Computer Reseller News Sa Feb 2008

February 2008

Reasserting Partner Focus Novell SA is expanding sales of its software to SMEs, and it says it will work directly with solution providers p12>>

Inside This Issue Oracle steps up on Accelerate programme p16>> Red Hat restructures channel programme p21>> Lenovo takes consumer range to another level p22>> Memory Feature: Pushing it to the max p30>>

EDITOR’S: NOTE

IT spending slowdown

I

s there an IT spending slowdown? In my editor’s note last month, in which I welcomed 2008, I hinted at the looming IT spending slowdown in both the channel and consumer space. I asked whether signs of improvement were on the horizon given the high rate at which local IT reseller companies have been closing shop since the slowdown started in July 2007. And while the decision by the South African Reserve Bank not to raise the repro rate was welcomed by many, the effect of high interest rates on consumers is becoming evident. This, coupled with the energy crisis, has added to the South African economy’s woes. So what does 2008 hold for the local IT channel? That there is a slowdown is backed by my recent snap survey conducted with a few distributors who, in fact, not only confirmed but indicated that the rate at which IT reseller companies are closing down is indicative of the tough trading environment being experienced not only in the IT industry but other sectors as well. Distributors that have been affected say resellers are not only reducing their monthly orders but are also defaulting on their payments despite the credit terms they enjoy with the various distributors having been extended to, in some cases, up to 90 days. If Q2 does not show any signs of improvement, analysts say overall economic growth for the country will slump from the targeted six per cent to somewhere around three per cent. This will be a severe blow to the gains the country has made since democratising in 1994 as the economy has grown ever since. Key to attaining this growth has been solid consumer spending and high commodity prices, which have accounted for a growth rate of more than four per cent in each of the past four years. It must be said, though, that there are lessons to be learnt from all involved in the channel business, especially solution providers. Clearly, those partners that have embraced offering services on top of the solutions they sell are in a better position to survive than resellers that just sell products. That said, resellers will have to consolidate their businesses and specialise. Solution provider partners that have experienced years of growing profits in spite of shrinking margins on hardware and software are those that not only embrace solutions selling but are also maximising their services revenue. Enjoy the read and let me know how your solution provider business is being affected by the IT spending slowdown. I can be reached at [email protected]

Manda Banda – publisher

Contents News & Analysis 4 – Comings and Goings 6 – What’s new/D Moves 7 – Hi Five: FrontRange to embark on robust marketing campaign. By Dudu Shaba

8 – Demand Generator: KSS overhauls MSD Pharmaceutical’s network. By Dudu Shaba

12

12 – Cover story: Reasserting Partner Focus Cover: Michelle Beetar, Novell SA

CRN Contacts: Publisher: Manda Banda [email protected] Online editor: Kaunda Chama [email protected] Journalists: Portia Shaba [email protected] Brand executive: Nirosh Moodley [email protected] Sub-editor: Jenny Bastomsky [email protected]

In what is seen as its boldest channel move to date, Linux and infrastructure software vendor, Novell SA, is expanding sales of its software and other products to SMEs, and it says it will work directly with solution providers to do it. By Manda Banda 16 – Oracle steps up on Accelerate Programme

Database vendor Oracle has stepped on the gas with its Accelerate initiative to boost application sales to small and mid-size businesses. By Manda Banda and Rick Whiting, CMP

20 – The HD opportunity for partners

New technologies like high definition (HD) are broadening the range of information communicated through video conferencing to create a valuable communication tool. By Kaunda Chama

21 – Red Hat restructures channel programme

Open source (Linux) solution vendor Red Hat has announced that it is restructuring its channel programme. By Kaunda Chama 22 – Lenovo takes consumer range to another level

Lenovo has touted the new line of consumer notebook and desktop PCs and says the company is growing its brand and resellers stand to make good profits. By Dudu Shaba

Features

Designer: Spencer van Graan [email protected]

24 – Networking: Increasing value and growth

Database and subscriptions: Daisy Mulenga [email protected]

30 – Notebook: The future is mobile

copyright notice CRN Southern Africa is published monthly by Systems Publishers (Pty) Ltd. The copyright of all material in this publication is reserved by the proprietors, except where expressly stated. The publisher, however, will consider reasonable requests for the use of material by others on condition that the source and author of the report are clearly attributed. Due to the nature of the newspaper print process, Systems Publishers cannot be held responsible for colour variations in printed advertising. Printed by Ultra Litho. CRN Southern Africa is a licensee of CMP Media LLC.

Private Bag X12, Rivonia, 2128 Tel: (011) 234 7008 Fax: (011) 234 7025 Registered with the Audit Bureau of Circulation

16

Find out how the new trends in the networking space can help your business to increase value and growth. By Dudu Shaba

32

The local notebook segment is expected to outpace the growth of the desktop PC market in 2008 as users continue to be drawn to mobility, as mobile technology enables users to be more productive away from their desks. By Dudu Shaba 36 – Memory: Pushing it to the max

As the system builder channel and gaming sector continue to champion the move towards ever increasing memory and processor speeds, selecting components that suit one’s needs has become a challenge. By Stanley Chishala 40 – Snapshot: Gary Broomberg, MicroStrategy 40 – Dilbert

Scans in this publication have been reproduced on the EPSON PERFECTiON 2450 photo

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WHAT’S

NEWS

Pinnacle Micro buys Tri Continental In a multi-million rand deal, ICT distributor Pinnacle Micro has purchased the South African operations of Tri Continental Distribution, one of IBM’s and Lenovo’s biggest distributors in the region. The announcement, which gives Pinnacle Micro access to IBM’s and Lenovo’s products, cements the company’s role as one of the preferred distributors to tier-one ICT companies in SA. Arnold Fourie, CEO of Pinnacle Micro, says the distribution deal with Lenovo/IBM – which became effective on 1 December 2007 – is a “major distribution announcement for Pinnacle Micro, definitely one of the most important in the past few years”.

SAP wraps up Business Objects purchase, unveils joint products Declaring its US$6.8 billion acquisition of business intelligence software vendor Business Objects as complete, SAP has wasted no time in leveraging its expanded software portfolio by debuting nine products that combine technology from both companies. SAP has acquired 87 per cent of Business Objects’ shares and has begun integrating various elements of the two companies, SAP CEO Henning Kagermann says. Business Objects will become a critical element of SAP’s “business user applications” product line.

Oracle continues middleware market gains with BEA buyout

A persistent Oracle is coughing up nearly US$2 billion more than its initial offer to acquire BEA Systems, nearly three months after it began pursuing the middleware vendor. Oracle has announced that BEA had agreed to be bought for US$19.375 per share or approximately US$8.5 billion. Oracle initially bid US$17 per share or US$6.6 billion when it first offered to buy BEA on 12 October 2007. As recently as mid-December Oracle executives said BEA’s directors were still resisting Oracle’s offers. At some point Oracle decided to sweeten the pot and the two companies reached a deal.

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CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

&

COMINGS

David Drummond to leave Acer SA

David Drummond, country manager at Acer SA will be moving to take on a new role as MD of the vendor’s UK operation. The changes which are effective from 1 April 2008, will see Drummond who has been at the helm of the vendor’s SA subsidiary for five years take up the position of MD, Acer UK. Succeeding Drummond in the capacity as country manager, Acer Africa is Graham Braum, a nine-year veteran of Acer who has been commercial manager at the company for the past year. “I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience of living in SA and in working across the whole Middle East, Turkey, and Africa region,” he says. “I’m looking forward to driving the Acer brand in the UK.”

Novell SA appoints new country manager Novell SA has appointed Michelle Beetar as country manager. Beetar assumed her position on 2 January 2008 and takes over the reigns from Stafford Masie, who resigned in August 2007. Desan Naidoo, who has been acting as country manager for the past few months, will continue at the company in the role of sales director. Beetar joins Novell from Oracle SA where she was industry director of financial services and was also formerly CEO of MWeb CommerceZone.

EMC SA has new head Gerhard van der Merwe has taken over the position of country manager at storage vendor EMC SA following the retirement of Frank Touwen in December 2007. Van der Merwe has over 15 years experience with EMC, most of which was in various sales management positions. Van der Merwe says he is honoured to take over this position from Touwen. He adds that as EMC has moved from being a hardware-focused vendor to a complete information-management company, and that his focus will be to drive this strategy into the marketplace. Joshua Motjuwadi heads Microsoft Public Sector division Microsoft SA has appointed Joshua Motjuwadi as its new Public Sector director as it looks to grow its presence across Government this year. Motjuwadi, the former managing executive for IT Services at Telkom, replaces Ashley de Klerk, who left Microsoft late last year. Motjuwadi has 29 years’ experience in the ICT field, including stints in retail, consulting and financial services. Microsoft SA MD Pfungwa Serima says Motjuwadi’s appointment underlines Microsoft’s commitment to working with Government across key initiatives like improving service delivery, skills development and broadening digital inclusion.

