Reseller Middle East

ISSUE 191 // NOVEMBER 2012WWW.RESELLERME.COM

PUBLICATIONLICENSED BY IMPZ

e m e r g i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s n e w v e n d o r s s c o u t i n g f o r p a r t n e r s

analysis vendor focusInfor makes progress through a strategy focused on specialised solutions

Dell extends its reach further into the channel to attract more partners.

reviewsHuawei offers an affordable smartphone with Ascend G300

Partnering for successMindware forges alliances to cement its position

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cover feature

CONTENTSISSUE 191 // novEmbEr 2012

HigHligHts

6 News We help you catch up on all the major

news and announcements in the regional channel community

aNalYsis

24 Geared for the long haul Targus, the prominent accessories

brand, recently celebrated its 30th anniversary and is making some big waves in the channel with new partnerships and strategies to take the brand to new heights in the region.

26 Leaping ahead

Prestigio, the PC peripherals and accessories brand, has recently announced its entry into the burgeoning smartphone market following its successful operations in the tablet space.

feature

38 Emerging relationships We feature some of the new entrants

into the regional market who are scouting for channel partners to grow their business

eveNts

48 Best in show

Leading figures from the technology world descended into Dubai World Trade Centre throughout the week of October 14 for what was dubbed the biggest ever GITEX Technology Week.

veNdor focus

56 Defining new value

Dell is extending its reach further into the channel to attract more partners. John Coulston , Director of Channel Programs and Operations at Dell Middle East, explains the partner strategy.

Mindware is climbing up the distribution ladder with new partnerships

38

62

partnErIng for SUccESS

Hot products

DELL XPS One 27

Sony ALPHA SLT-A99

63Reseller Middle Eastnovember 2012 3

© 2012 Dell Products. Dell, the logo, XPS, Latitude and Vostro are registered or unregistered trademarks of Dell Inc. in the United States and other countries. Ultrabook, Celeron, Celeron Inside, Core Inside, Intel, Intel Logo, Intel Atom, Intel Atom Inside, Intel Core, Intel Inside, Intel Inside Logo, Intel vPro, Itanium, Itanium Inside, Pentium, Pentium Inside, vPro Inside, Xeon, and Xeon Inside are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other trademarks or trade names may be used in this document to refer to third-party products (such as operating systems and software) included with the products o� ered by Dell and the entities claiming the marks and names of those products. Dell disclaims proprietary interest in the marks and names of others. Dell Corporation Ltd, Dell House, The Boulevard, Cain Road, Bracknell, Berkshire, RG12 1LF.

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19033_Dell Q3_mobility Campaign_270x207-ME-V01-NV.indd 1 06/09/2012 14:45

EDITORIAL

Cautiously optimistic

PublisherDominic De Sousa

Group COONadeem Hood

Managing DirectorRichard Judd

[email protected] +971 4 440 9126

EDitOrial

Group EditorJeevan Thankappan

[email protected] +971 4 4409109

aDvErtisinG

Commercial DirectorRajashree R Kumar


Key account ManagerMerle Carrasco


sales ManagerNasir Bazaz


CirCulatiOn

Database and Circulation ManagerRajeesh M


PrODuCtiOn anD DEsiGn

Production ManagerJames P Tharian


Design DirectorRuth Sheehy


DesignerAnalou Balbero


DiGitalwww.rwme.net

DiGital sErviCEs

Digital services ManagerTristan Troy P Maagma

Web DevelopersErik Briones

Jefferson de Joya

Photographer and social Media Co-ordinator

Jay Colina

[email protected]+971 4 440 9100

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Talk to us:

it spending in Europe, the Middle East and africa (EMEa) will reach

$1.154 trillion in 2013, a 1.4 percent increase from this year, thanks

to the increasing popularity of mobile devices, says the market

research company Gartner. that should bring some cheer to the

regional channel industry, which has been battered and bruised

during the very gloomy 2012.

The growth will in part come from enterprises spending more

money on software for smartphones and tablets, which are the current

“bright spot” of the IT industry, according to Gartner, which adds that

with the increased functionality of smartphones, and the increasing

popularity of tablets, much of the network traffic and corporate data is

now being shifted to mobile devices.

