus for MacSymantec, makers of Norton security software announced
the new Norton AntiVirus Dual Protection for Mac. It
features a vulnerability protection technology and
antivirus for Mac users running Boot Camp or Windows virtualization
software. These programs allow users to run both Mac O S XLeopard and
Windows operating systems. This solution provides comprehensive
protection from both Mac and Windows-based vulnerabilities and viruses.
With this dual protection functionality, Mac users are set to benefit by
receiving both the Norton AntiVirus 11 for Mac and antivirus and
vulnerability protection of Norton AntiVirus 2008 for Windows.
McAfee releases virusScan for MacMcAfee has released VirusScan for Apple Macintoshs latest operating
system (Mac OSX) version 10.5 (Leopard). The VirusScan protects Mac
users from threats to their personal and private data wherever it resides.
Bernadine Botha, McAfee product manager at Workgroup says:
VirusScan for Mac protects Macintosh end points against malware and
other unwanted programmes that can target systems.
New Backup for ServersSymantec, one of the global leaders in providing security, storage and
systems management solutions, announced its new Symantec Backup Exec
12 for Windows Servers. The Backup Exec 12 comes with a ThreatCon
global security alerting system, Enterprise Vault to protect email archives
and the new Symantec Protection Network for accessing offsite storage.
It restores data from a single pass backup with patent-pending Granular
Recovery technology, which obviates the need to run mailbox backups to
recover individual Exchange emails.
DCC stocks Sony Blu-ray writersDrive Control Corporation (DCC) releases Sonys second generation
Blu-ray disk writer drive, BWU-200S. The advantage of the new BWU-
200S model is that it features a faster write speed, reducing burn time by
up to 50 per cent when compared with its predecessor. It now takesapproximately 45 minutes to record a 50GB BR-Rdisc, says Michael
Tan, senior regional account manager, Sony applications & devices
marketing (Singapore), a Sony Electronics company. The BWU-200S
features a SATA interface. And the drive also supports recordings on
standard single layer 4.7GB DVD R/ RW/RAM disks, 8.5GB DVD R
double/ dual layer disks and CDs.
New In tel server processors launchedIntel Corporation has introduced a two
low-voltage 45 nanometer (nm) processors for servers and workstations. It
is designed to run at 50 watts or just 12.5 watts per core and frequencies
as high as 2.50GHz. The L5400 processors are claimed to be 25 percent
faster and have a 50 percent larger cache size than Intels previous-
generation, low-voltage Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors. Others include
the quad-core L5420 and L5410 processors run at 2.50 GHz and 2.33
GHz, respectively.
New Sony E-Series LCD projectorsRectron has launched the latest video projection
systems from Sony Electronics designed for use
in small to medium venues with limited space.
The latest E-series business projectors are the
Sony VPL-EW5, VPL-EX50, VPL-EX5 and VPL-
ES5, all incorporating a three-LCD panel system
that delivers consistently bright, true-to-life
images of up to 2500 ANSI lumens of
brightness, says Werner Kuhn, peripherals
business manager at Rectron. The new models except for the VPL-ES5,
feature Sonys BrightEra technology. BrightEra enables the Sony E-Series
display panels to be significantly resistant to the damage of UV rays
caused by projector lamps and allow for increased aperture ratios.
Esquire releases BenQ projectorEsquire Technologies delivers the new ultra-
compact BenQ SP820 digital XGA projector,
which has been specifically developed for
corporate and educational markets. Mahomed
Cassim, marketing director, Esquire
Technologies, says that the SP820 arrives with a
high brightness of 4,000 ANSI lumens, a
2,000:1 high contrast ratio, a 1024x768 XGA
native resolution and digital zoom function.
Weighing only 3,71kg, he explains that the projector displays brightly and
features a compact housing with a convenient integrated handle that
allows users to carry it around easily or install it at a fixed location.
HP boosts midsize customersHP has introduced an easy-to-manage virtual storage disk array. It is
designed specifically for midsize customers that need to reduce the costs
and complexity of implementing a storage area network (SAN). HP
Storage Works 4400 Enterprise Virtual Array (EVA4400) offers a combination
of high-performance and availability features, virtualisation capabilities
and advanced provisioning software. This is set to be ideal for midsizebusinesses that want to cost-effectively manage large amounts of data in
a SAN environment without investing in deep storage experience.
6 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
Werner Kuhn
Mahomed Cassim
Chris van Niekerk
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WHATS NEWS
8 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
Epson, Rectron partner
Epson SA has appointed Rectron, to distribute Epsons
products targeted at the SME market.
Hans Dummer, GM, Epson SA says the agreement covers
Epson projectors, scanners, dot-matrix printers, MFPs, inkjet
and photo inkjet printers, print consumables and other
supplies.Dummer believes the expansion of Epson in the mid-range
of their consumer products is attractive to the company, as
well as the national foot print that Rectron has.
Rectron lands Samsung pr interdistribution
Rectron, has signed another premium brand to its stable and
is now the authorised Samsung distributor.
In terms of the deals, Rectron will supply the local market acomplete range of Samsungs mono and colour laser printers
and consumables in SA.
Zandr Rudolph, sales director at Rectron, says both
companies understand that Rectrons strength as a key
player in ICT distribution lies in its wide-ranging customer
base and strong financial muscle. This will allow the two
firms to work jointly towards a common goal that of
becoming the number one player in the printing and
imaging business adds Rudolph.
Ingr am Micro now Microsoft disti
Ingram Micro SA has signed a distribution agreement with
Microsoft SA. The deal will allow Ingram Micro to gain official
OEM distribution status for the vendors client operating
systems, client-side applications and server solutions.
Nicola Homewood, Microsoft product manager at Ingram
Micro SA says: This agreement is of considerable value to us
locally as it allows us to offer our channel partners a more
complete portfolio of products which now encompasses both
hardware and software, aligning it with the one-stop shopping
experience Ingram Micro provides worldwide.
Pinnacle closes Ritek dea l
Distribution giant Pinnacle Micro has sealed a deal with Ritek
Corporation to distribute its range of RiDATA optical media
and flash memory products.
The deal comes hot on the heals of the distributer ending
its distribution deal with optical media vendor Verbatim.
We have been in discussions with Ritek for more than ayear and they have been doing an intensive investigation of
Pinnacle Micro to ensure that we are the right company to
represent them in Africa, says Hans Steyn, RiDATA brand
manager at Pinnacle Micro.
According to Steyn his company believes that the RiDATA
brand is going to make a big impact in the South African
industry and in Africa as a whole.
SMC Networks SA signs DCC
SMC Networks SA has appointed Drive Control Corporation
(DCC) as the local distributor for its next generation
networking solutions.
The development is effective immediately and will result in
the local market having access to a wider variety of product
sets from a single supplier.
Pierre Holtzhausen, networking specialist at DCC says: The
agreement will allow DCC to deliver a wide range of quality,
cost effective networking solutions to our reseller base.
Paul Luff, country manager, SMC Networks SA says users
will immediately gain from a broader product range and an
enhancement of logistic services and technical support.