G O I N G S

WHAT’S

NEWS

Sun Micro to buy MySQL Sun Microsystems has revealed that it will buy open source developer MySQL AB for about US$1 billion, allowing it to expand into an estimated US$15 billion database market. Sun also reported preliminary results for its fiscal second quarter, saying it expected higher revenue and profit compared with the year-earlier period. Sun says it will pay about US$800 million in cash in exchange for all of MySQL stock and assume about US$200 million in options as part of the deal. The company says MySQL’s open source database is widely used across operating systems, hardware vendors and applications, and is expected to open new markets for Sun’s systems, middleware and other technologies.

Apple’s Jobs debuts world’s thinnest laptop Steve Jobs unveiled the world’s thinnest notebook, aptly dubbed the MacBook Air, at his keynote address at this year’s Macworld Expo in San Francisco. The MacBook Air weighs a mere 3 lbs and is 0.76 inches at it widest, tapering down in a wedge to an unimaginable 0.16 inches. The MacBook Air has a full-size back-lit keyboard, a back-lit LED 13.3-inch monitor and a sizeable track-pad that allows for gesture control of functions in the same manner as the iPod Touch and iPhone. The MacBook Air will retail for US$1 799, fitting it in between Apple’s MacBook and MacBook Pro lines.

&

COMINGS

EMC SA CEO, Touwen retires

EMC has announced that Frank Touwen, its country manager had retired after over five years as CEO of EMC SA. Touwen, who has been instrumental in building EMC SA into a dominant provider of computer storage and information infrastructure solutions, says he will be available to colleagues and clients to assist with any business issues.

Microsoft COO to take up new challenge Heather Third, COO at Microsoft SA, will be moving on to take up a new and exciting role as Microsoft’s special projects director for Africa. As special projects director for Africa, Heather will be responsible for directing a number of key strategic projects across the continent. These efforts will be geared toward helping people bridge the digital divide and to growing the local software economies across the continent.

Steve Nossel quits Intel After nearly 10 years at Intel Corporation, having served as the GM for sub-Saharan Africa and more recently as the Enterprise and World Ahead business manager for Middle East Turkey and Africa, Steve Nossel will be leaving the chip maker at the end of February 2008. It is still unclear what new projects Nossel will take up but he has stated that he will take a short break.

Distribution Move Distribution Moves DCC gets Bravia distributorship South African distributor Drive Control Corporation (DCC) has been appointed the official distributor for Sony SA’s range of Bravia LCD high-definition TVs (HDTV) and HD-ready TVs. With the appointment of Drive Control, Sony further strengthens and extends the brand’s local adoption as the distributor features a 6000-strong reseller base with a national footprint. “Our channel partners can now readily offer the Bravia series to their corporate clients. This is an important benefit as in the past the products were only available from professional, high-end visual suppliers,” explains Bruce Byrne, visual communications specialist at Drive Control Corporation.

Phoenix signs with PC Tools Phoenix Software, a local software re-publishing house, has signed an agreement with PC Tools giving it rights to distribute the PC Tools product range throughout SA.

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CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

PC Tools is one of the global leaders in innovative software products designed to protect the privacy and security of Windows users. PC Tools publishes software and provides technical resources for securing, protecting and maintaining the Windows operating system. Its products are available in over 196 countries. The company also offers its products and customer service in multiple languages.

DCC to distribute ViewSonic ViewSonic Corporation, a provider of visual display products, has appointed Drive Control Corporation (DCC) as its official distribution partner. “Our newly established local offices will strengthen our presence in SA and Africa and is further reinforced by partnering with leading hardware distributors such as DCC. DCC will allow us to deliver ViewSonic products to a wider share of the IT reseller, corporate and retail market,” says Brendon Land, country manager of ViewSonic South Africa.

G O I N G S

HIGH FIVE: FRONTRANGE SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

FrontRange to embark on robust marketing Strengthen its position in the channel.

F

BY DUDU SHABA rontRange Solutions, a developer and vendor of software products in SA, is looking to new and existing channel partners across SA to join it in its drive to capture the growing opportunities for its products not only in the SME sector, but also in larger enterprises. Paul Bornhutter, product general manager for Africa at FrontRange says that developing and launching more products to meet the needs of the channel is one of its main priorities for 2008. CRN spoke to Bornhutter to find out more about how the company positions itself in the channel. CRN: Can you tell us more about FrontRange Solutions? PB: FrontRange Solutions is a developer and vendor of software products. The company has a strong South African heritage. Founded in 1989 under the banner of Ixchange, the company has

“Our focus this year is mainly on embarking on various activities and campaigns to introduce customers to our latest products.” – Paul Bornhutter, FronRange Solutions.

focused on developing software and services that allow organisations to deliver extraordinary customer relationship service. Since its inception, the company has focused on solutions tailored specifically for the mid-market. Today, it is the undisputed leader with more than one million users around the world and a blue-chip client list. A leader in consolidated sales and service solution suites, FrontRange established its reputation with the award-winning GoldMine family of business relationship solutions for complete service management, including Help Desk, Knowledge Management, Asset Management and Service Level Management. CRN: Where are your offices based and who are your partners? PB: FrontRange Solutions has its local office in Dunkeld, Johannesburg. The company’s global head office is in San Francisco in the US. The company was acquired by a US private equity firm in 2006 and delisted from the JSE. Our partners are Click IT, Videl, Future Trends, I-Intelligence, IT Technologies and EagleTech. CRN: What are the company’s resolutions for 2008? PB: Even in tough times, FrontRange has maintained a strong

research and development capability. This capability to develop and launch our own products continues in 2008 with a number of product launches focused on meeting every customer’s needs as they continue to evolve. There will be a number of activities throughout the year. FrontRange will launch its Goldmine Enterprise Edition, GoldMine Mobile, Enteo offering and HEAT Mobile. FrontRange is also looking to strengthen its Voice Self-Service goto-market strategy during 2008. CRN: What are the company’s initial marketing strategies? PB: We will continue to focus on two key areas. First, FrontRange has a large installed base in SA and we plan to further develop user groups, product briefings and upgrade marketing activities for existing customers. Second, our product range has developed to the extent that it is increasingly being used in divisions or operating units of larger enterprises. So, we will continue to speak to this audience through events, briefings and launches. Unusually for a company of Front Range’s size, our customers are typically very open to speaking about their experiences with our solutions. We have a large and growing catalogue of customer success stories and we will continue adding to this. CRN: What are the major challenges that the company faced in 2007 and how does it aim to overcome them? PB: We reached a point with our GoldMine products where we needed to engage more partners across the entire country. This was a major challenge in 2007 and we have now employed a GoldMine channel account manager to grow the partner business. Overall, the channel remains key to our ability to continue the growth of recent years and we envisage engaging further partners in the main centres of SA.

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008 •

7

DEMAND

GENERATOR:

KSS SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

KSS

overhauls MSD Pharmaceutical’s network

Implementation optimises production. BY DUDU SHABA

M

SD, a subsidiary of the global, researchbased pharmaceutical company in the USA, has chosen KSS, a converged network integrator focusing on integrated data, and voice and video solutions, to implement and upgrade its network to meet its international standards and also to provide the company with a more robust architecture. Arnold Botha, IT operations manager at MSD says the company discovers, develops, manufactures and markets vaccines and

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CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

medicines to address unmet medical needs. According to him, at the company’s South African operations in Midrand, Gauteng, five buildings, including the marketing and sales department, finance, ICT training arm with an auditorium, the factory and a warehouse needed to be interconnected. To meet this requirement, he says existing equipment had to be upgraded. Botha explains that MSD required a complete overhaul of its network. > p10

Arnold Botha, KSS

DEMAND

GENERATOR:

KSS SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

“Our infrastructure was not meeting our requirements as the cabling was outdated and almost 10 years old. It was becoming increasingly unreliable with certain segments experiencing regular down time. This became problematic for the company and, coupled with the international requirement to standardise equipment, propelled us to upgrade our network, including the cabling,” he says. Botha goes on to say that the old network infrastructure impacted the company’s operations in all areas as access to information was slow and unreliable.

>> p8

”We have seen a difference with our backup procedures. Our overnight backups lessen the load on the network during working hours andnow take six hours rather than 10. The upgrade of our network was successful and we are fully realising the benefits in terms of greater productivity and efficiency.” – Arnold Botha, MSD.

“In today’s competitive environment, it is important to ensure the ICT infrastructure supports the operation, ensuring production is not hindered and all associated areas of the business function smoothly. Our network included a mixture of different vendors’ products, making it difficult for our international ICT team to provide us with support. Our international office manages our network and monitors the bandwidth remotely, further driving the requirement for the upgrade,” says Botha. The company sent its specifications to selected resellers and system integrators, allowing them to bid for the business. KSS was finally chosen. “KSS provided MSD with the specified products, assisted with their implementation and upgraded the network to meet international standards with a more robust architecture. We had previously worked with KSS and knew their high service levels and excellent capabilities with regard to networking. The company also provided us with the best pricing, making it the natural choice,” he says.