The growing popularity of smartphones and tablets coupled with

the Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) trend offers unprecedented growth

opportunities for the channel. The fact that more and more enterprise

data is now being stored on these devices has increased the need for

security and advanced mobile device management software. Mobility,

cloud and other advanced computing technologies will be the focus in

2013, and this represents a bright opportunity for channel partners who

are looking to deliver next-gen solutions.

Now, all the eyes are on the sluggish PC market. Will the launch

of Window 8 give the much-needed shot in the arm for this segment

of the market? Or will the burgeoning smartphone and tablet market

continue to eat away at PC shipments? Though the idea that tablets

will cannibalise the PC market sounds a bit far-fetched at the moment,

what is for sure is that it has made a huge dent, going by the figures

from the PC market for the last two quarters. After a relatively flat Q2,

PC shipments in EMEA declined by 7.7 percent in Q3, according to IDC.

Growth in the Middle East and Africa region was below the forecast

at -1.9 percent as vendors concentrated on minimising inventory

levels before the Win 8 launch, which combined with the increasing

competition from tablets, hindered growth.

Though IDC predicts the launch of ultra slim notebooks and

Windows 8 will revive traction in the consumer space, it advices the

channel to remain cautious and not over-commit to avoid inventory

built up during this quarter as other devices with several launches

expected, particularly in the tablet space, will continue to compete for

consumers’ attention and budgets. I think the channel should hedge

its bets as there is a growing doubt about Windows 8 reviving the

popularity of PCs. Maybe, the time is ripe to go mobile.

Jeevan thankappanGroup Editor

Reseller Middle Eastnovember 2012 5

Computerlinks pushes the value chain

The UAE based systems

integrator ITQAN has achieved

‘Gold Certification’ status from

Cisco. To earn Gold Certification,

ITQAN had to meet rigorous

standards for networking

competency, service, support

and customer satisfaction set

forth by Cisco. This certification

reinforces ITQAN’s continuing

commitment to become the

region’s leading IT solutions

provider by serving the needs of

the region’s business segment

by leveraging the latest Cisco

solutions and upgraded skill sets.

Being a ‘Gold Certified’

partner will allow ITQAN to

offer its wide range of expertise

across three high growth market

opportunities—borderless

networks, collaboration and data

centre virtualisation. Partners

having reached this level of

certification benefit from the

highest level of certification-

specific rewards and recognitions,

which includes an increased

level of tech-support, productivity

tools, online training, marketing

resources and sales promotion.

“This is truly a landmark

achievement for ITQAN.

Having been awarded ‘Gold

Certification’ reinforces our

leading position as a systems

integrator and IT services

provider who gives full

attention to the qualification

of its resources and ensures

its knowledge on what

technologies it uses is beyond

the standard levels. We care

on what partnership status

strategically to drive business

serving satisfied clients and go in

line with our partner strategy and

technological road map,” said

Feras Al Jabi, ITQAN’s General

Manager. “Being recognised

by a leading global brand like

Cisco is an inspiration to further

our commitment of providing

customers with excellent service.

Rest assured that we will remain

steadfast in our promise to

bring advanced and intelligent

solutions that can help customers

drive in more productivity and

efficiencies in their businesses.”

“Aside from the two

advanced specialisations in

routing, switching and security,

we are proud to confirm that

we are certified in data centre

architecture, borderless network

architecture and collaboration

architecture which are the three

major architecture specialisation

recently introduced by CISCO,”

said Rajesh Panicker, IIS Practice

Manager at ITQAN.

Itqan certified as Cisco gold partner

The leading distributor Computerlinks is

devising a strategy that may just reshape the

dynamics of the Middle East channel market.

“In the Middle East in particular,

Computerlinks is working towards bringing

in smaller product lines that offer more value

to our partners rather than bringing in larger

vendors, with huge product lines and smaller

margins. The reason we do this is simple

because we want to give the smaller but more

focused partners an opportunity to make more

margins, cater to more customers and ultimately

be more profitable,” said Lee Reynolds, MD at

Computerlinks, MEA and APAC.