BDS signs X&R as Kenyan disti
Bytes Document Solutions, the authorised distributor of Xerox
products and solutions in 24 African countries, has appointed
X&RTechnologies as its new Kenyan distributor.
Coenraad Ackerman, African operations manager at Bytes
Document Solutions says that the operations of the newly
formed company will be headed up by CEO Lucy Njoroge,
who co-founded, along with her husband, O penView in
Kenya, an IT solutions company that services the corporatemarket segment in East Africa.
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This months High Five looks at Panda Security, a creator and
developer of antivirus products that keep customers IT resources
free from virus, malware, Trojans and other computer threats.
Jeremy Matthews, head of Panda Securitys sub-Saharan operations
takes the high five.
CRN: How are computer viruses affecting the IT industry?
JM: Viruses lead to downtime, malfunctioning systems and loss of
both financial and intellectual data, while spam (which accounts for
approximately 90 per cent of emails received by companies) leads to
unnecessary consumption of bandwidth. Then there are bots
programmes that go resident on a computer waiting for commands
from their creators, and can take complete control of the infected system.
Currently, there are 500 000 bot infections worldwide every day.
CRN: What other challenges is the industry facing when it
comes to security?
JM:As an industry we face two main challenges. Firstly, many
businesses lack the education and awareness of how to protect
themselves and their IT environments. While technology is a vital
component, the human element involved in risk reduction should
not be underestimated. Staff need to be taught, for example, to
avoid carrying out unsafe actions such as opening mails from
unknown recipients, opening links that arrive through mail instead
of typing them in the browser or downloading suspicious files
through P2P networks.
The other key challenge is virus attacks, the perception among
companies is that it wont happen to me. This laissez-faire attitude
results in companies sidelining security resulting in insufficient
protection. A study from Pandas laboratory last year showed that
almost 72 per cent of protected networks with more than 100
workstations were infected with active malware.
CRN: What are the latest virus threats that the industry is
facing?
JM: Essentially, we face an onslaught of malware designed to steal
money. Leading t he charge are Trojans (a quarter of all infections last
year). Banker Trojans, for example, are a very efficient tool for
cyber-crooks, since these malicious codes steal bank details, account
numbers, etc. which are later used to empty users bank accounts.
CRN: Looking at technology grow th, w hich areas do yousee growing your business and offerings?
JM: In terms of percentages, the number of new examples of
malware that appeared in 2007 increased tenfold with respect to
2006 which, in turn, witnessed an increase of 172 per cent on the
previous year.
CRN: What gives Panda Security the edge?
JM: Pandas acclaimed TruPrevent Technologies has been designed
to protect PCs from both unknown viruses and intruders. These new
preventive technologies neither replace nor conflict with traditional
reactive technologies used by antivirus solutions.
TruPrevent analyses the behaviour of all the programs and files that
are running, blocking those that carry out damaging actions and
have unknown viruses.
By doing this, all processes are optimised. The t raditional
antivirus component of your protection filters known viruses that the
firewall has let through, while TruPrevent focuses on analysing thebehaviour of the rest of the programs that are free of known viruses.
10 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
HIGH FIVE: PANDA SECURITYSOLUTION PROVIDERS
Pandasecurity secures PCs
BY DOMINIC KHUZWAYO
Addressing the challenges of IT security.
Pandas acclaimed TruPrevent Technologies has
been designed to protect PCs from unknown
viruses and intruders. Jeremy M att hew s,
Pand a Securit y
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ovartis SA, a local pharmaceutical company
recently upgraded its LAN and WAN, and
moved to a Voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP) platform. This was done with the
assistance of KSS, a Johannesburg-based
system integrator focusing on integrated
data, voice and/or video solutions, and
Cisco, supplier of networking equipment
and network management for the Internet.
This upgrade is said to have increased thereliability and performance of the companys
networks, enhancing business efficiency and
communication, as well as enabling it to
meet the standardisation guidelines of its
international parent company.
Novartis SA is part of the global pharma-
ceutical organisation, one of the leaders in
the research and development of products
to cure disease, ease suffering and enhance
quality of life.
In 2006 the South African office had to
reassess its infrastructure due to new stan-
dardisation policies abroad on compliance
to global standards. This led the local
company to look at upgrading its existing
LAN and WAN, as well as upgrading its
telephony system to a VoIP platform.
Due to growth and change, our LAN
and WAN networks were not functioning
optimally, says Brigitte Thompson, service
delivery manager at Novartis SA.
We needed to connect with two
branches in Cape Town and an additional
two in Durban but found our network slow,
unreliable and lacking the functionality we
required. We also needed to upgrade our
infrastructure to meet global standards.
In addition, our migration from a
Microsoft NT to XP platform further drove
the business case for a network forklift
upgrade. We felt this was essential tosupport our branches and continue
providing innovative medical solutions to
our markets, says Thompson.
Wireless networK
The company also needed to expand its
wireless network at its head office in Isando
to provide mobility for notebook users.
Another key requirement was to migrate to
a VoIPplatform as the telephone system was
not meeting the companys requirements.Novartis provided a design specification,
a list of hardware and required standards
to four solution providers. Novartis global
technology partner, BT, facilitated the
project implementation.
In addition, the expanded wireless
network required the installation of Ciscos
4400 wireless controller with 16 LWAPP
access points to facilitate the wireless IP
phones which replaced the older cordless
phones. Cisco 2800 ISRrouters and C3560
Power over Ethernet (PoE) LAN switches
were also implemented.
The implementation had to be carefully
planned to ensure minimal impact on
operations through downtime. The first
phase of the implementation took place at
the head office in Johannesburg, says
Corne Sassenberg, account manager at KSS.
The hardware was ordered, an asset
count and a burn-in were completed. KSS
assisted with the pre-configuration, testing
and designing of equipment at its testing
facility in Midrand. The Johannesburg
implementation took three days and was
relatively free of challenges and hitches. The
Durban implementation was next, followed
by the Cape Town site, adds Sassenberg.
According to Thompson, the network
now provides improved efficiencies due to
faster access speeds to the servers and the
ability to find information quickly.
The IP Telephony solut ion has allowed
us to manage and contain costs. Reporting
is now available at the touch of a button
and with this information at hand,
management of our telephony costs aresimplified, Thompson concludes.
12 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
DEMAND GENERATOR: NOVARTIS SASOLUTION PROVIDERS
BY DOMINIC KHUZWAYO
N
The implementat ion had to be carefully planned to ensure
minimal impact on operations through downtime.
Corne Sassenberg, KSS
Standardising in line with parent company.
Novartis SA upgrades to VOIP
Corne Sassenberg, KSS
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ANALYSIS: NECSOLUTION PROVIDERS
isplay vendor NEC is predicting a boom this
year with its newly launched range of large
format LCDs, plasma screens and Vista-com-
pliant projectors, designed for corporates.
Craig Butterworth, sales manager, NEC
Display Solutions SA says the unique style
and functional design of these new
products with their wide screens and digital
signage, combined with their many
features, make them valuable tools forgetting the right message or content across.