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CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

Corne Sassenberg, senior account manager at MSD says that KSS was commissioned to install 23 Nortel switches and Lancast fibre modules, Cisco fibre modules and Nortel fibre modules. In addition, they had to replace the older CAT 5 cabling that catered for a 100 megabit network with cabling that caters for gigabit speeds. “The implementation was handled in phases with each building configured individually. Network implementations need to be handled quickly and efficiently and this was achieved through pre-configuring and testing of the solution at our testing centre in Midrand prior to implementation. This allowed us to minimise implementation time significantly,” he explains According to Botha, the implementation was not entirely without challenges. “We had an unannounced visit from our overseas auditors, forcing us to delay the implementation plans until they had completed their audit. In addition, due to the specification of standards changing at overseas level, firmware on some of the products had to be upgraded. On the whole, we were very impressed with KSS’ service and level of professionalism. The company is based close to our offices and its staff is available to us within 10 to 15 minutes if we require assistance with maintenance and support issues,” he says. Botha adds that MSD has benefited significantly from the upgrade and that the network now supports its business-critical information and systems, ensuring production runs smoothly and is optimised. “We have also seen a difference with our backup procedures. Our overnight backups lessen the load on the network during working hours and now take six hours rather than 10. In addition, our support staff only requires one set of skills since they no longer have to support a multitude of technologies and brands. The upgrade of our network was successful and we are fully realising the benefits in terms of greater productivity and efficiency,” Botha concludes. Do you have demand generator stories to share with us? Please e-mail Dudu Shaba at [email protected]

COVER

STORY:

NOVELL SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

Reasserting

partner focus

Novell gets serious with channel. BY MANDA BANDA

I

n what is seen as its boldest channel move to date, Linux and infrastructure software vendor, Novell SA, is making a push to expand sales of its software and other products to small businesses, and it says it will work directly with solution providers to do it.

“Making Novell partners more profitable is the first and most important point to stress. It is the important thing that we can do.” – Michelle Beetar, Novell SA

Michelle Beetar, Novell SA

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CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

The move comes at a time when the vendor has embarked on a global channel reassertion effort following negative industry perception based on competitor disinformation. In fact, industry pundits say one of the biggest challenges Novell faces is overcoming these negative perceptions and proving it is a channel-centric vendor. Michelle Beetar, Novell SA’s new country manager says by focusing on weaving partners into every aspect of the business, Novell can begin to realise its vision to be a preferred channel partner for as many companies as it can. Beetar says along with this focus on partnering with solution providers, the company has had to move from a direct approach, which characterised its business in the past, to an indirect model that embraces and puts partners at the core of it business in all four business focus areas, namely Open Systems, Workgroup, Identity and Security Management and Systems Resource Management. She says making Novell partners more profitable is the first and most important point to stress. “It is the most important thing that we can do,” she says. Secondly, helping partners invest in the growth of their Novell business and increase demand through sales support and pipeline building bolsters trust and provides margin protection, she adds. The third focus area concerns the enablement and facilitation of partner success. “We need to give them the sales and technical training so they can be successful as independent sales agents for Novell,” she says. The fourth, and widest ranging part of the strategy, is to create a fully partnercentric company. Beetar says the changes have also been at global level in which case the parent company rolled out some of the initiatives

COVER SOLUTION

before filtering them to subsidiaries elsewhere on the globe.

Internal restructure Although the global restructure of the company kick started about 18 months ago with the North America region rolling out some of the channel strategies first, SA’s implementation of the new initiatives started in November 2007. Beetar says from a Novell SA perspective, the company has had to restructure its sales arm internally from a generalist approach to an organ that encourages internal sales people to specialise in the four business focus areas. “We had to restructure because the generalist approach didn’t yield any depth for the sales team,” she notes. “What this change means is that internal sales executives will now be trained on the same level as their counterparts at solution provider companies. She says by doing this, Novell is ensuring that it not only develops a competent sales team in-house and at reseller level, but also ensures that account management is equally elevated as you have people who understand each other better in terms of their specialisation. Cobus Burgers, CEO, NetCB Solutions, a Novell systems integration partner, concurs and says the recent changes announced by Novell SA have resulted in far better relationships between Novell and its existing channel partners. “Certainly, from our side, we have seen them engaging with us more frequently to ensure execution of properly planned strategies,” he says. “An immediate example in this regard is its direct support of our ‘Connected over Horizons Road Show 2008’. We now have far more Novell staff that engage with us across its four business units than at any other time.” Beetar says building a successful channel has been “particularly challenging” for Novell, and she admits the company now needs to focus on enabling partners and showing it is committed to thinking about partners first. “It is important to be able to go back to existing partners, new partners and those who have left us, and to be very clear that we’re here to help grow their businesses,” she says. Part of that is about creating ongoing dialogue with partners, and Novell is

preparing to expand communication by cultivating active feedback and offering services like 24x7 technical support and dedicated Web portals to channel partners. “I have not been country manager for a long time, but the feed back I am getting from the partners that I have met is encouraging,” she says. “We need to keep this momentum going to ensure that we are executing and delivering on the feedback in line with the company’s broader channel programme.

Specialisations In a time where economic issues are a growing concern for SMEs and IT spending issues loom in SA just how will Novell reassure its partners it will be able to grow their businesses. Desan Naidoo, sales director at Novell SA, says margin protection and

STORY:

NOVELL

PROVIDERS

had to highlight the importance of specialisation and certification. “This is not an out-of-the-box product hence partners ought to have some consulting skills on board. Vanessa Munnik-Wallace, networks specialist at Business Connexion (BCX), a Novell SA solution provider partner, says the announcement that Novell is reasserting its channel efforts is long overdue. MunnikWallace says partners, new and old, are seeing that Novell is not only committing itself to channel growth but, most importantly, is getting brand awareness out into the open for all in the local channel to see. NetCB’s Burgers agrees and points out that his company’s relationship with Novell started in 2003 and the majority of its business is systems integration for which it mostly uses Novell’s technology as well as other open source solutions, with technology

“Negative industry perceptions based on competitor disinformation is one of the biggest challenges Novell faces in the local channel.” – Cobus Burgers, NetCB Solutions

investment in demand-generation activities in the local channel will keep Novell’s partners in a strong position. “There’s a tremendous amount of field support in helping to build their pipeline,” he says. “Our intention is not just to be as good as our competitors, but to be the best at what we do with our committed channel partners who invest in our technology and solutions.” Naidoo says while margin protection is paramount to Novell’s channel business, he emphasises that partners that specialise and get their staff certified will enjoy higher margin protection from the company than those that don’t specialise. “What we are communicating to our partners is that they don’t have to be generalists,” he says. “Partners are free to pick all the four areas of specialisation or can choose any two specialisation areas they believe will have a direct bearing on growing their Novell business. Naidoo says because the sales cycle for Novell solutions is a long one, the company

that NetCB builds in-house. “We have seen our business grow in excess of 150 per cent year on year,” he says. “Novell gives us that competitive edge to provide business solutions that are quite unique and stand above the rest most of the time.” He adds that although Novell is sometimes a hard sell, as it comes up against the likes of Microsoft. We are seeing this change over time and can only hope that in the long run there will also be changes in the negative perceptions about the company, he says.

Channel programme According to Novell, the new initiatives, rolled out around the globe, include the creation of a team of partner executives that will be assigned to work with top solutions providers in Novell’s PartnerNet programme. Those staffers, analogues to the client executives who manage Novell’s top direct customer accounts, will work with a small portfolio of partners on building

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008 •

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COVER

STORY:

NOVELL SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

the channel partner’s business, with their compensation directly tied to the success of the partners they guide. The vendor has also raised the threshold for the accounts it will serve directly, potentially opening more mid-market deals for channel partners. A direct relationship with Novell now requires at least US $1 million in spending, twice the previous minimum, according to the company. Matthew Lee, Novell SA channel manager says the revised channel programme rewards those partners that have specialised and certified themselves. Lee says the company offers three partner tiers, namely Silver, Gold and Platinum. “We have put in stringent requirements for our Gold and Platinum partners as they don’t have to only be sales and technically competent but have to maintain a certain level of correctly skilled individuals. He also adds that in addition to meeting these certification requirements, Gold and Platinum partners also stand to benefit

aggressive marketing and brand awareness channel campaigns,” she says. In addition, Munnik-Wallace says Novell should recruit and grow the correct and strategically selected partners. “Growing its channel initiatives in the market and focusing on the correct channels should be high on Novell’s agenda. “Novell has achieved so much in the all the business areas it focuses on, yet is reluctant to announce such gains and we would like to see that change going forward,” she says.