“In the region, there is a large gap between

the big and massive partners and smaller to

medium sized partners. Often at times, it is

the smaller partners who really do a great

job servicing our customers but are rarely

given a chance to succeed because they are

overshadowed by the larger players in the

market. So we’re trying to change this scenario

and it’s really going to be our goal over the next

few quarters. We’re going to bring on partners

like Exinda who have really been dormant for

the last two and a half years but have now

brought on new management and a new

structure as well as some great technologies.

By doing this we want to help those small to

medium sized resellers get some market share

off the bigger players,” added Reynolds.

“I think the whole structure at

Computerlinks in the Middle East is one that

focuses on bringing the smaller partners into

that arena of servicing the higher customers.

I really enjoy that, it makes me happy to do

that,” he said.

Reynolds believes that the whole strategy

of shifting focus away from the bigger players

will benefit the entire channel community.

“If market concentration continues and only

the big guys continue to dictate margins,

we will all be out of job in the next five

years. The balance has to be maintained. If

we continue on this path where the same

partners do the same business with the same

vendors offering the same level of service,

we’ll soon see no value in the value chain,

there will be no value added distributors or

resellers unless we begin to put some of the

good technology with good margins into the

channel,” he explained.

The company is now marketing

campaigns to promote this strategy by

introducing some technologies that are new

and some that have been existing but have

changed to offer better value to customers.

“We are trying to go back to market with

some products simply because they have

been addressing the wrong markets and the

wrong customers. So we’re mapping out the

right partners, revising our following quarters

marketing spend and shelling out strategies

for our product managers,” he said.

highlightsNews

Lee Reynolds, MD at Computerlinks, MEA and APAC


and tablets in the region.

The distie, which showcased its

line-up of latest tablet PCs at GITEX,

is targeting the low to mid cost segment

of the Middle East market. The tablets

running on the Android 4.0 platform

come in a variety of screen sizes and

offer users access to connectivity on-the-

go at competitive prices.

“We have been studying the market

for quite some time now and have

noticed a huge demand for mobility

products and see GITEX as the right

platform to throw the light on the

innovations we bring to market. GenX

offers consumers access to all the

applications and necessary features that

are packed into compact and extremely

portable devices at half the price,” said

Mohamed Rizwan Noor, VP of MTC.

The company is now working on

creating a Windows 8 based tablet device

to tap into the demand for much awaited

Microsoft OS. “The thing about a giant like

Microsoft is the familiarity that comes with

their technology; Windows is an infamous

platform with a majority of users praising

the platform for its ease of use. Windows

8 will take this usability to a whole

Scope Middle East, a

specialty distributor and

technology solutions

provider in the Middle East,

has signed a distributorship

agreement with NSFOCUS,

which provides enterprise-

level network security

solutions. Scope ME,

which is now authorised

to distribute the entire

range of enterprise security

solutions from the vendor,

has confirmed its focus on

the Web Application Firewall

(WAF) segment which it

believes to be a high-growth

market in the Middle East.

“There is no doubt that

increasing connectivity and

the consumerisation of IT

are driving trends in the

Middle East. As customers

increasingly demand the

delivery of online services,

businesses are compelled to

hasten deployment of their

Web-based applications. At

the same time, cybercrime

has been particularly rampant

in the region with a number

of government and private

organisations reporting large

scale attacks,” said Fadi

AbuEkab, CEO of Scope.

He adds that while

enterprises are aware of the

need to protect their customer

facing services, they are still

restrained by factors such

as lack of expertise and

cost. “We believe that the

NSFOCUS Web Application

Firewall is the ideal solution

for our customers. This

product, combined with our

technical capabilities, will offer

customers the best protection

while still accommodating for

flexible deployment and low

operational overheads.”

SCOPE will also distribute

NSFOCUS’s range of solutions

for DDoS prevention and

mitigation, Network Intrusion

Prevention (NIP) and

vulnerability management. As

per the agreement, SCOPE

ME is authorised to provide

complete after sales support

for all NSFOCUS products.