Butterworth says the company has been
in the market for a long time and has
clearly secured its position. He says that
customer satisfaction has top priority in the
company and that NECs partners will
receive marketing support in terms of
delivering the companys best display
solutions and support to corporates.
Corporates as well as business,
education, transport, mining, entertainment
and other sectors want to see themselves
adapting to technologies that enable them
to communicate in a fast and effective way.
With these products, we aim to educate the
market to start looking at proper and
quality public display solutions, using the
right products and also to stop using TVs as
display panels, he says.
Butterworth says NECs display solutions
are already in the market and resellers will
have great opportunities for making profit
and will also be trained so they are able to
sell integration products for themselves.
We have also started to inform our
distributors in the channel about our new
products through road shows and constant
education, he says.
Butterworth states that the company has
also approached FIFA directly to negotiate
supplying it with public displays for the FIFA
World Cup.
In Africa, he says that the demand for
public displays is the same as in SA.
What we do in SA is what we do on therest of the African continent. We have started
rolling out products in Kenya and are
hoping to stretch to other African countries
as well because globalisation is the current
influential factor, he says.
In SA, we have three distributors in the
channel, which are Mustek, with 6 000
resellers, Inchbook distributors with 200
resellers and Edge Interactive with 150
resellers, he comments.
Butterworth explains that the company
has a partner programme called
ChanneLink+ . Because most system integrators
do business in several vertical markets, such
as financial, medical and digital signage,
NEC has several market-specific
programmes to address the unique
requirements of the various segments.
The ChanneLink+ programme
consolidates all of NECs channel
programmes into one comprehensive
offering, providing resellers and system
integrators with a single portal when selling
NEC-DS LCDs and CRTs, he says.
Butterworth points out that key enhancements
to ChanneLink+ include the programme debit
card, awards and incentives, business-building
opportunities, marketing and sales tools for a
variety of markets, customised and secure
extranet platform, and resource centre.
He goes on to say that the NEC partner
programmes that have been rolled into
ChanneLink+ Partner Programme include:
System Builder Select the programme
provides unprecedented value and supportfor all types of builders when selling
NECs products.
Consumer Select the programme
supports solution providers that sell NECs
products into consumer/retail environments.
Display Solutions Select brings integral
display solution components together, the
programme provides solution-selling resources
as well as access to NECs broad partner
programme to help integrators sell digital
signage or other larger display solutions.
GovClub is a membership programme
with exclusive pricing and other benefits
to resellers who sell to the state
and government.
ProPartner Select provides resellers that
target digital professional and other colour-
critical markets with unprecedented value and
support when selling select NEC monitors.
ChanneLink+ is in the process of
educating partners on how to apply these
display solut ion relevantly, and we have
more solutions that will be introduced this
year, says Butterworth.
Michael Mc Callum, Mustek Electronics
Mecer, external dealer sales executive, says
that more opportunities are coming
through NECs public display solutions.
NEC has got the right solution. The new
solutions are exciting, educational and
create awareness, and will bring success in
SA, he concludes.
NEC expects market boom
BY DUDU SHABA
Educating the market to use display solutions.
D With t hese products, we aim t o educate the market to start
looking at proper and quality public displays, using the right
products and also to stop using TVs as display panels
Craig But t erw or t h, NEC.
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t this years Cisco Partner Summit, perhaps
the other message besides the fact that the
vendor believes that the network is the
platform was a call for collaboration
among its channel partners.
After having recognised collaboration as
a necessity in meeting business demands,
the company has even set up what it callsthe Partner Exchange.
The exchange is a network that will help
partners to increase their revenue, extend
their expertise and deepen their relation-
ships with customers. Cisco says that the
move was a result of a global study it
carried out that indicated that collaboration
between channel partners is a large and
growing trend.
The study, commissioned by Cisco and
conducted by Illuminas Research, was
designed to provide insight into the forces
shaping the reseller channel of the near
future. It polled more than 1 300 cus-
tomers and nearly 500 Cisco channel part-
ners across 12 countries: Australia, Brazil,
China, France, Germany, India, Japan,Korea, Mexico, Russia, the United Kingdom
and the United States.
The study revealed that collaboration
among Cisco partners is generating 31 per
cent of channel revenue and is growing by
15 per cent annually. Furthermore, 62 per
cent of the partners believe that collabora-
tion will continue to grow over the next five
years. Cisco partners work with an average
of eight other partners on a regular basis.
Ciscos Partner Exchange is designed to
help Cisco partners find, connect and
collaborate with the right group at the
right partner. The collaboration network is
now available to more than 8 500 Cisco
Certified Partners, managed-services
providers, distribution partners and applica-
tion partners from all over the world.
The international study revealed that IT
customers are demanding a greater
breadth and depth of expertise from their
vendor resellers as solutions become more
varied and complex. It found that many
channel partners are choosing to fill the
expertise gaps by partnering with other
resellers in a coopetit ion relationship.
Cisco says the Partner Exchange enables
partners to find, connect and collaborate
with other partners that offer a comple-
mentary blend of technology, services, and
industry and geographic expertise. It helps
group leaders at partners start to develop
trusted relationships with the right person
at the right partner.
Cisco Partner Exchange facilitates col-
laboration t hrough three key features:G Promote and Be Found : In less than
14 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
ANALYSIS: CISCOSOLUTION PROVIDERS
John Chambers, Cisco
Creating a collaborative channel
BY KAUNDA CHAMA
Cisco encorages more partner alliances.
A
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ANALYSIS: CISCOSOLUTION PROVIDERS
CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008 39
five minutes, group leaders can build a
customised profile to promote their
groups unique capabilities, ensuring
that other partner group leaders can
easily find and do business with them.
G Find and Connect: Powerful search
and networking capabilities allow part-
ners to easily search, find and start to
develop trusted relationships with the
right person at the right partner.
G Learn and Collaborate: All partners
have access to best practices, online
events and discussion forums.
Cisco Partner Exchange is located within
Cisco Partner Space, a virtual environment
that enables connections and facilitates
collaboration between customers and part-ners, among partners, and between Cisco
and partners.
At the event, Cisco also announced its
intent to purchase the remaining 20 per
cent interest in San Jose-based Nuova
Systems, a start-up focused on the develop-
ment of next-generation products for the
data centre market.
At the same time, it also unveiled the
Nexus 5000 Series, the first product
developed by Nuova. The Cisco Nexus
5000 is a 10 Gigabit Ethernet top-of-rack
switch that offers unified fabric capabilit ies
through the support for multiple data
centre networking protocols and
software intelligence.
Prior to the acquisition, Nuova operated
as a majority-owned subsidiary of Cisco,
which had invested $70 million and owned
80 per cent of the company.
The transaction is success based with the
total value primarily determined by the
revenue of Nuova products over three
measurement periods. The first measure-
ment period will commence in early fiscal
year 2010, the second measurement period
will commence in late fiscal year 2010 and
the third measurement period will
commence in mid-fiscal year 2011.