Challenges Munnik-Wallace says Novell has to overcome some challenges as it grows its channel business. For starters, Munnik-Wallace says Novell must overcome the bad perception it has in the local solution provider channel. In addition to the negative channel perceptions, Munnik-Wallace singles out a lack of Novell skills and available certified trainers, and the fact that Novell solution sets

“As a Novell partner, we would like to see more from the vendor in terms of a segmented, intensive and aggressive marketing and brand awareness channel campaign.” – Vanessa Munnik-Wallace, BCX

from high margins and that’s where margin protection for their investment in Novell kicks in. “We will be increasing our training and visibility in the sales arena,” he says. BCX’s Munnik-Wallace says BCX has been a Novell partner for two years and in that time there has been intense internal and external marketing around Novell’s solutions. She adds that as a result of this effort, BCX is reaping the benefits of its relationship with Novell. “The partnership has been a mutually beneficial one for both parties,” she says. Munnik-Wallace says she would like to see Novell increase its training initiatives, social responsibility programmes and general channel brand-awareness campaigns. “Certainly, as a Novell partner, we would like to see more from the vendor in terms of segmented, intensive and

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don’t have corresponding courses in SA, are some of the urgent issues the vendor needs to address. NetCB’s Burgers concurs and points out that negative industry perceptions based on competitor disinformation is one of the biggest challenges Novell faces in the local channel. He says despite the fact that Novell gets great scores from industry analysts and walks away with many industry awards year after year, there are still many that do not go and find out the facts about Novell. “This has to change significantly,” he says. Burgers says when partnering with Novell, partners ought to be told upfront that they have to invest in their staff. “You cannot just sign-up and start selling without ensuring that you certify your staff from sales right through to technical skills to be able to achieve results,” he says. “I

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

Cobus Burgers, NetCB Solutions see many Novell partners come and go, and as soon as they realise that it will need some dedicated commitment before they show results, they disappear from the scene very quickly. He adds that NetCB Solutions has developed into one of Novell’s top partners in Africa. “As a Novell Platinum Partner with two specialisations, a Gold Training Partner and a Ready Technology Partner, NetCB has invested in staff training locally and abroad,” he says. Beetar says her team is working around the clock to ensure partner confidence is restored not just by way of speaking but by deed. “We are not just giving lip service to our partners but assisting them to grow their business with us,” she says. Burgers says Novell must continue with its new approach and sustain this momentum. “It will not help to kick this off and then a few months down the line lose all the enthusiasm,” he observes. “We also have to accept that Novell cannot do this alone, which is also one of the reasons that NetCB has managed to build strong relationships with other channel partners to tackle large projects and to ensure that we have faster skills development in the country.”

ANALYSIS: ORACLE SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

Oracle steps up on Accelerate

Vendor boosts application sales in SME space. BY MANDA BANDA

O

AND

RICK WHITING

racle has enlisted 26 distributors and more than 250 new resellers for the VAD Remarketer programme it inaugurated six months ago in an effort to expand sales of its database and middleware products to SME customers. The VAD Remarketer programme allows

“The Oracle Accelerate solutions address the need among mid-size organisations for low-cost, preconfigured applications that are quick to deploy and easy to maintain.” – Ike Ngwena, Oracle SA

resellers to buy Oracle software through participating distributors without having a contractual relationship with Oracle. The automated 1-Click Ordering system allows distributors and resellers to easily place small-volume orders for Oracle products for delivery to customers either electronically or on CDs. The two programs include the Standard Edition and Standard Edition One versions of Oracle’s database and application software, and its business intelligence package. At the same time, Oracle has also stepped on the gas with its Accelerate initiative to boost application sales to small and mid-size businesses. Later this year, Oracle will be ramping up its efforts with the Accelerate initiative and will add a solution-partner loyalty programme to it, offering high-performing channel partners incentives such as training, promotion funds, and sales and marketing resources. Locally, momentum for Oracle Accelerate continues after the release of 49 new Oracle Accelerate partner solutions in the past five months, bringing the total number to 90. The vendor says partners are delivering Oracle Accelerate solutions across 16 industries and 41 industry sub-segments to mid-size businesses in 17 countries.

Oracle Accelerate

Ike Ngwena, Oracle SA

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Ike Ngwena, Oracle SA channel director says the main motivation behind the Oracle Accelerate push is to get a formal engagement model with partners that serve the SME space. Ngwena says the main aim of the Accelerate programme is to increase partner profitability, decrease the sales cycle and increase domain knowledge on Oracle’s applications business within the

ANALYSIS: ORACLE SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

solution provider channel. He adds that the Oracle Accelerate solutions address the need among mid-size organisations for low-cost, preconfigured applications that are quick to deploy and easy to maintain. Ngwena says Oracle Accelerate solutions are delivered by partners who demonstrate a proven history of serving a customer’s specific industry and geography. “In terms of the way the Accelerate programme has been designed, Oracle reviews each Accelerate solution before accepting it into the programme,” he says. “This gives customers confidence that the solutions will be easy to implement and provide a proven methodology and upgrade path.” “With Oracle Accelerate, we believe the

companies have installed ERP and CRM applications from Oracle, SAP or another vendor, the SME market holds the most promise for application sales growth. Finding the right formula for tackling the SME market has proved tricky, although two-thirds of Oracle’s application customers are SMEs, defined by the vendor as companies with annual sales of US$500 million or less. Accelerate is Oracle’s latest effort, replacing the E-Business Suite Special Edition it had been selling for companies with 50 or fewer users. It’s competing with the Business One and All-in-One application sets that its rival SAP markets to SMEs and Microsoft’s Dynamics line of ERP and CRM applications. Under Accelerate, channel partners can

“With Oracle Accelerate, we believe the business opportunities are infinite.” – Sriram Papani, Satyam

business opportunities are infinite. We have leveraged the Oracle E-Business Suite and Oracle’s JD Edwards EnterpriseOne to design 15 industry-focused application bundles across three industries and five countries that will substantially increase the reach and competitive strength of our business,” says Sriram Papani, senior VP and Global Head, Enterprise Application Practice at Satyam Computer Services, an Oracle Accelerate partner. “The support, tools and collateral that Oracle provides mean we can continue to launch new solutions to respond to customer demand for rapid and affordable application deployments.” The vendor says because most large

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pick application modules from Oracle’s E-Business Suite, JD Edwards’, PeopleSoft’s and Siebel’s product lines, and bundle them into solutions for SME customers within some 70 vertical markets. To speed up deployment of these applications, the Accelerate programme also offers “Oracle Business Accelerators”, including rapid prototyping tools and process-workflow links, also tailored for vertical industries. They allow the Accelerate applications to be installed in days compared to weeks or months for enterprise-class applications, says Tony Kender, senior VP of Oracle’s global SME business unit that oversees the Accelerate effort in North America.

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

Partner thumbs-up So far, the Accelerate initiative is getting a thumbs-up from solution providers. Matt Lesseuer, VP of Sales at Terillium, a solution provider partner on the Oracle Accelerate programme, says the initiative creates new opportunities for it to deliver enterprise-level capabilities to mid-size companies that are under-resourced and strained by minimal budgets. “With Oracle Accelerate, we can complete implementations faster, cheaper and more effectively while offering our customers industry-relevant functionality that maps to their unique business processes. The preconfigured application bundles that are part of Oracle Accelerate also mean that customers face minimal business disruptions during the deployment so that they can continue to focus on their core business.” To participate in Accelerate, resellers must demonstrate their ability to deliver solutions to customers in specific industries and geographies, and provide documented evidence and methodology that their products and procedures offer ease of use. Oracle is currently developing performance metrics for solution provider partners for the loyalty programme and defining the appropriate benefits for each level of achievement. According to the database vendor, the loyalty programme is expected to launch sometime in Oracle’s next fiscal year, which begins on 1 June 2008. The Accelerate programme already provides channel partners with marketing campaign assistance, referral fees and inclusion in the Accelerate section of the Oracle PartnerNetwork Solutions Catalogue.

ANALYSIS: HD SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

The HD opportunities for partners It’s all in the right choice. BY KAUNDA CHAMA

W

ith unified communications maintaining its position as one of the major technological breakthroughs of our time, it is only natural that videoconferencing is becoming a more common mode of communication. At the same time, new technologies like high definition (HD) are broadening the range of information communicated through video conferencing to create a valuable communication tool. However, Dan Engel, regional sales manager at Polycom, believes that choosing an appropriate HD vendor is vitally important to maintaining high levels of product quality and customer satisfaction.

grades of resolution available. It is also important that the HD solutions to be deployed are able to take advantage of future improvements or standards. His message to the channel is that it is necessary to find a partner that is willing to spend time learning and understanding customer needs, and is able to provide reliable, high-quality products at affordable prices. Engel comments that the past 12 months have seen HD become a buzz and a lot of hardware vendors have taken full advantage of this, adding that even PDAs have better resolutions that common intermediate frame (CIF) screens.

