Microscope News

• 17 May 2013 Ofcom stresses importance of decent broadband

  An Ofcom report into the availability of communications has stressed the point that UK firms will miss out if broadband speeds do not improve

• NHS records investment could spur infrastructure spend

  Plans by the government to spend millions on electronic patient records could spur some infrastructure spending

• Dell profits slide as ownership battle rages on

  The future ownership of Dell might be uncertain but in the present the firm continues to struggle as the bleak PC market takes it toll on its numbers

• Computacenter backs the Cloud Industry Forum

  Computacenter has signed up to the values and aims of the Cloud Industry Forum

• Apple Stores get the thumbs up from shoppers

  Apple has come top of the charts with high street shoppers according to the latest Which? survey of who is doing well in the retail market

• 16 May 2013 NetSuite plans channel investment, consolidation

  At SuiteWorld 2013 in California, NetSuite has expanded on its European growth plans but says some unproductive resellers may fall by the wayside

• Demise of competitors bolsters Dixons

  The exit from the electrical retail market of Comet was one of the contributing factors that helped Dixons deliver a strong set of numbers for its fiscal year

• Corporate websites generating leads for SMEs

  Internet specialist Fasthosts has revealed that SMEs are generating sales leads from their websites

• Corel finds consumers like to keep it shrink-wrapped

  Corel has discovered that consumers still want to buy their software rather than stream it from the cloud

• Colt launches cloud storage service

  Colt has taken the wraps off a cloud storage service that resellers can offer to customers looking to take advantage of putting their data into a hosted environment

• 15 May 2013 Xerox partner XACT expands southern presence

  MPS specialist opens London office to target more sales in the Southeast

• Veeam aims to rekindle channel spark

  Veeam is looking to strengthen its channel and encourage more to embrace cloud storage solutions

• Toshiba aims to spark SME spending with PC scrappage scheme

  Toshiba is hoping that resellers will have some luck getting customers to part with their desktops as a result of an SME focused scrappage scheme

• Strong performance at Logicalis boosts Datatec

  A decent performance by Logicalis helped Datatec increase revenues although weak conditions hit Westcon in the second half of the Group's fiscal year

• Northamber warns turnaround will take time

  Northamber has issued a trading update warning that the transition from high volume and low margins to a higher margin business will take time

• Microsoft reveals free Windows 8.1 upgrade

  Microsoft will make the upgrade to Windows 8 free to those users that have already invested in its latest operating system

• IDC cuts global IT spending expectations

  IDC has cut its forecast for growth in IT spending as the ongoing problems in the global economy continue to take their toll

• Embotics brings in Zycko after dropping Avnet

  Virtualisation and cloud specialist Embotics has signed up Zycko to handle its products after taking the decision to part company with Avnet

• Cisco financials better than expected

  Networking bellwether beats Wall Street estimates in Q3 as sales and profits both rise

• 14 May 2013 Tablet sales boost SerCom numbers

  The full year results from SerCom parent the DCC Group indicate that the growth in mobile devices has helped the IT operation increase profits

• NetSuite enhances SDN app dev programme, targets more partner collaboration

  Cloud financial and ERP specialist launches new certification for its growing network of app developer and ISV partners and encourages resellers to forge links with them

• Forrester finds channel lukewarm over managed services

  Research from analyst house Forrester has indicated that the vast majority of resellers are yet to make any move to adopt a managed services model

• FAST calls for more IP protection

  The Federation Against Software Theft has called on the government to do more to protect right holders of intellectual property

• Azlan inks distribution deal with EMC

  Azlan has been signed by EMC with a brief to grow the SME and mid-market for the storage vendor

• 13 May 2013 PPM market continues to grow aided by tough times

  The project and portfolio management software market continued to grow last year as tough economic times encouraged users to use the technology to drive growth

• Microgen starts strategic review

  Financial services specialist Microgen has announced a strategic review which could see it break up the current structure or bolster it with acquisitions

• MicroScope's top stories, week ending 10 May 2013

  Our regular look back at the most important ICT channel stories from the past seven days, as selected by MicroScope readers

• Dell launches online solutions calculator, adds discount fund

  Dell will make $5m worth of discounts available to partners to mark latest programme launch

• Dell board asks Icahn to show them the money

  The latest twist in the ongoing battle for control of Dell has seen the PC maker's board ask questions of financing of bidder Carl Icahn

• CyberPower chooses Ingram as UK partner

  UPS specialist CyberPower has chosen Ingram as its UK distributor as it looks to break into the market

• Avaya simplifies pricing with One Source

  Avaya has taken steps to speed up pricing and quotes that resellers can offer customers with its One Source initiative

• 10 May 2013 Two vendor signings expand Hammer portfolio

  Quanta and Promise Technology join storage VAD’s line-up, bringing new OEM and vertical options to the channel

• Mobile growth driving demand for high-end screens

  The latest research from Context has shown that the demand for greater connectivity is driving the demand for monitors with USB options

• Microsoft confirms Windows 8 upgrade preview in June

  Microsoft has revealed that the upgrade to Windows 8, codenamed Blue, will be made available for public preview next month

• Customers investing in IT for growth not to cut costs

  Users are looking to invest in technology to drive growth rather than cutting costs according to the latest IT Index from Pearlfinders

• 09 May 2013 Redstation datacentres to deploy Virgin 100Gbps network

  Datacentre specialist claims UK first following new agreement with Virgin Media Business

• NetSuite appoints Daffern as president of EMEA operations

  Sales and business ops to be purview of latest appointment at NetSuite

• CIF cements expansion with new senior appointments

  Cloud body appoints Richard Sykes and Alex Hilton as Andy Burton steps back from day-to-day management

• Avnet TS, purechannelapps reflect on social success

  As the first anniversary of its socialondemand initiative nears, Avnet says it has generated substantial social media traffic for its partners

• 08 May 2013 Promethean revenues drop as market remains challenging

  Education market specialist Promethean World has reported a drop in first quarter revenues as the market continues to be challenging.

• Microsoft prepares for Windows 8 u-turn with Blue

  Microsoft has indicated that a major upgrade to Windows 8 is in the works raising some expectations that it will reintroduce some of the traditional functionality into the OS

• Imago swoops on rival Touchline

  Distributor acquisition creates new force in European video-conferencing market

• EMC chucks out Velocity partner programme

  Barely three months after a major series of enhancements, EMC is throwing out its Velocity programme and starting over with a clean slate

• CA takes $150m hit to pay for rebalancing

  CA Technologies is going to take a $150m hit from rebalancing its staff and locations as it looks for more growth

• 3i sells Civica to Omers private equity

  3i has sold off Civica as it looks to reduce its debts with Omers private equity picking up the business

• 07 May 2013 Oracle wants “symbiotic” services ecosystem

  Oracle’s channel management have been speaking of the firm’s desire to create and promote “symbiotic” alliances among its channel partners

• MicroScope's top stories, week ending 3 May 2013

  Our regular look back at the most important channel news stories from the past seven days, as chosen by MicroScope readers

• LDD Group buys into education market

  Acquisition of primary school computing specialist Compubyte latest step in LDD’s expansion plans

• Hockin launches storage distributor channelfusion

  Bruce Hockin has launched a high-end focused storage distributor channelfusion

• ComputerLinks bolsters BYOD options with MobileIron

  ComputerLinks has increased the mobile security options it can offer after signing up MobileIron

• C2000 kicks off education campaign

  With the key buying period in the education market kicking off Computer 2000's public sector unit has launched a campaign to drive growth in that market

Microscope News Archive