This is made available via

email, telephone, fax and an

online portal.

MTC seeks to cash in on demand for mobility

Scope ME partners with NSFOCUS

Memory Technology Middle East (MTC),

the regional distributor for brands such

as GenX and Xtreme, is working towards

cashing in on the demand for handheld

mobility devices such as smartphones

different level and we can already see a

massive chunk of the market transitioning

to devices built on this latest Microsoft

platform. This is why our teams are also

working on devising an option built on

the latest Windows platform that will be

offered to consumers at a competitive

price,” he added.

In addition to the GenX range of

tablets, MTC also showcased the latest

GenX smartphones and digital video

cameras at its stand at GITEX Technology

Week. The company believes that high

quality at lower costs is the secret behind

its success as consumers want access to

the latest technology platforms but don’t

see the need to pay hefty prices for it.

MTC and GenX are also set to launch

the ‘Android Box’, a device that when

connected to an LCD TV allows users to

convert these into fully functional Smart

TVs. “Another mega trend emerging in

the region is the demand for Smart TVs

that bring users maximum connectivity to

YouTube and other Internet entertainment

that they can enjoy on a high quality

screen that is much larger than the

traditional connected devices such as

notebooks or desktops,” Noor said.

Mohamed Rizwan Noor, VP of MTC

highlightsNews

Reseller ME B2B Security 270x207-E.indd 1 10/24/12 6:21 PM

8 Reseller Middle East november 2012

Reseller ME B2B Security 270x207-E.indd 1 10/24/12 6:21 PM

Ingram Micro, one of the largest technology

distributors globally, has successfully

acquired the Dubai- based prominent value

added distributor, Aptec Holdings. The new

entity will be listed under the name: Aptec –

an Ingram Micro Company.

Through this acquisition, the global

technology distributor has taken its first steps

into the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)

region and will leverage Aptec’s strength in

the value added services space in addition to

its extensive channel relationships to further

expand its footprint across the region.

“We are excited to make this

announcement. This is our testament to the

region, to bring leading solutions that are

relevant to the needs of enterprises across the

region. As always, we will continue to work

closely with both our vendor and channel

partners to effectively extend leading solutions

and services across the 73 countries we will now

serve as Aptec – an Ingram Micro Company,

including the Middle East, Africa, Levant and the

Mediterranean,” said Dr. Ali Baghdadi, VP and

CEO of Aptec – an Ingram Micro Company.

highlightsNews

Ingram completes Aptec buyout

Comguard to distribute EnGenius

Comguard has been appointed

as the value added distributor

by EnGenius. Comguard will

distribute the wide range of

EnGenius wireless data and voice

communication solutions across

the GCC. Together EnGenius

and Comguard can provide

clients a complete product line

for all wireless environments,

from enterprise-class wireless

communications systems which

includes long-range cordless

phones, network servers security

products and wireless mesh

networking for digital wireless

network cities, to end-user

wireless network products.

Ajay Singh Chauhan, CEO,

Comguard, said, “Wireless is

the future of technology and

we wish to play an important

role in this segment. With our

partnership with the leaders in

wireless technology EnGenius,

we intend to provide high quality

products and services to our

partners and end-customers

in the region. In association

with EnGenius, we plan to

take several initiatives to lend

continuous technical and

marketing support to facilitate

the growth of business for all our

channel partners.”

Comguard plans to run a

special awareness campaign

to highlight the products and

solutions from Comguard

Wireless stable in order to build

a strong loyal channel partner

network across the region.

Comguard Wireless will also

provide sale, pre-sales, technical

training to its channel partners

on a regular basis to insure that

its channel is abreast with new

technologies and solutions,

thereby enhancing their

competitive edge in the market

to explore new opportunities.

Hossam Bebwy, Regional

Sales Manager at EnGenius

Technologies, said, “We are

glad to partner with Comguard,

the leaders in value added

distribution in the Middle

East region. We are sure that

Comguard years of experience,

technical expertise, and region

wide channel base will help

us further enhance our market

share in the region.”