“We use the ‘webminor’ facility for knowledge transfer and do our training via the web for all our partners across the globe,” – Dan Engel, Polycom According to him, the important criterion to look for with regard to HD solutions is compatibility with other technologies being used while retaining the highest

Dan Engel, Polycom

20 •

He adds that the arrival of HD has brought about a jump in quality and consumer expectations. “HD is nine times bigger than SIF (720p), and is especially suited to telemedicine where high-definition images are needed for more accurate diagnosis,” comments Engel. He notes that although full HD (1080p) is a relatively huge image, in a year’s time a lot of corporate networks around the world will provide the bandwidth and hardware for it. Engel also says that for the EMEA market, bandwidth remains a major issue because for effective videoconferencing using a 720p quality image, the minimum requirement is a 1MG symmetric link. Polycom’s local distributor, Cathea Communications Solutions, supplies videoconferencing solutions ranging from entry-level 480p to full HD conferencing units. “What distributors and resellers need to bear in mind when dealing in this space is that end-users are not just looking for end

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

points, they need a total solution. “A disti or reseller needs to have elements (infrastructure and systems), that are all HD enabled to meet the needs of the end-user. This is the reason Polycom supplies end-points, screens, bridges as well as recording systems. “This makes it an expert distributor in the whole solution, rather than a certain element of it,” he explains. For the reseller wanting to get into this space, Polycom has a certification programme as well as demo facilities through its local distributor. “At Polycom we strongly believe that the channel is a very important link between the vendor and the end-user,” he notes. In addition, Polycom has a local warehouse which takes care of the company’s supplies, swap outs and the stocking of demo equipment. “We will stick with Cathea Communications Systems as the sole distributor because currently the South African market is not big enough for a multiple distribution model,” Engel says. He adds that what is important to Polycom is maintaining decent revenues for its channel partners and at the same time ensuring that they are able to give endusers quality service. Engel says that besides selling solutions through its partners, it also uses its own solutions for communications as well as partner training. “We use the ‘webminor’ facility for knowledge transfer and do our training via the web for all our partners across the globe,” he says. He explains that in the past, the solution was only used to transfer product knowledge, but its success has led to Polycom now using it for specialised training purposes as well as for giving its partners product roadmaps. “Simply selling a company an HD codec is not enough, channel players need to start offering full solutions for them to enjoy the benefits of the technology,” he concludes.

ANALYSIS: RED HAT SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

Red Hat restructures channel programme Vendor stresses partner importance.

L

BY KAUNDA CHAMA ast year open source (Linux) solution vendor Red Hat appointed a new channel director for the EMEA region and this year the company has announced that it is restructuring its channel programme. David Postel, Red Hat’s MEA channel manager says in the interim, the company has overhauled its partner portal which has now been rebranded Partner Centre. “The Partner Centre is open to any company that wants to resell Red Hat open source software and registration is free,” he says. After the initial registration the respective company becomes what Red Hat terms a ‘Ready Partner’. A Ready Partner is entitled to the vendor’s marketing, sales and technical information, to make its sales processes more streamlined and efficient. In addition, the Ready Partner is also given access to Red Hat’s Sales College, an online initiative that was originally designed as the company’s in-house sales tool, but is now available to all its partners. Companies can also decide to further their specialisation as Linux resellers. Once they do this they are eligible to become Red Hat Advanced Business Partners. A Red Hat Advanced Business Partner needs to have at least two Red Hat-certified engineers and two Red Hat-certified sales executives. Meanwhile, when the company acquired J-Boss, it also established an opportunity for a middleware channel. In most countries J-Boss is a licence-free solution. To add to its renewed commitment to channel business, Red Hat is hosting its first partner summit in Spain this year; this will be targeted at its distributors, resellers, system integrators as well as its training partners. Due to the nature of the summit, all the partners that attend will be issued with sales certification in Red Hat.

Asked why Red Hat has chosen to enhance its commitment to the indirect sales model, Postel explains: “We recently realised that the channel is a critical factor in our strategy to get and stay ahead of the competition. There is only so much that our sales force can achieve, a good channel strategy gives us much more scalability.” He adds that working with the channel gives Red Hat a bigger sales as well as technical team. “In markets such as SA and the rest of the southern African region, the channel is even more important because our company does not have an actual physical presence and we rely on the likes of Obsidian,” explains Postel. He says that Red Hat’s new partner strategy has more benefits to offer channel partners and is essentially aimed at improving existing relationships as well as attracting new ones. Postel declines to get into specifics regarding improved earnings but reveals that the company expects an improvement in revenue of 40 per cent year on year. “Our advantage at this time is that Linux is becoming more mainstream and a lot of governments, including the South African one, are also embracing the open source operating system,” he says. An advantage for partners is also that they can become more service oriented because of the subscription model with which Linux is sold, they are able to make money from providing services and support as opposed to only selling products. “The stability of the Linux operating system has also contributed to the success of Red Hat because companies are able to offer guaranteed service level agreements as long as the end customer maintains an active subscription,” he explains.

David Postel, RedHat Linux subscriptions are still renewable annually. They are sold on a single licence per machine basis, depending on the services required and affected by virtualisation. The $349 licence is limited to a server with two CPUs and enjoys basic support, while the $2 499 licence is for advanced platforms with unlimited CPU allowance and enjoys premium support and comes with the vendor’s Cluster and Storage software suites. Although the company makes some substantial income from service and support, a large amount of it through partners, Red Hat says that it makes up to 80 per cent of its income from subscriptions. “Our partners make some good margins on subscriptions but they will make more money from providing service and support, both through consulting and onsite support,” he says. Red Hat Linux is currently distributed though the Linux Warehouse; the company’s advanced business partners are Aptronix, Globieform and Obsidian, with TSi Systems as the J-Boss system integrator and Obsidian, Sybase and Torque IT as its training partners.

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ANALYSIS: LENOVO SOLUTION

PROVIDERS

Lenovo takes comsumer range to another level Best engineered computers to the market. BY DUDU SHABA

T

he launch of Lenovo’s new line of consumer notebook and desktop PCs - the IdeaPad notebooks and IdeaCentre desktops - will see the company growing its brand and resellers making good profits. This is according to Gareth Hansford, VP, EMEA Consumer Business, Lenovo. He says that Lenovo will work hand in hand with its distributor in the channel, Tarsus, as well as Incredible Connection to engage the market. “The machines that include unique features such as facial recognition, Dolby home theatre surround sound and dedicated gaming controls will draw the attention of consumers and see resellers profit,” he says. Hansford adds that the product launch goes together with its “New Ideas” marketing

He adds that the new PCs will also be offered in the US, France, Russia, India, Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, China, the Philippines and Singapore. The newly launched desktops PCs and notebooks are designed to simplify complicated IT systems. Lenovo has a customer support line to help customers who need more information on the products. “The PCs are unique and we have designed them according to what consumers always take into account. They want good things and they always consider good designs,” he says Hansford says that the only challenge left for Lenovo is to communicate the Gareth Hansford, Lenovo

“The machines that include unique features such as facial recognition, Dolby home theatre surround sound and dedicated gaming controls will draw the attention of consumers and see resellers profit.” – Gareth Hansford, Lenovo.

campaign that introduces consumers worldwide to the latest PCs and the company. The campaign will illustrate the power of individual ideas and how the Idea brand of PCs helps people to capture and transform those ideas. “The campaign will include taking our products to consumers to raise awareness, this will also include Web-based promotions, merchandising, point-of-sale as well as traditional media advertising,” he explains.

22 •

message strategically to consumers. He points out that towards mid-year, Lenovo will release an extensive range of PCs targeted at consumers. David Hirsch, merchandise director, Incredible Connection, a Lenovo retail partner in SA, says that the launch of Lenovo’s new line of consumer notebooks and desktop PCs is a good step for Incredible Connection to differentiate itself from its competitors. “When we launch new brands in our

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

business, we give it serious consideration,” he says. Hirsch says although Lenovo is a relatively unknown brand in SA, the unique features such as facial recognition will compensate for brand recognition. In terms of making profit, Hirsch says that Incredible Connection will use different ways of promoting and marketing the range. “We will not put anything on our shelves that will not make profit for us. We are also going to make sure that we promote and advertise the new features of these PCs and engage in a marketing campaign with Lenovo,” he says. He adds that in store, the company will make sure that its staff members are efficiently trained on the products. “We do not want to replace Acer with Lenovo, we want to attract new customers,” he concludes.

NETWORKING

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Networking

increases growth and value Networking changes the way we live, play and do business.

T

BY DUDU SHABA he network is the most cost-effective platform companies can use to integrate complex interactions for increased value and growth. It is no longer just the plumbing or a bandwidth enabler. Instead, it is emerging as a secure platform for delivering the customised experiences that consumers expect, whether it is delivering new services as a carrier, boosting productivity for businesses of any size or consumers looking for real-time, personalised entertainment and services. For organisations to realise the full bene-

“The modern business has to respond to a world where information just-in-time must change to information in real-time.” – Raymond Janse van Rensburg, Cisco.

fit of their networks, Raymond Janse van Rensburg, senior systems engineer manager, Cisco, says they need to move away from the siloed approach of creating standalone applications which support individual functions. He adds that the modern business has to respond to a world where information just-in-time must change to information in real-time. “More important than speed is that the right information is delivered to the right person at the right time. This can only be achieved by building intelligence deep into the corporate network infrastructure. While many networks are primarily focused on transporting data from A to B, an intelligent network focuses on making that data support critical business processes by intelligently identifying the right applications, services and data that need to be connected,” he says.