The existing relationship between the two
has allowed both companies to collaborate
actively in the development of the Cisco
Nexus 5000 through technology sharing,
product evolution and driving overall
market acceptance of innovative data
centre technologies.
As a result, the Cisco Nexus 5000 isdesigned to be fully interoperable with the
recently introduced Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
switches through the sharing of a common
product architecture, operating system and
other software intelligence. The Nexus 7000
is an internally developed, modular data
centre-class switching system designed for
10 Gigabit Ethernet networks offering
industry-leading performance scaling up to
15 terabits per second.
To succeed in todays marketplace and
effectively deliver on our business strategy
to capture key market transitions, Cisco
drives a combination of internal R&D,
industry partnerships and corporate
development activities, says Ned Hooper,
senior VP, Corporate Development and
Consumer and Small Business Group,
Cisco. In many ways, the efforts support ing
our Data Center vision are great examplesof this build, buy, partner innovation
To succeed in todays marketplace and effectively deliver on our
business strategy to capture key market transitions, Cisco drives a
combination of internal R&D, industry partnerships and corporate
development act ivities. Ned Hooper, Cisco
Key f inding s of t he st udy include:G Larger Projects, More Revenue: Cisco partners who collaborate with others
have developed deeper customer relationships and delivered more value to
customers. Collaboration enables 78 per cent of these resellers to win larger projects,
75 per cent to acquire new customers, and 74 per cent to increase their revenue.
G Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty: Customers overwhelmingly report that
collaborative resellers reduced the complexity of their IT business solutions.
Customers also enjoyed the single point of contact with a partner versus working
with the different vendors individually. Between 80 and 90 per cent of customers
globally are satisfied with the collaborative partners technical, business and industry
expertise; the ease of doing business with them; and post-sale service and support.
G Broader and Deeper Expertise: Partner collaboration also helps resellers to
broaden and deepen their expertise and, as a result, differentiate themselves from
their competition. Specifically, due to collaboration, 56 per cent of Cisco partners
witnessed improved levels of service; 78 per cent achieved greater technical
differentiation; and 66 per cent improved industry-specific expertise.G Slow Adop tion of Colla bor ati on Tools: Despite the extent of partner-to-partner
collaboration, surprisingly few partners are taking advantage of collaboration tools
to work more effectively with other partners and customers. Only 33 per cent of
Cisco partners use Web-conferencing tools, 20 per cent use collaboration and
document-management tools, 20 per cent use project management software, and
15 per cent use shared electronic calendars.
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framework in action. Ciscos decades of
switching innovation and expertise have it
well poised to be the architect of the next-
generation, network-centric data centre, a
vision defined as Data Center 3.0, says
Mario Mazzola, current president and CEO
of Nuova Systems. We expect the Nuova
team to make significant contribut ions
toward the realisation of this vision through
products and technology that help enable
data center consolidation and virtualisation,
while protecting customers current data
centre investments.
The acquisition is expected to close in Q4
of Ciscos 2008 financial year and will be
the fifth one for the period.
Meanwhile, Ciscos Nexus 5000 Series
strengthens the companys existing data
centre switch portfolio and builds on its
commitment to invest heavily over the next
18 months in new products and capabilities
to help customers architect the next-gener-
ation data centre, creating a new market
opportunity for its channel partners.
The Cisco Nexus 5000 Series is designed
for data centre consolidation with
investment protection, helping to allow
customers to transition to a unified fabric
at their own pace. It also meets stringent
customer requirements for operational
continuity, transport flexibility and scalability.
With a unified fabric, IT organisations
can simplify cabling infrastructure, reduce
the number of required adapters, lower
costs, and reduce power consumption and
their carbon footprint. The Cisco Nexus
5000 Series delivers line-rate, low-latency,
10 Gigabit Ethernet switching, as well as
the industrys first standards-based,
input/output (I/O) consolidation solution via
support for Fibre Channel over Ethernet
(FCoE), Data Center Ethernet and virtualisa-
tion technologies.The switch is an extension to the Cisco
Nexus family designed to support increasing
I/O demands of multicore processors and
virtualised environments. With its support
for FCoE, the Cisco Nexus 5000 Series
consolidates local-area network (LAN), f ibre
channel and iSCSI-based storage-area
networks (SANs) and server cluster traffic
onto an Ethernet-based unified fabric. It
also provides virtual machine (VM)
optimised services, supporting the Cisco
Data Center 3.0 vision by allowing IT
organisations to respond dynamically to
changing business demands through rapid
provisioning of application and infrastructure
services from shared pools of consolidated
compute, storage and network resources.
SAVVIS, a leading global IT utility servicesprovider specialising in hosting, network
and application services, is currently testing
the new Cisco Nexus 5000 switching plat-
form. We believe the benefits to SAVVIS of
a unified fabric are multifold, including the
ability to provide our customers with a
higher quality of service as well as total cost
of ownership reduction within our data
centre operations, says Bryan Doerr, chief
technology off icer of SAVVIS. Cisco Nexus
5000s ability to deliver this unified fabric
today makes it an attractive platform for us
and we are actively evaluating it.
To further align with opportunities in the
data centre, Cisco has also evolved its channel
programme to help allow partners to build
a network-centric data centre practice. Part
of this effort includes the evolution of the
Cisco Data Center Networking
Infrastructure (DCNI) specialisation to DCNI
2.0, which recognises partners with a
highly qualified data centre practice.
Cisco DCNI 2.0 specialised partners will
be able to provide customers with in-depth
data centre technology skills and a proven
customer track record in selling, deploying
and providing sophisticated data centre
services and solutions.
In addition, for partners who decide to
build a network-centric data centre practice,
Cisco will offer technical and business
enablement tools and enhanced financial
incentives. This includes the introduction to
the Cisco Data Centre Value Incentive
Program (VIP), which rewards partners who
invest in a comprehensive business practice
focused on the data centre. Cisco is furtherenhancing its partner enablement
16 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
ANALYSIS: CISCOSOLUTION PROVIDERS
> p18
We expect the Nuova team to make signif icant cont ributions
tow ard the realisation of this vision through products and technology
that help enable data center consolidation and virtualisation, while
protecting customers current data centre investments.
M ario M azzola, Nuo va System s
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portfolio with the introduction of
the Cisco Data Center Partner Practice
Builder, a proven, simplified and repeatable
approach to building a Cisco solutions-
based practice, along with Steps to Success,
a business building platform that provides a
step-by-step customer engagement model
and associated resources designed to enable
partners to sell, deliver and support Cisco
advanced technology business solutions.
With a proven history of success in
delivering innovative network solutions in
data, voice and communications, video and
storage networks, Cisco and its channel
partners are uniquely positioned to lead the
transformation of the data centre into an
agile and efficient network that revolu-
tionises how our customers adopt new IT
strategies and respond to changing
business needs, says Edison Peres, VP
worldwide channels at Cisco. With a full
portfolio of data centre solutions, channel
programmes and enhanced financial
incentives through Data Center VIP; we are
helping to create extraordinary opportuni-
ties for our partners to accelerate their
growth, differentiation and profitability.