Comguard Wireless is

currently in the process of

identifying and recruiting

new partners across the GCC

region, including UAE, Qatar,

Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia

and Kuwait.

Dr. Ali Baghdadi, VP and CEO of Aptec – an Ingram Micro Company

Ajay Singh Chauhan, CEO, Comguard

Following the announcement, Dr.

Baghdadi confirmed that he will lead the

acquired operations reporting to Shailendra

Gupta, Senior Executive VP and President,

Ingram Micro Asia-Pacific.

“The acquisition of Aptec fits well with

our strategic objectives to continue to build

our higher margin specialty businesses while

broadening our geographic reach to capitalise

on higher growth markets,” said Alain Monié,

President and CEO of Ingram Micro Inc. “The

Middle East and Africa are robust and growing

markets with total IT spending projected to

reach $80 billion by 2015. Aptec has been

highly effective in growing their business and

enhancing profitability in these emerging

markets and we believe this combination will

further accelerate these on-going objectives.

Aptec has a long-tenured, accomplished

leadership team and we look forward to joining

forces with them.”


With a growing number of Wi-Fi devices in the home, the Linksys Smart Wi-Fi AC 1750 Router provides the bandwidth and fast speed needed to optimise your online experiences. Plus, with Linksys Smart Wi-Fi you get access to tool and apps that help you manage your network such as Parental Controls, Guest Access, and Media Prioritisation. Add to this the new Linksys Universal Connector, WUMC710 and you can connect wired devicessuch as Smart TVs and game consoles to your Wi-Fi network and stream HD or even 3D HD video content wirelessly, taking advantage of the incredible AC speeds. To learn more, please visit linkys.com

*Maximum Performance derived from IEEE Standard 802.11 speci� cations (draft speci� cations for 802.11ac). Actual performance can vary, including lower wireless network capacity, data throughput rate, range and coverage. Performance depends upon many factors, condi-tions and variables, including products used, interference and other adverse conditions. 802.11ac 1300 Mbps in the 5GHz Band is approximately 3 x faster than 802.11n 450 Mbps in the 2.4GHz Band. An 802.11ac adapter will be needed to achieve 11ac data rates and up to

1300 Mbps wireless speeds may be achieved when connecting to other 802.11ac 1300 Mbps devices.

© 2012 Cisco. All rights reserved. Cisco, the Cisco logo and Linksys are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its a� liates in the United States and certain other countries. Mac and the Mac logo are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document or website are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a

partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.

Meet the Linksys Smart Wi-Fi Routerand Universal Media Connector.

The latest innovation in wireless-AC technology

New wireless-AC duo deliverslightning speed HD streaming

Aruba Networks announced that it has

signed two value added distributors to

aid the company in the expansion of its

PartnerEdge channel programme for

the Middle East region. Aruba Networks

has inked distribution agreements with

prominent value added distributors FVC

and Metra Computer.

Aruba Networks expects these

partnerships to further bolster the

Aruba partners with FVC and Metra

Blue Coat names new leads for EMEA marketing and channelBlue Coat Systems

has announced the

appointments of two senior

sales and marketing executives

who will help drive the

company’s go-to-market

strategy and execution across

Europe, the Middle East

and Africa (EMEA). Shirley

O’Sullivan has been named

Vice President of Marketing for

EMEA, and Pat Dunne has been

appointed Channel Director for

the region.

In her new role, O’Sullivan

will be responsible for leading

the company’s growth strategy

in the Web security and WAN

optimisation markets. She

will work closely with the field

and channel partners to drive

alignment and execution of

go-to-market strategy across the

region and will report directly

to Chief Marketing Officer

Steve Daheb. Prior to joining

Blue Coat, O’Sullivan was the

Director ofField and Channel

marketing for EMEA at Riverbed

Technology. Earlier, she held

a variety of security product

marketing and channel roles at

Nortel Networks.