At home

Raymond Janse van Rensburg, Cisco

Home networking is definitely gaining popularity, this is according to Pierre Holtzhausen, networking specialist,

Drive Control Corporation. He says this is driven by the availability of multimedia over the Web. “We are seeing an uptake in multimedia devices that feature network hard drives with video and audio output. Consumers can plug the drive into their sound/video system and watch movies that are streamed from the Internet or stored on their hard drive. This is encouraging the adoption of small networks in home environments by users who want to ensure that more than one user is able to access content, share photos and have access to the Internet at a time,” he says. “Security too is driving the uptake of the home network. For example, IP cameras can be installed for security purposes. These are triggered by ‘events’ and the images are stored on a hard drive,” he adds. “We’ve seen massive sales of ADSL routers and with the current version of Windows plus the prevalence of the Internet, most home users have become

NETWORKING SOLUTION

aware of networking within their homes,” says Neil Watson, MD, Digital Planet.

What’s hot? According to Holtzhausen, convergence has turned out to be a buzz word in the networking arena. “Convergence is the current and next big thing in networking. Adoption is increasing in SA and is driving technologies that prioritise video or voice over data, minimising latency. This is further compelling vendors of hardware devices, such as routers and switches, to incorporate additional ‘intelligence’ such as Quality of Service (QoS) as well as the introduction of bandwidth optimisation and bandwidth control products,” he says. According to Watson, wireless networking remains the main growth area. “Almost every laptop has a wireless network card and as people have become more connected, the demand for wireless networking has exploded. Almost every coffee shop seems to have a wireless hotspot,” he comments. Andy Robb, chief technology officer,

PROVIDERS

due to the interference of external agents,” he explains. “Virtualisation is a significant step towards reducing the amount of hardware on the network and the management overheads and costs required to support the devices. The benefits of virtualisation include flexibility in terms of network design and expansion, and an ability to further automate the networking environment,” he says.

SMEs in the space Uwe Brandkamp, Networks Business Unit director at Comztek, says that SMEs should look for networking devices that are costeffective, easy to install and configure, and that will also provide only the functionality needed by them. In addition, he says this will ensure they do not to pay for unnecessary functionality and still be able to address their business’ needs. Holtzhausen adds that they also need to understand the type of traffic and its movement to establish whether an upgrade to gigabit is necessary. “A managed solution is necessary to

“Convergence is the current and next big thing in networking. Adoption is increasing in SA and is driving technologies that prioritise video or voice over data, minimising latency.” – Pierre Holtzhausen, Drive Control Corporation.

Duxbury Networking, says in networking, there are two burning issues – security and virtualisation. “With the increasing amounts of malware in circulation today, the security of the network and its ability to protect itself through sophisticated counter measures is vital. The three most important security considerations are unauthorised access to the network, interception of internal transmissions by outside parties and compromised data

FEATURE

obtain this view, allowing businesses to measure their traffic and understand its flow,” he comments. According to Robb, SoHo users are now also demanding SME-class infrastructures, while enterprise customers are looking for carrier-class functionality without an increase in price. “In the home, the major driver of change has been the widespread adoption of PCs linked to entertainment systems. In the enterprise the network is evolving

Pierre Holtzhausen, DCC Corporation to accommodate and strengthen support for new and more sophisticated business process rules. These include on-demand integration of multiple applications as well as the aggregation of on-demand and internal services to deliver new capabilities and increase business value.

Wireless LAN Organisations face many challenges when choosing a wireless LAN setup. Lorna Hardie, business uinit manager, ProCurve Networking by HP says that many corporates are reluctant to entrust their sensitive information to WLANS, mainly because of concerns surrounding the security of their data protection, user authentication and unauthorised intrusions. “Added to this is the often contradictory information about the rapidly developing WLAN market, which is flooded by products and differing WLAN technologies, along with architecture such as fat and thin access points. Another area of concern is navigating the confusing marketplace of numerous vendors, many of whom are not supported by trusted brands, offering warranties and full back-up services,” she remarks. > p36

Sell the environment – it’s profitable and the right thing to do S

outh Africa’s current (no pun intended!) electricity crisis is actually a powerful business opportunity – because it’s forcing organisations to look for ways to reduce their electricity usage not just for the sake of the economy but, in very practical terms, to minimise their dependence on an extremely erratic supply of electricity. In other words, if you can help organisations reduce their business risk by reducing their power requirements, then you can significantly increase your own revenue streams. You would have an irresistible value proposition.

“3Com is committed to individual designs with lower power requirements as well as the eventual reduction of all power needed to run 3Com Secure Converged Networks.” And, you would have the additional satisfaction of knowing that simply by growing your own business you’re contributing directly to the overall health of the planet. That doesn’t happen too often. Where, though, are you going to find the kind of products that really do make an environmental difference – considering that IT equipment, consumer electronics, and telephony consume power at the rate of at least 250 TeraWatt hours (TWhr) per year worldwide? That’s the equivalent of over 180 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) or 35 million cars or US $20 billion per

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year. About half is accounted for by IT equipment - PCs, displays, printers, servers, and networks. In other words, you’re working in an energy intensive industry and, while most of the vendors are working on environmentally-friendly strategies, there are not yet a lot of products around that can drop energy usage by more than a few percentage points. 3Com, the global networking vendor, has a new generation of switches that offer a power saving of up to 78% over their predecessors while actually increasing an organisation’s network functionality. “That’s a significant saving when you consider that, today, just over 1% of the total consumption of commercial building electricity results from the use of networking equipment,” says Tracy Lawler, 3Com SA distribution and channel manager. “That’s because the trend towards converging previously separate data, voice, and security networks – with computers, phones, and other applications running over a single protocol and from a single platform – places increasing demands on a network. Traffic becomes more complex and diverse, so network performance must improve. That creates a need for better security and network control – and it becomes increasingly critical for the network to remain highly available and resilient. All of which takes its toll on electricity consumption.

“As a network provider, we’ve taken very seriously our responsibility for reducing power consumption via the network and have taken steps at all levels of the network to make that happen.” For starters, 3Com focused on switches, which are the main driver for networking power. Since 2005, it has modified all its managed stackable switching products – reducing their power consumption by as much as 78%. This lessens the heat generated by the system, and in turn, the cooling in wiring closets and data centers needed to control the heat. The savings created in this way directly offset electricity operating costs. As the charts below indicate, a move to these switches in a typical network – 100 Ethernet switches (approximately 2,000 networked nodes) that are never turned off at night or put into sleep mode - would not only produce a staggering 89.2W savings per switch, but also enhance functionality and throughput performance. The savings alone would correspond to all of the following: 









77,890 kWh – the equivalent of lighting 62 homes for a year 78% or US $5,530 per year on electricity costs Reduction, by 56 tons, of CO2 entering the atmosphere Removal of 10 cars for a year from roadways Planting 15 acres of trees.

3Com has also migrated its product designs to the latest 90nm (nanonmetre) silicon processor technology to provide the most advanced functionality without increasing power usage. Innovations in reducing leakage current enable these processors to support a 35% increase in speed counter-balanced by a 60% reduction in active power needs. “A network is a continuum,” Lawler says. “So you have to make every single component of it play a positive environmental role. “Which is why, for instance, we’ve designed more efficient power supplies. An

Tracy Lawler, 3Com average computer wastes approximately 30-40% of the electrical power it consumes. Much of this energy is simply converted into heat, requiring larger fans to cool the system. 3Com switches use power supplies with greater than 80% efficiency under full load, and they also support DC connections to dedicated power racks. “Also, many of our systems are designed to detect when the fans need to run at lower speeds, eliminating the use of power for unnecessary cooling. We’ve also engineered fanless products. “And, we’ve made a difference to Power over Ethernet (PoE) functionality by allowing customers to set maximum power output based on what is connected to a port. We also provide intuitive management of the total power budget so that no power is wasted. “In other words, 3Com is committed to individual designs with lower power requirements as well as the eventual reduction of all power needed to run 3Com Secure Converged Networks.”

3Com spearheads some of the industry’s efforts in this direction, including the new Energy Efficient Ethernet standard. In addition, it is championing multi-vendor operability as the best path for organisations to access their network’s full power efficiency, cost-effectiveness and flexibility. And, by tightly integrating applications and services within the network infrastructure, 3Com OSN enables unparalleled flexibility, visibility and control of network traffic and application performance as well as the optimum use of network power.