Cisco has also expanded its services
offerings to help customers realise the full
potential of a unified fabric and take the
next step in data centre transformation.
Cisco Services provide the expertise and
experience needed to address the entire
data centre architecture and is designed to
support an organisations growth, server
performance as well as storage and
virtualisation goals.
In addit ion, Cisco Capital offers financing
solutions to support customers with the
development of their data centres, including
technology adoption, migration and lifecycle
management. It offers competit ive rates,
high residuals and flexible terms for Cisco
data centre equipment and services globally.
The networking solutions vendor alsoannounced new solutions that further
optimise branch offices of all sizes, allowing
companies to customise branch networks
to meet their unique business needs.
It has done this by opening its Integrated
Services Router (ISR) and Cisco Wide Area
Application Services (WAAS) platforms to
customers and third-party application
developers, Cisco enables its customers to
optimise the branch infrastructure while
extending their accessibility to business
resources. It also provides Cisco channel
partners with new opportunities to deliver
differentiated solutions and services that
better align with customers business needs.
Cisco also int roduced an array of new
security, wireless and unified communica-
tion products and service innovations thatelevate branch-office worker productivity
and deliver information technology (IT)
operational efficiencies.
Recognising the global shortage of skills in
the channel Cisco has also launched several
talent innovations, including its next-generation
partner talent platform, the Partner Talent
Network. This new platform uses advanced
social networking capabilities and interactive
video to transform how channel partners
attract, develop and retain employees.
As I meet and talk with partners around
the world, they consistently tell me, regard-
less of location, that their top growth issue
is attracting, developing and retaining tal-
ent, says Celia Harper-Guerra, director of
Worldwide Partner Talent at Cisco. This
global feedback is the foundation of our
talent strategy, which was validated in a
recent study we commissioned in North
America. That study identified hiring skilled
sales and technical talent as the top barriers
to growth in the IT channel.
With more than 80 per cent of its annual
revenue being sold by channel partners,
helping to preempt a skills shortage is a
major business imperative and one in which
Cisco is investing substantial time, money
and resources. Cisco invested early on,
more than 18-months ago, to work to
enhance the validity of its primary route to
market. The companys new talent-building
initiatives include: The Partner Talent
Network: scheduled to launch in second
quarter of calendar 2008; Recruitment
Services Solutions; Professional Career
Accelerator; and the Talent PoolConnections.
18 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
ANALYSIS: CISCOSOLUTION PROVIDERS
With more than 80 per cent of its annual revenue being sold by
channel partners, helping to preempt a skills shortage is a major
business imperative and one in which Cisco is investing substantial
time, money and resources.
>> p16
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f there was one thing that was certain at
this years Intel Solutions Summit (ISS) held
in Rome, it was the fact that the hardware
vendor considers its channel partners critical
to its success in all markets.
Thomas Rampone VP sales and market-
ing group and general manager of the
channel platforms group stressed that thechannel is Intels best customer because of
the reach and the advantage of flexibility
that respective channel partners have in
their local markets.
While a lot of corporates might be of the
opinion that the desktop is fast dying and
the notebook is taking over as the PC of
choice, Rampone said that Intel is confident
there is plenty space left for penetration in
the desktop market.
In his keynote at ISS recently, Steve
Dallman, Intels sales and marketing group
VP and worldwide reseller channel
organisation GM, said the company is more
committed than ever to the channel.
Reinforcing Intels 45nm High-K
Transistor technology as the cornerstone of
opportunity, Dallman is encouraging
channel partners to embrace newtechnologies and programmes such as
Intels latest mobile motherboards that
extend its channel mobile initiative and a
new loyalty programme for its channel
partner members.
Gett ing t he channel ready f or
Montevina
Dallman explained that Intel continues to
work actively with mult i-national
companies, local and regional OEMs, the
channel and the PC ecosystem at large to
promote notebook PC adoption.
Dallman rallied the channel to get ready
for the next-generation Intel Centrino 2
processor technology platform, previously
code-named Montevina and expected to be
available in June this year.
Saying that mobility is a huge
opportunity for the channel, Dallman
announced Rich Creek 2, the code name
for a new mobile motherboard form factor
specification that expands Intels ongoing
efforts with the industry to develop
interchangeable building blocks for note-
book components.
Rich Creek 2 products will be rolled out
in a phased approach starting with selectlocal integrators, local OEMs and original
design manufacturers in several bare bone
and complete notebook configurations.
More offerings are coming online
towards the end of the year and in 2009.
Intel says the goal is for the ingredient-
based ecosystem to be mature enough to
support a broad distribut ion model for
all customers.Intel as well as other industry partners
will offer Intel Mobile Boards based on Rich
Creek 2 that will launch time-to-market
with the Intel Centrino 2 platform. Initially,
the boards will be available in a bare bones
configuration from OEMs and local integra-
tors but not as a stand alone product.
According to the company, the desktop
business remains vibrant, accounting for
about 50 per cent of its business
Three new deskt op m ot her-boards
Keeping with this Intel has some new
pieces of hardware for the desktop space.
The vendor launched three new desktop
motherboards aimed at the extreme gamer,
the mainstream multimedia user and entry-
level PC user.
The vendor claims that the new mother-
boards, individually, enable a number of
innovative features for PCs such as greater
performance, clearer definition video and
low-powered technologies.
The new boards are the Intel Desktop
Board DX48BT2 Extreme Series (formerly
code-named Bone Trail 2), the Intel
Desktop Board DG35EC Classic Series
(formerly code-named Eva Cove), and the
Intel Desktop Board D945GCLF Essential
Series (formerly code-named Little Falls).
The D945GCLF will use the new Intel Atom
Processor and will be available towards the
second half of the year.
From ult imate gaming bliss, to crisp
high definition, to the most affordable
Internet-centric desktop, Intel continues topush the boundaries of world-class desktop
20 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
ANALYSIS: INTELSOLUTION PROVIDERS
Intel has strong channel belief
BY KAUNDA CHAMA
Partners still keep paying dividends
As the demand for desktops across the board moves from
strength to strength, we are also quickly moving towards more feature
differentiation and innovation down our product roadmap.
Tom Ram po ne, Int el
I
Tom Rampone, Intel
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ANALYSIS: INTELSOLUTION PROVIDERS
CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008 21
offerings, says Tom Rampone, Intels Sales
and Marketing Group VP, and Channel
Platforms Group GM. As the demand
for desktops across the board moves
from strength to strength, we are also
quickly moving towards more feature
differentiation and innovation down our
product roadmap.
For extreme gaming performance, the
Intel Desktop Board DX48BT2 Extreme
Series board unleashes the fastest native
1600 MHz front side bus and memory sup-
port providing powerful performance and
extreme overclockability.
Supporting Intel Core 2 Extreme proces-
sors featuring quad or dual-core processing
and a faster 1600/1333/1066/800 MHzFSB, it is built with the Intel X48 Express
Chipset with ICH9Rthat is validated for
chipset-level overclocking.