Dunne is an experienced

sales and marketing

professional with over 20

years of experience in direct

touch and channel sales. As

the channel director for EMEA,

Dunne will drive the channel

programme for the U.K. and

EMEA. He will be focused on

ensuring tight engagement

between Blue Coat sales and

channel partners. Prior to

joining Blue Coat, Dunne held

sales positions with leading

technology companies such as

Websense, Sun Microsystems,

Trend Micro and NetIQ. He

has also worked at several

successful start-ups, including

Elron, FTP Software and

Neoware. Dunne will report

to Stuart Henderson, Vice

President of Sales for EMEA.

Chris Kozup, Senior Director of Marketing, EMEA at Aruba Networks

company’s commitment to the region,

a market it ventured into approximately

eight years ago. Since then Aruba

Networks has witnessed an average

growth rate of approximately 50% year-

on-year in the region, according to Chris

Kozup, Senior Director of Marketing,

EMEA at Aruba Networks.

“We have witnessed significant uptake

of our product and solution portfolio in

the region, particularly in the UAE, KSA

and Egypt. We are now working on further

enhancing our channel strategy to focus

on dedicated segments of the market

particularly the burgeoning SME and the

enterprise security space,” he said.

According to Kozup, while the company

has signed FVC for its extensive experience

in the network security distribution arena, it

has signed Metra Computers for its strength

in the SME market.

These partnerships fall into Aruba

Networks’ PartnerEdge channel

programme, that the company is currently

expanding in the Middle East to broaden

vertical market engagement with the

region’s enterprise customers. Through

PartnerEdge, Aruba aims to ensure its

customers receive the right consultancy

and after-sales services to support its

range of leading networking solutions.

highlightsNews

Metra Computer and FVC join mobility

solutions provider, Oxygen, as authorised

value added distribution partners within

the programme.

“Metra’s broad reseller network will

help us reach out to the growing SME

market in the region while the partnership

with FVC boosts our existing security

offering with their focus and expertise in the

field of security. A key area within security

is the ‘bring your own device’ (BYOD) trend

that we are witnessing across the region

and we have recently launched a new

product line to help enterprises cope with

the risks associated with having multiple

devices access their network,” he said.

Aruba Networks’ EMEA PartnerEdge

Programme offers four levels of

participation to value added distributors

and resellers – Authorised, Silver, Gold, and

Platinum. Aruba Networks’ technologies

available through the distributor

partnerships include the flagship Mobile

Virtual Enterprise (MOVE) architecture,

along with ClearPass for device discovery,

onboarding, management and policy

enforcement, remote networking, AirWave

for wired and wireless networks, and

Air-Mesh for secure outdoor wireless

networks at a fraction of the cost of wired

infrastructure.

paramount@ssuring Value

Paramount Computer Systems FZ LLC.

Dubai: Tel:+9714 3918600, Abu Dhabi: Tel:+9712 6724288, Qatar: Tel: +974 4551641, Kuwait: Tel: + 965 2471409, Bahrain: Tel: +973 727177, Email: [email protected], www.paramountassure.com

To register please send an email confirmation to : [email protected], Mobile: 00971 529972959

Identity & Access Management Workshop

Who should attend:

CIO, CISO, IT Manager, Network Manager, Head of IT Infrastructure, Security officer, Engineers etc.

Paramount in association with Courion and Imprivata invites you for a half day workshop focusing on Identity and Access Management and ESSO solution

Tuesday, November 13th, 2012, Burj Al Arab, Dubai.

Venue: Burj Al Arab, DubaiDate: 13th November, 2012Time: 09.00AM to 1.00PMFree Valet Parking will be provided

Agenda

Streamlining Identity Management with Imprivata OneSign

12.45PM : Lunch

8.45am to 9.15AM : Registration 9.15AM to 10.00AM: Identity & Access Management – So far and way forward

By Premchand Kurup – CEO, Paramount 10.00AM to 10.45AM: Building Next Generation Identity and Access Management capabilities using Courion

By Marc Lee - EMEA Sales Director, Courion 10.45AM to 11.00AM: Coffee Break 11.00AM to 11.45AM:

By Nick Miles -Technical Services Director- Imprivata 11.45AM to 12.15PM: Courion IDM Solution Demonstration

By James Roamer - Technical Manager, Courion

12.15PM to 12.45PM: Imprivata SSO Solution DemonstrationBy Nick Miles -Technical Services Director- Imprivata

Streamline Access, Gain Visibility and Reduce Risk


paramount@ssuring Value

Paramount Computer Systems FZ LLC.