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>> p33

Hardie, believes that most corporates are not well informed about their WLAN set-ups. “WLANs have, for the most part, not operated in union with wired networks, and corporates have been left to their own devices as they often purchase a WLAN and a wired LAN as two separate tracks, even though they can and should work in tandem with each other. With the continuing trend towards mobile workforces, she says that an increasing number of organisations are beginning to rely on their WLANs even though they have wired LANs, and are starting to be more particular about security, ease of deployment, session persistence, quality of service and, most importantly, ease of management. She says that one of the solutions to these challenges would be a product that offers a comprehensive family of wireless offerings, with solutions for both standalone and coordinated access points under

a framework that is designed to best meet network infrastructure needs today and in the future. Hardie says that these will push intelligence to the edge of the network, where users connect. “Today’s organisations need an approach to network infrastructure that can significantly boost their ability to compete effectively in the face of rapid change. These networks need to be adaptive to users, applications and organisations, fortifying security, increasing productivity and reducing complexity across the organisation,” says Hardie. Of the two technologies, WiFi and WiMax, Robb says that WiMax has been the slower in terms of adoption. “WiFi is increasingly being adopted to improve the interoperability of wireless networks, particularly those based on the latest 802.11n standard. For example, the latest ADSL modems are WiFi based. Common applications for WiFi include

“Today’s organisations need an approach to their network

sultative approach whereby an analysis of the network is conducted. “The results must be reviewed and a solution/design based on this. Understanding the network is more of an imperative than simply implementing a product,” he says.

Market leaders According to Robb, Netgear, a company that has focused on technologically advanced, branded networking products since 1996, is a market leader in the provision of innovative networking solutions for small businesses and homes. Its product portfolio consists of a wide range of networking products essential to the development of a secure wireless home or home office network. According to Brandkamp the market leaders would be the non-traditional network vendors that include companies such as Linksys, D-Link, Netgear and Belkin. “In the digital home the equipment needs to be simple to install and configure to enable home users to do this by themselves,” he comments.

infrastructure that can significantly boost their ability to compete effectively in the face of rapid change.” – Lorna Hardie, ProCurve Networking by HP.

Internet and VoIP phone access gaming, and network connectivity for consumer electronics such as TV sets, DVD players and digital cameras,” he says. “WiFi is ubiquitous. Everyone and their mom has some sort of WiFi device. WiMax is still new, not well understood and not big in the market yet,” Watson comments.

Skills set needed

Lorna Hardie, ProCurve Networking by HP

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Robb says that training is key to unlocking the potential of solution providers and their ability to provide appropriate networking solutions. “More significantly, certification on specific products and components is necessary for a complete understanding of new and emerging technologies,” he says. Rather than focusing on the skills to implement networking solutions, Holtzhausen believes that it is best for solution providers to look toward a more con-

CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

Looking ahead Robb says that the future of networking will be characterised by increasing sophistication based on technologies such as virtualisation which will enhance efficiencies, drive down costs and support broad-based security initiatives. He adds that virtualisation will also fuel developments in multi-tenanting, which is defined as the support by software on-demand applications of large numbers of organisations all sharing the same software infrastructure. “Future networks will also support greater use of shared services, reuse of services, improved security through the segmentation of processes and data used by these services as well as more powerful management and monitoring of services,” he predicts. “All devices will be connected all the time. Everything from your TV, to your notebook, to your iPod will always have access to Internet resources and everywhere you roam there will be access via these devices,” he concludes.

NOTEBOOKS

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Future is mobile Notebooks balance people’s lives.

T

BY DUDU SHABA

he local notebook segment is expected to outpace the growth of the desktop market in 2008 as users continue to be drawn to mobility, as this technology enables them to be more productive away from their desks. That’s according to Graham Braum, commercial manager at Acer SA.

“The demand for mobile computing will increase and play a vital role during 2010 as the need for connectivity and staying in touch with information and people will become even more important at an event such as the FIFA World Cup.” – Nadia Hufkie, HP.

He says that improvements in battery life as well as a proliferation of mobile networks, including cellular, wireless broadband and Wi-Fi have made it easy for notebook end-users to be productive wherever they are. “Consumers and professional users from small and large businesses alike are attracted to the benefits of mobile access to the Internet, email and corporate applications from nearly anywhere in the world,” he says. “The notebook segment has performed well against the backdrop of a relatively flat computer market in SA. We’ve seen notebook unit shipments rise, thanks to aggressive retail promotions and a fall in prices due to a stronger rand,” he adds. Nadia Hufkie, PSG product manager Desktop and iPAQs at HP, says that consumers are looking for stylish notebooks that blend with their other consumer electronics. “There is a major emphasis on multimedia functionality as consumers want to be able

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CRN SOUTHERN AFRICA • FEBRUARY 2008

Nadia Hufkie, HP to watch movies, listen to music and play games on their mobile device,” she says. Neil Watson, MD, Digital Planet, a reseller company, is also of the view that the impact of notebooks on modern living has been immense. “The level of connectivity through the combination of Wi-fi and notebooks has skyrocketed to the point where people can finally work from anywhere. Whether you’re in your hotel room in Mauritius or at the airport in Frankfurt, you are always connected,” he comments.

Notebook trends According to Watson, the entry-level notebooks are flying out the door as people who used to buy PCs are being priced into the market with some really cost-effective offerings from the top brands. “Features such as face and fingerprint recognition are being thrown into the mix to try to differentiate the notebooks. Design and brand will become even more important and it will be vital to look after aesthetics as much as technical specifications. PC sales on our retail sites have been dropping for years. In the next couple of years, we think PCs will become irrelevant for us,” comments Watson. While it is clear that thin, lightweight

NOTEBOOKS

FEATURE

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solutions will dominate the broad consumer notebook market, Gary Naidoo, deputy MD at Sahara.says that service providers and resellers will also not miss the opportunity to introduce a number of other key features that impact user experience. “Clearly, the increase in speed, development in terms of size, clarity and resolution of monitors as well as increased capacity of hard disk drives, are all contributing to the overall functionality and use of the product. The notebook now appeals to mobile workers, gamers, students and others. Factors like extended battery life, DVD writers and rewriters, additional ports, 3G and processing power are all taken into consideration,” he says. Naidoo adds that buying trends, especially among first-time investors, is to go for higher capacity specification notebooks that facilitate high-volume data storage and

“Buying trends, especially among first-time investors, is to go for higher capacity specification notebooks that facilitate high-volume data storage and multimedia applications.” – Gary Naidoo, Sahara.

Gary Naidoo, Sahara

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multimedia applications. He goes on to say that more emphasis will be placed on processor speeds, and that major international technology vendor companies will maintain their efforts to establish and further entrench the move to multi-core computer processing. “There is likely to be more prominence placed on connectivity and influential technologies such as VoIP, HSDPA, and a surge in practical aspects and convenience of products in this space, such as portability, weight and design. The focus will be on wireless applications, access to wireless technology and security,” he comments. According to Dirk Booysen, Toshiba product manager, Drive Control Corporation, notebook manufacturers will focus on providing high-definition technology as part of their offering. In addition, he says that the 3G phenomenon is driving notebook manufacturers to accommodate internal 3G SIM cards, making it easier and more convenient to connect. “This means there is no external plug in.

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For example, Toshiba’s R500 11K Portege model will include this feature. Furthermore, built-in microphones and webcams are becoming increasingly popular for VoIP. Improved viewing is also achieved with enhanced technology. For example, Toshiba’s notebooks now feature Toshiba TruBrite, which delivers a crystalclear display. This also gives consumers using their notebooks for entertainment an enhanced DVD movie-viewing experience,” he explains. Braum says that next-generation optical disc formats such as HD DVD and Blu-Ray will become more common in notebooks, offering a massive jump in optical disc storage space. “LCD screens with higher definition formats will also start to appear in notebooks. Graphics cards with 512MB of dedicated GDDR3 VRAM will also become more readily available,” he adds.

What’s new Lenovo has introduced a trio of its IdeaPad notebooks, the IdeaPad Y510,Y710 and U110. According to Rashid Wally, Country General Manager, Lenovo, SA, the Y510 is available now, with the Y710 and U110 models following later in the year. “These notebooks, powered by Intel Centrino processor technology, combine cutting-edge and easy-to-use technologies such as facial recognition, Dolby Home Theatre surround sound and dedicated gaming controls,” he says. He goes on to explain that these notebooks have frameless screens, touch-sensitive control surfaces and other unique textures. “Our ThinkPad notebooks are wellknown around the world as the best engineered computers for business, quality, reliability and thoughtful design. We’re now bringing Lenovo’s expertise in design and engineering to consumers with our Idea-branded PCs. We are confident we will grow our consumer business by blending innovative technologies like facial recognition with stylish designs to enhance the way people use technology in their personal lives,” says Wally. According to Wally, these new PCs will be

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offered in many countries, including SA, the US, France, Russia, India, Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, China, the Philippines and Singapore.

Margins According to Booysen, notebooks generally attract very low profit margins. He believes that bundling is the only means for distributors and resellers to increase their margins. “For example, a notebook could be bundled with a camera or printer and consumables. This allows distributors and resellers alike to increase their margins.” he remarks. Watson concurs. “Notebooks themselves have very thin margins. The only way to make good percentage margin is to bundle them with other higher margin products such as cases and software,” he says. Braum’s recommendation to resellers is that try to enjoy better margins by selling higher-end products offering new technolo-

“Improvements in battery life as well as a proliferation of mobile networks, including cellular, wireless broadband and Wi-Fi networks have made it easy for notebook end-users to be productive wherever they are.” – Graham Braum, Acer. gies such as Blu-Ray/HD-DVD and by offering solutions that bundle software and connectivity with hardware.