There are two DIMM sockets designed to
support up to 4GB of DDR3 1600 MHz
memory or four DIMM sockets designed to
support up to 8GB of DDR3 1333/1066/800
MHz memory.
The board has 2 IEEE 1394a ports and
12 USB 2.0 ports, dual full-speed PCIe 2.0
slots + x4/x16 PCIe slot , 2 PCI expansion
slots and 6 SATA 3.0 Gb/s ports. Further
included in the DX48BT2 board are Intel
Matrix Storage Technology and Dolby
Home Theatre.
The Intel Desktop Board DG35EC Classic
Series board is built with sharpest perform-
ing integrated graphics supported on Intel
architecture. Based on GMA X3500 inte-
grated graphics, the board supports a range
of processors, including Intel Core 2 Quad
and Intel Core 2 Duo processors.
Besides delivering outstanding perfor-
mance and stability, the integrated graphics
and connectors meet a variety of digital
needs, including 1080p video playback for
movie clips, media streams and the latest
generation of HD video cameras, without
the need for an add-in video card.
Intel claims that this is the first board to
have integrated Microsoft DirectX10 capa-
bility and it also supports OpenGL 2.0.
The Intel Desktop Board D945GCLF is an
affordable motherboard that integrates a
single unit of compute with a microproces-
sor, chipset, motherboard and heat sink.
Ideal for traditional channels to build andpackage into a full PC system for under
$300, these desktop boards are targeted at
entry-level computer users in the emerging
markets, as a second or basic home PC for
mature markets or customised for unique
usage models in vertical markets such as
home-lifestyle, banking or education.
The D945GCLF will use the new Intel
Atom Processor and will be available
towards the second-half of the year.
Behold Flex +
As far as channel activity goes, between
20 and 30 per cent of all Intel processor
unit sales go to the channel, and emerging
markets account for 60 per cent of these
channel sales.
Ensuring that these figures continue togrow, the vendor announced a new
programme that is the latest of a compre-
hensive array of benefits for Intel channel
partner programme members.
In an ongoing effort to enhance
membership value, Intel added Intel Flex+
to recognise and reward resellers for build-
ing their solutions on Intel technology.
Announced in SA two weeks earlier, the
programme was launched to the European
region at the solutions summit.
The benefits programme will roll
out worldwide to more regions in the
coming months.
Intel Flex+ is available at no cost to
Premier and Associate members, who can
enrol quickly and easily online. Once
enrolled, they can begin earning points for
selected qualifying purchases through Intel
authorised distributors.
Members can also accrue points for
participation in a range of qualifying
activities such as online training, channel
events and promotions.
Through the programme, Intel offers a
broad range of redemption options, giving
members the flexibility to select the rewards
they most want. Members are free to use
their points for business rewards such asconsulting services, Intel merchandise and
technology demo units. They can also
redeem points for benefits such as travel,
iPass WiFi access, Priority Pass airport lounge
privileges and travel insurance.
Other award redemption options range
from free health and fitness memberships,
electronics vouchers and access to Formula
One racing activities for anyone in their
organisation.
The Intel Flex+ Program offers Intel
partners another opportunity to benefit
from their collaboration with Intel, in addi-
tion to the Intel Inside Program, says Chief
Purchasing Officer Sven Bauer. This
programme has allowed us to reinvest the
points acquired toward a variety of business
and lifestyle awards such as telephone
surveys of customers conducted by Intel,
webinars that boost employee knowledge
and free hotel room charges for the Intel
Solutions Summit being held in Rome.
While the programme is in its infancy, there
are clear signs that channel partners will be
able to enjoy considerable benefits from it
in the future.
Intel could be poised for some impressive
growth in the EMEA region due to the fact
that the SME space is showing healthy
demand on the notebook, desktop andserver side.
Intel says the goal is for the ingredient-based ecosystem to be
mature enough to support a broad distribution model for all
customers. St eve Dallm an, Int el
Steve Dallman, Intel
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his years budget was delivered at a tough
time. In recent months, there has been an
increasing perception that revenue growth
would moderate in line with economic
activity, which has been greatly affected by
the Eskom debacle. In addition there has
been a slow down in IT spending due to the
economic slow down and credit crunching
is as well busy eating on peoples budgets.
Also, the Reserve Bank has also raised
interest rates to a near five-year peak,
saying price pressures were spreading.
Governor Tito Mboweni said the decision to
raise the repo rate by half a percentage
point to 11,5 percent was also driven by a
deterioration in inflation expectations,
which predict the 3%-6 percent official
target range would be breached for three
more years.
Given these prevailing economic circum-
stances, CRN interviewed resellers in the
channel to find out how they are fairing in
the market.
Although the IT spending continues to
slow down, Neil Watson, MD, Digital Planet,
says that their company had a very good
start this year. Weve had a great start to
the year. January and February saw stronggrowth versus last year. We are finding
22 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
ANALYSIS: IT SPENDINGSOLUTION PROVIDERS
Over the last few years weve spent a lot of our t ime diversifying
so that were not just exposed to a single area of the market.
As a result, we find that when certain areas of the economy
are struggl ing, our business remains robust.
Dave Hardy, Tit anIT
Economy slows down IT spending
BY DUDU SHABA
Negative economic factors eroding reseller margins.
T
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ANALYSIS: IT SPENDINGSOLUTION PROVIDERS
CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008 23
March and April a bit slower as the many
negative factors such as public holidays and
load shedding have an effect, he says.
Dave Hardy, MD, TitanIT says that their
reseller company has seen some margin
erosion in the last few months, driven largely
by smaller, opportunistic resellers.
Customers are delaying larger infrastruc-
ture projects but we continue to attract
new business, he comments.
Given these contributing factors that are
slowing down reseller businesses, Watson
says that they find that their customers are
still spending money on new IT equipment.
Over the last few years weve spent a lot
of our time diversifying so that were not
just exposed to a single area of the market.As a result, we find that when certain areas
of the economy are struggling, our business
remains robust, he says.
Watson goes on to say that their retail
business is doing well although not grow-
ing as aggressively as they like.
We see this as an indicator that the gen-
eral consumer is feeling the pinch. Our cor-
porate business is as strong as ever. People
seem to have high activity levels and are
being aggressive in new ventures and
opportunit ies, he comments.
In spite of the tightening economy, Hardy
says that TitanIT is on a growth path. We
remain convinced that loyalty to our cus-
tomers and primary vendors coupled with
our strong service, certification and consult-
ing dif ferentiators will continue to see us
grow, he says.
He adds that their company has had
several large orders recently for desktops
and servers and our other key areas are
performing as expected.
There are signs of a real growth in all
areas of the business in the next ten
months. Licence renewals and support
contracts are particularly strong performers.
Also, all of our primary vendors areaware of the current market conditions and
they, together with the distributors are
offering more flexible pricing, he remarks.
Watson says that online marketing is a
growing percentage of Digital Planets
online spend.
Each media has its own place and
online is great for call to action. We think
the skys the limit for our online spend as
we see a great Return on this spend. Were
still investing heavily in radio and print
however, he remarks.
