Supplier, Reseller Both Ending Relationships With Dell

CSP Inc., a Billerica, Mass.-based integrator and solution provider, said it had received notice from Dell that it would no longer be working as a reseller for the Round Rock, Tex.-based computer maker.

CSP has had a relationship with Dell since 2003, when it acquired Technisource Hardware, which itself had worked with Dell. Gary Levine, CSP's chief financial officer, declined to say why Dell had opted to close the relationship. Levine referred questions to Dell; a Dell spokesman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

CSP's statement said termination of the Dell relationship "could affect the $2.8 million carrying value of goodwill" connected to the acquisition of Technisource, which is now known as CSP's MODCOMP Systems and Solutions Division.

Separately, Mobility Electronics, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based maker of AC, DC and AC/DC power cords for computer manufacturers - said its relationship with Dell would end by the close of 2006, and that it expected its sales to Dell would taper off and decline until the end of the contract.

"Mobility is pursuing a number of options for continuing to support the Dell computer product offering in the future through both direct programs with Dell and alternative channels of distribution," Mobility said in a press release. A spokeswoman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

On Aug. 9, in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Mobility Electronics listed Dell as one of the bigger customers on its roster that it saw as a major revenue source moving forward.

"In the future, we expect that we will be dependent upon a relatively small number of customers for a significant portion of our revenue, including RadioShack, Targus, Lenovo, Dell, and others," Mobility Electronics said in its most recent 10Q filing.