Intel and AMD processors While it is in the interest of notebook vendors to incorporate the latest processor technology in their products. Booysen says that vendors are striving to work closely with processor manufacturers to ensure that end-users have the latest technology available to them. “Processor manufacturers phase out certain processor technologies which forces notebook vendors to look towards the newer models and technologies. However, consumers do get confused with new processor models. For example, emphasis is now being placed on energy efficiency which might compromise performance but extends the life of the notebook’s battery. This needs to be communicated by notebook sales people,” he says.

Market Gurus “On our sites, we believe that HP, Acer,

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Graham Braum, Acer.

Toshiba and Lenovo are leading the way ” says Watson. According to Braum, Acer is the second largest notebook vendor in SA and in the world. “The notebook segment has performed well against the backdrop of a relatively flat computer market in SA. We’ve seen notebook unit shipments rise, thanks to aggressive retail promotions and a fall in prices due to a stronger rand,” he says. “As per the preliminary IDC Q3 2007 data, HP is number 1with 32.4 per cent market share, Acer number 2 with 19.7 per cent, Sahara number 3 with 10.6 per cent and Dell number 4 with 9.3 per cent,” he comments.

Anticipation When looking at global trends, Hufkie says that mobility will continue to grow, she adds that the introduction of new wireless trends like WiMax, confirm her statement. “The demand for mobile computing will increase and play a vital role during 2010 as the need for connectivity and staying in touch with information and people will become even more important at an event such as the FIFA World Cup,” she says. According to Naidoo, the anticipated release of Microsoft’s SP1 during the first quarter of 2008 is likely to push up notebook sales. “Consumers should also anticipate greater impact of aspects such as green computing, sleek and sophisticated design and multimedia solutions,” he says.

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Pushing

it to the max

End-users poised to gain from memory and processor advancements. BY STANLEY CHISHALA

A

s the system builder channel and gaming sector continue to champion the move towards ever increasing memory and processor speeds, selecting components that suit one’s needs has become a challenge. Industry experts expect the continued decline in memory and CPU prices to encourage consumers to adopt and use the latest memory chipsets. This, coupled with Microsoft’s new operating system Windows Vista, which is a memory intense OS, has again highlighted the opportunities that lie in the memory market. The memory and processor market

continues to be aggressive in terms of pricing and the technology that is being developed. Ultimately, the overall winner is the end-user as they benefit from the wider choice of offerings that are relatively cheaper.

What’s hot? Kobus de Beer, category lead at Axiz, says that as developers continue trying to outdo each other, the end-user will emerge the ultimate winner – getting the latest technology offerings for less. De Beer says the latest 45nm processor from Intel is one of the in things. “The distance between their tran-resistors > p46

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is now that much closer (45nm as opposed to 65nm), and they also have between 6MB on Core 2 Duo and 12MB on Core 2 Quad of level 2 cache – up on the 4MB and 8MB available previously,” he says. He says that another thing system builders and developers need to look out for is Intel’s new dual-core Celeron. It’s ideally priced for the entry- level market. “I anticipate it’s going to compete quite aggressively with the previous single-core Celerons – really boosting the market in this regard,” he says. >> p44

“SA presents system builders with great opportunities across the board, starting with low-cost PC opportunities using technologies such as Windows Vista Starter Edition and Office Prepaid.” – Colin Erasmus, Microsoft

Colin Erasmus, Windows Client Business Group Lead at Microsoft SA, concurs and says certain applications for both the desktop and the server, such as Virtual PC and Server 2008 HyperVisor, take advantage of enhanced processor technology like dual- and quad-core processor architecture. Erasmus says Intel and AMD now also include virtualisation technology in their chips, which addresses virtualisation more efficiently on the desktop. “From a memory perspective, DDR2 667MHz 128x8 DRAM ICs are at a real low, giving customers the ability to ensure their PC has really large DRAM capacity at time of purchase,” he says. “This dramatically increases PC performance to ensure the user has a free flowing, flawless experience with Microsoft Vista. Main board manufacturers continue to drive GPU to Northbridge controller which continues to lower the cost of main boards.” He says vendors like Intel also now dynamically addressing the share memory between PC and the onboard GPU, making more memory available to applications when needed and then being able to switch to more memory available for GPU applications when needed.

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Early adopters Gamers are always the first adopters of new technology – they’re the users who get the new processors first, and push them to the maximum. They’ll continue driving the processor market well into the future; something all end-users ultimately benefit from. Gamers and power users are the real benchmark for processor vendors when it comes to gauging if their product has satisfied performance demands. De Beer says the past 12 months have been tough for resellers in the local channel. This, he says, is mainly due to the processor changes seen during this time – impacting directly on distributors as well. “When new platforms launch with higher frontside bus speeds or different architectures, new chipset motherboards might be required to run the processors,” he says. “This is frustrating, especially if system builders have standardised on a particular motherboard.” De Beer explains that Axiz has tried its best to accommodate the rapid change in the past 12 months to assist resellers to plan ahead. “My advice to resellers is to keep in close touch with distributors to ensure they get accurate information to relay to their customers,” he says. Erasmus agrees and says SA presents system builders with great opportunities across the board, starting with low-cost PC opportunities, by making use of technologies such as Windows Vista Starter Edition and Office Prepaid. He adds that at the top end of the market (development of new processor and memory technologies), Microsoft recently introduced Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1), that supports new types of technologies. “SP1 helps application and game developers to make more complete use of the latest improvements in graphics hardware by adding support Direct3D 10.1, which extends the Direct3D API to support new hardware features – another example of software developments to support some of the latest technology trends,” he says. “Technology such as Media Centre also allows system builders to build top-of-therange machines using the latest technologies and open other sales opportunities.” Erasmus says system builders now have the ability to attach Microsoft software to machines at point of purchase, thus giving

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them more sales opportunities. “We have also recently introduced technologies such as Windows Live and Home Server as additional value adds that system builders can sell to their customers to help them sustain business by offering services rather than just software,” he says.

Processor performance Axiz’s De Beer believes the processor war will never end. He says AMD is in the process of launching its new Phenom processors, which will compete with Intel’s Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quads. “Each of these companies drives the other’s innovation and we can expect to see both of them continuing to generate new ideas and technologies well into the future, with the consumer emerging the ultimate winner,” he says. “We all have a lot to look forward to in this space; both of these companies will ensure that we have all the latest technology at our fingertips. De Beer adds that Intel’s main drive this year will be its Wolfdale and York field 45nm platforms, with Dual and Quad Core remaining a strong focus. He also expects to see the introduction of new chipsets, with DDR3 memory platforms already having arrived.

Hardware platforms Some of the emerging technologies include Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) that defines a new model for the interface between PC operating systems and platform firmware. Erasmus says the interface consists of data tables that contain platform-related information, plus boot and runtime service calls that are available to the OS and its loader. He adds that together, these provide a standard environment for booting an OS and running pre-boot applications. “This is a relatively new technology, although we have already seen PCs ship into the market with this technology. SP1 for Vista will now include support for this technology,” he says. Erasmus says one other technology that has recently been brought to light is ExFAT, which is the next generation FAT file system. He explains ExFAT includes improvements to better support high-capacity storage. In addition, improving on previous FAT file

Kobus de Beer,Axiz systems, ExFAT includes provisions for future file system extensions; SP1 for Vista also

“As developers continue trying to outdo each other, the end-user will emerge the ultimate winner – getting the latest technology offerings for less.” – Kobus de Beer, Axiz

now supports ExFAT. Essentially, ExFAT is going to provide support for the new ultralow-cost wave that is starting to hit globally, which includes new laptop units that are solid state and make use of flash devices as hard drives. Following the release of Windows Vista and Office 2007 in January last year, which cause quite a stir, Microsoft has moved quickly to allay any negative sentiments regarding the new OS and the intense hardware requirements. With the release of SP1, the channel is eagerly waiting to see if desktop PC and notebook sales pick up. For now, end-users are reaping the reward from increased processor performance while the price continues to come down.

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PARTING: SHOTS

DILBERT

www.dilbert.com

S n a pshot Gary Broomberg Company: MicroStrategy Position: Country manager Age: 46 Best personal achivement: Maintaining a lifestyle balance between family and work Management style: Encourage a democratic environment, however can be autocratic if required Most admired company: Apple Most admired executives: Raymond Ackerman Best IT product: Laptop Most pressing local business issues: Load sharing Key to success: Open and direct communication Where do you live: Lyndhurst Favourite car: Range Rover Your car: Land Rover Discovery 3 Favourite author: Con Iggulden Birthplace: Cape Town Hobbies/sports: Motocross, archery and boating Favourite periodical: Lies and dishonesty

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by Scott Adams