We focus on the small to medium
corporate sector offering leading brand
name technology, superior support services
and trained certified staff in all divisions of
the business.
We believe that direct, focused sales andmarketing activities, supported by our
vendor partners, provides us with a unique
go-to-market message. All of our offerings
have a high degree of value add and we do
not spend much time on commoditized
products and solutions, he says.
He adds the online marketing is also
becoming more important and several of
their technology partners have recently
begun online initiatives, we aim to take
advantage of.
Watson predicts that there may be
slowed growth over the next few years.
He says that Digital Planets aim is to
constantly invest in future growth.
We are also finding that our ROI has
declined a little over the last few quarters
representing a slow down in investment
and a drop in confidence. Were still very
optimistic about our prospects and we
believe were on a good wicket, he says.
In conclusion, Hardy believes that these
uncertain t imes offer opportunities for
growth as others begin to focus inwards or
are forced out of the market.
For us, this means we have to cont inue
focusing on our primary markets and tech-
nologies and we have set aggressive expan-sion goals in all areas of our business .
We focus on the small to medium corporate sector of fering
leading brand name technology, superior support services and
trained certified staff in all divisions of the business.
Neil Watson, M D, Dig it al Planet
Neil Watson, Digital Planet
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un Microsystems has seen a 40 per cent
increase in the number of attendees at
its Tech Days developer conference, aimed
at building a strong partnerships andcreating developer community awareness
of its technologies.
This was said by Michael Schroeder, MD,
Southern and Eastern Europe, Middle East
and Africa, at the Sun Microsystems
developer conference which celebrated
its tenth anniversary.
Sun Microsystems provides a diverse
range of software, systems, services and
microelectronics that power everything
from consumer electronics, to developer
tools and some of the worlds most powerful
data centres. The companys brands include
the Java technology platform, Solaris
operating system, StorageTek and
UltraSPARC processors.
Schroeder says the 2 500 developers that
registered for the event is evidence of the
excitement around its technology and that
the number of partners is increasing.
We have seen the attendee numbers
growing from event to event since the
inception of the Tech Days Conference
10 years ago. This sends us the message
that we are helping our developers to
carry their heavy stuff, that our brand is
growing and more people will embrace
SunMicrosystems in the near future,
he says.
Patricia Martins, channel manager, SunMicrosystems said that the conference is
strategic to Sun Microsystems in that
it opens up big opportunities for its
partner community.
According to Martins, the Sun PartnerAdvantage Program offers its partners a
number of resources to help them become
more competitive and profitable. She
explains that partners gain support such as
sales and marketing.
Partners are able to join forces with Sun
and other partners to close sales all over
the world, and to take advantage of the
many sales and marketing tools available to
Sun Partners, including logo offerings that
leverage the Sun brand, she explains.
Sun offers a broad range of industry-
leading hardware, software, services and
products for channel, OEM and integrator
partners to add to their product portfolios.
In addition, Martins says partners can
also expand by doing Web-based product,
industry, solutions selling and Java
Enterprise System training, and global
worldwide competency programmes.
The focus of the conference this year is
to work with ISVs, system integrators, the
developer community and resellers. The
current trend is that technology is being
commoditised and only partners that sell
competititive solutions will be successful.
A lot of our partners also have their own
developers who create their own solutions
by bundling with our solutions who
can make good profits for themselves,she says.
Martins says Sun Microsystems has a
two- tier partner model, VARS and channel
developer partners.
If you follow government trends, you
will see that it needs to go open source,
which means that doors are open for our
partners to develop software solutions
that will make it easy for people to work
and add value to the development of
the country.
This is also applicable to universities,
their partnership with SunMicrosystems will
create young business leaders who will
develop their own solutions in the near
future, she says.
Molebogeng Yende, marketer, SPS ICT
solutions, says its software developer com-
pany based in Pretoria, signed a partnership
agreement with Sun Microsystems last year
and is looking forward to strengthening its
relationship with Sun Microsystems.
Attending this conference is imperative
for our company because our aim is to
remain competitive and enhance our skills
as well as continue to network with otherdevelopers, Yende concludes.
24 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
ANALYSIS: SUN MICROSYSTEMSSOLUTION PROVIDERS
Sun microsystemsbuilds a strong ecosystemOpening up big opportunity for partners.
BY DUDU SHABA AND DOMINIC KHUZWAYO
S
The Sun Tech conference opens up big opportunit ies for our
partner community. Patricia Martins, Sun Microsystems
Patricia Martins, Sun Microsystems
8/14/2019 Computer Reseller News April 2008
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Anton Herbst, MD at local consumables specialist distributor, Advanced Channel
Technologies (A.C.T) has scooped the most influential Channel Executives Award for
2008. And while all executives that made the top 21 list in the 12th CRN Channel have
some influence in one way or the other, Herbst humility and a willingness to listen and
understand his companys reseller channel seems to have put him in good standing with
the channel at large.
Herbst features in these awards for the third consecutive year and what a befitting
honour for him to have received the most influential award.
These award honour executives at vendor and distributor level, individuals who are
influential in their execution of day-to-day channel duties.
The executives featured in the pages that follow are not only going out of their way to
assist partners to close deals, embrace new business models and grow their businesses
to new profit heights, but they are at the forefront of championing partners to innovative.
A month of electronic polling on www.crn.co.za and CRN Flash, assisted the editorial
team to tally the votes and pick 21 top channel executives for 2007.
Resellers in the local channel voted for executives involved in channel management at
middle and senior management level. Each executive needed to receive a minimum of
10 votes to be considered for nomination. The following was the criteria solution
providers used:
G Availability of channel executive
G Pro-activeness & dedication to address channel hurdles
G Commitment to helping partners win business deals
G Influence on ho partner explore new business ventures
G Relationship/ team building styleG Openness of channel executive
The editorial team checked though the votes, eliminating any nominations that were
invalid. In addition the results were audited by an actuary.
In the pages that follow CRN showcases the 2008 Channel Executive Awards winners.
From the entire CRN team we congratulate the winners.
26 Anton Herbst, A.C.T
28 Craig Brunsden, Axiz
30 Reggie Nxumalo, Microsoft
32 Zandre Rudolph, Rectron
32 Graham Duxbury, Duxbury
Networking
33 Rudi Pheiffer, Softline Pastel
33 Malan Voster, Omi Accounts
34 Matthew Lee, Novell
34 Graham Vorster, Westcon
35 Stefan Diedericks, Oracle
35 Patricia Martins, Sun
Microsystems
36 Sally Berimbau, Novell
38 Mark Perry, HP.
40 Uwe Brandkamp, Comztek
42 Carl Kleynhans, APC
42 Steven Kramer, Tricon
43 Lisa Kelynack, Citrix Systems
44 Ron Keschner, Channel
Capital, MB Technologies
44 Hans Dummer, Epson
45 Imi Mosaheb
CONTENTS> >
8/14/2019 Computer Reseller News April 2008
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26 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
When Anton Herbst, MD at local consum-
ables distributor, Advanced Channel
Technologies (A.C.T) talks about his
passion for the local IT industry, his
job in the consumables market
space and his love for the local
solution provider channel, his
enthusiasm is all-consuming
you see it in his eyes and hear it
in his voice.Yet, Herbst believes that if
there is one lesson that the
business world teaches one the
hard way, it is not to get too
comfortable on the high tides of the
business cycle.
