3Com Drops Dell From Its Roster

Speaking on the networking hardware vendor's quarterly earnings call last week, Claflin said he hasn't seen Dell's entry into the switch market affect 3Com's business, but he made the decision to drop the direct marketer as a reseller.

"I can't find any numbers on how successful they have been," Claflin said of Dell. "They must be selling something to somebody, but they are not going to be selling 3Com product."

In an interview with CRN, 3Com Vice President of Sales Dave Smith said 3Com informed Dell that it was dropping the PC vendor as a reseller effective immediately. Dell can still source 3Com product through distribution if it chooses to do so, he said.

"[Dell wants to bring everything under its own brand, so if that means gaining short-term expertise by bringing in [Hewlett-Packard printers or 3Com networking gear, they'll do that," said Barry Malter, president and CEO of Advantage Technologies, a solution provider based in Armonk, N.Y. "But once they're an established player in the field, what does it hurt them if 3Com deauthorizes them?"