Partner Programs Guide: Relationships That Pay
VARBusiness VARBusiness Partner Program Guide changing nature of partner programs changing purchasing process better partners to vendors database of over 340 partner programs
The next "big issue?" CRN's Channel Champions--one month from now.
HP/Compaq Countdown: 30 Days
The Hewlett-Packard shareholder vote is also one month from now, and both sides are going full tilt to pass, or to defeat, the proposed Hewlett-Packard/Compaq merger. This week, HP announced quarterly results, which both sides seized on as evidence that they're right. Meanwhile, many solution providers remain skeptical that the merger will even happen. An informal poll of VARBusiness 500 CEOs showed a majority think the deal won't even come off.
But what if it does? In his week's CRN cover story, HP CEO Carly Fiorina discusses how solution providers would fare in the merged company, whose partner program would continue with HP's current Hard Deck strategy. VARBusiness' Jennifer D'Alessandro contrasts the differences between the typical HP VAR and the the typical Compaq VAR, and how they might cooperate--and collide--within the merged company.
Microsoft: On Stage, In Court
Microsoft did not figure prominently in last week's pile of vendor news, so it's no surprise they came back with a rush this week. Topping the list was the launch of Visual Studio.net, Microsoft's platform for developing next-generation Web services. In conjunction with the launch, the company announced a toolkit to build those Web services on top of Microsoft's SQL Server databse.
In the here and now, though, Microsoft was struggling with security breaches in its current product line. (That topic triggered one of the busiest Talk Back threads on ChannelWeb this week.) The company also shot back in court at the remaining states that oppose its antitrust settlement with the Department of Justice, while those states in turn asked a federal judge for a look at the source code of the Windows operating system.
Earnings, Continued
Earnings season is winding down, but a number of technology companies reported quarterly results this week. While many squeaked in above modest expectations, CEO's were near unanimous in expressing caution going forward. (Of course, caution is the new executive chic.) In addition to HP, we look at the numbers from Dell, Viant, and distributors Ingram Micro, Bell Microproducts and Daisytek . Joe Kovar (who dusted the competition as our most prolific Web reporter in 2001) continues to break down the earnings results of the major storage vendors .
Next week, IBM PartnerWorld pulls into the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco. We'll have all the news in our newscenter. We'll also, at last, have the new XChange Conferences site up. More about that later. Happy President's Day.