For a man with over 20 years
experience in the IT Industry, Herbst has
been taught a lesson in humility more than
once during his illustrious career. Once you believe
you are riding the crest of the wave, you should always be on
the lookout for the inevitable crash, because more often than not it isjust around the corner, he says.
It is precisely these lessons in humility that have helped Herbst to
become a leader. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that solution
providers have recognised Herbsts unrelenting efforts in assisting
them to grow their businesses.
Whiles this years win in the Channel Executives Awards is the
third consecutive one for Herbst; it is a befitting award as the
channel believes he is one of the most outstanding and influential
executives. A combination of factors has contributed to Herbstreceiving this top accolade.
For starters, he has been instrumental is segmenting A.C.Ts
channel base both from a vertical market perspective and
understanding exactly what its resellers
businesses are all about.
Secondly, Herbst has played a pivotal
role in helping A.C.T to target and
serve the SME market better. To this
effect, the company has had to
understand the business dynamics
and challenges faced by resellers
who target this market. We have
had to relook at investing more instock, credit, account management
and value adding to be relevant to
our reseller base, he says.
It is a team effort, he says. I am
delighted that my efforts have been
recognised in this manner but credit
must also go to the entire team I work with
at A.C.T.
Having witnessed the Siltek group go under in
2001, Herbst says you cannot always assume how your
business partners perceive your business operation as that could
be detrimental. It is against this that Herbst has been urging his teamat A.C.T not to take reseller partners for granted but rather to
understand and know their businesses. Last year, we embarked
on a programme to segment and establish what it is our reseller
partners do, he says.
Herbst points out that this initiative has led to the next phase of the
plan in terms of understanding and delivering what partners serving
the SME market need. This phase will see us layering resellers
deeper into channel segments such as group software specialists,
system integrators and specialist printing solutions resellers, he says.
Along with serving the SME sector efficiently, Herbst says the
company has also stabilised its other eight branches, excluding the
head office in Johannesburg, in terms of stock, pre- and post-sales
support, footprint, etc. A.C.T now has branches in Cape Town,
Durban, Port Elizabeth, Klerksdorp, East London, Nelspruit,
Bloemfontein and Polokwane.
Herbst says as the traditional printer market has converged with the
office supplies sector(copier and fax), it is vital for resellers that would
like to play in this space to take cognisance of the fact that they have
to sell solutions and not product specifications, features and paper
feeds. He believes this belongs in the past. We are not seeing a lot
of printing solution resellers, he says. I am led to believe there are
about 10 resellers countrywide that can sell printing solutions.
Looking ahead, Herbst says A.C.T will continue assisting its resellers
and urging them to become printing solution specialists targeting
specific niche markets with a strong value proposition. If resellers thatplay in this space rely on offering the lowest price, they will be
swallowed as printer and copier convergence will force product
movers out of business in favour of solution specialists, he concludes.
A lesson in being humble
2008 CH AN N EL EXECU T IVE
A.C.Ts Herbst gets channel nod.
By Manda Banda
26 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
When Anton Herbst, MD at local consum-
ables distributor, Advanced Channel
Technologies (A.C.T) talks about his
passion for the local IT industry, his
job in the consumables market
space and his love for the local
solution provider channel, his
enthusiasm is all-consuming
you see it in his eyes and hear it
in his voice.Yet, Herbst believes that if
there is one lesson that the
business world teaches one the
hard way, it is not to get too
comfortable on the high tides of the
business cycle.
For a man with over 20 years
experience in the IT Industry, Herbst has
been taught a lesson in humility more than
once during his illustrious career. Once you believe
you are riding the crest of the wave, you should always be on
the lookout for the inevitable crash, because more often than not it isjust around the corner, he says.
It is precisely these lessons in humility that have helped Herbst to
become a leader. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that solution
providers have recognised Herbsts unrelenting efforts in assisting
them to grow their businesses.
Whiles this years win in the Channel Executives Awards is the
third consecutive one for Herbst; it is a befitting award as the
channel believes he is one of the most outstanding and influential
executives. A combination of factors has contributed to Herbstreceiving this top accolade.
For starters, he has been instrumental is segmenting A.C.Ts
channel base both from a vertical market perspective and
understanding exactly what its resellers
businesses are all about.
Secondly, Herbst has played a pivotal
role in helping A.C.T to target and
serve the SME market better. To this
effect, the company has had to
understand the business dynamics
and challenges faced by resellers
who target this market. We have
had to relook at investing more instock, credit, account management
and value adding to be relevant to
our reseller base, he says.
It is a team effort, he says. I am
delighted that my efforts have been
recognised in this manner but credit
must also go to the entire team I work with
at A.C.T.
Having witnessed the Siltek group go under in
2001, Herbst says you cannot always assume how your
business partners perceive your business operation as that could
be detrimental. It is against this that Herbst has been urging his teamat A.C.T not to take reseller partners for granted but rather to
understand and know their businesses. Last year, we embarked
on a programme to segment and establish what it is our reseller
partners do, he says.
Herbst points out that this initiative has led to the next phase of the
plan in terms of understanding and delivering what partners serving
the SME market need. This phase will see us layering resellers
deeper into channel segments such as group software specialists,
system integrators and specialist printing solutions resellers, he says.
Along with serving the SME sector efficiently, Herbst says the
company has also stabilised its other eight branches, excluding the
head office in Johannesburg, in terms of stock, pre- and post-sales
support, footprint, etc. A.C.T now has branches in Cape Town,
Durban, Port Elizabeth, Klerksdorp, East London, Nelspruit,
Bloemfontein and Polokwane.
Herbst says as the traditional printer market has converged with the
office supplies sector(copier and fax), it is vital for resellers that would
like to play in this space to take cognisance of the fact that they have
to sell solutions and not product specifications, features and paper
feeds. He believes this belongs in the past. We are not seeing a lot
of printing solution resellers, he says. I am led to believe there are
about 10 resellers countrywide that can sell printing solutions.
Looking ahead, Herbst says A.C.T will continue assisting its resellers
and urging them to become printing solution specialists targeting
specific niche markets with a strong value proposition. If resellers thatplay in this space rely on offering the lowest price, they will be
swallowed as printer and copier convergence will force product
movers out of business in favour of solution specialists, he concludes. K
A lesson in being humble
2008 CH AN N EL EXECU T IVE
Once you believe you are riding the crest of
the wave, you should always be on the look-
out for the inevitable crash, because more
often than not it is just around the corner.
Anton H erbst, A.C.T
A.C.Ts Herbst gets channel nod.
8/14/2019 Computer Reseller News April 2008
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8/14/2019 Computer Reseller News April 2008
30/68
28 CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA APRIL 2008
Craig Brunsden, chief market-
ing o
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