Dubai: Tel:+9714 3918600, Abu Dhabi: Tel:+9712 6724288, Qatar: Tel: +974 4551641, Kuwait: Tel: + 965 2471409, Bahrain: Tel: +973 727177, Email: [email protected], www.paramountassure.com

To register please send an email confirmation to : [email protected], Mobile: 00971 529972959

Identity & Access Management Workshop

Who should attend:

CIO, CISO, IT Manager, Network Manager, Head of IT Infrastructure, Security officer, Engineers etc.

Paramount in association with Courion and Imprivata invites you for a half day workshop focusing on Identity and Access Management and ESSO solution

Tuesday, November 13th, 2012, Burj Al Arab, Dubai.

Venue: Burj Al Arab, DubaiDate: 13th November, 2012Time: 09.00AM to 1.00PMFree Valet Parking will be provided

Agenda

Streamlining Identity Management with Imprivata OneSign

12.45PM : Lunch

8.45am to 9.15AM : Registration 9.15AM to 10.00AM: Identity & Access Management – So far and way forward

By Premchand Kurup – CEO, Paramount 10.00AM to 10.45AM: Building Next Generation Identity and Access Management capabilities using Courion

By Marc Lee - EMEA Sales Director, Courion 10.45AM to 11.00AM: Coffee Break 11.00AM to 11.45AM:

By Nick Miles -Technical Services Director- Imprivata 11.45AM to 12.15PM: Courion IDM Solution Demonstration

By James Roamer - Technical Manager, Courion

12.15PM to 12.45PM: Imprivata SSO Solution DemonstrationBy Nick Miles -Technical Services Director- Imprivata

Streamline Access, Gain Visibility and Reduce Risk

Shifra Middle East, a regional valued added

distributor, is aiming for a lion’s share of

increased spending on network security in

Shifra eyes growing network security market

Iomega signs Metra as VAD The storage specialist has

signed Metra as a B2B

value-added distributor for

UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq

and Yemen, with the aim

of increasing its reach into

SMBs, SMB resellers and

value-added resellers.

“With our focus on the

SMB channel, this comes as

part of a wider reach strategy

which Iomega is investing

in for the ME region, with

tremendous focus to be on

the ground to support the

SMB market as well as the

SMB business-to-business

distribution structure. With

Metra, we are fulfilling another

part of our B2B reach and

expanding our support. Metra

has been chosen because of its

strength and reach to different

channel segments, whether it

is system integrators, resellers

or corporate resellers. We

are confident Metra will be

an important addition to our

existing distribution partners in

the region, where there is room

for all to grow,” said Cizar Abu

Ghazaleh, Regional Director

for the Middle East, Africa and

Turkey at Iomega.

Mohamed Eissa, Executive

VP of Metra Computer,

added that storage needs

of organisations are rapidly

growing, with cost effective,

retrievable storage offerings

being a necessity of every

IT manager. “Storage is

forming part of every RFP,

no matter how big or small.

Metra is focusing big time

on storage, both SAN and

NAS with various solutions.

Iomega’s SMB NAS offerings

complement perfectly with

Metra’s focus on solution sales

and the strength in the SMB

markets in the ME region.”

the Middle East, by enhancing its portfolio

of security solutions.

Increased government investments

on ICT will spur the growth or the network

security sector in the Middle East, in addition

to the consumerisation of the bring-your-own-

device (BYOD) phenomenon which has seen

growing adoption in the region, the company

said. According to Frost & Sullivan, the Middle

East network security market is expected to

experience a healthy growth rate of over 18%

between 2012 and 2018, opening up huge

opportunities for vendors to identify and tap.

“Public and private sector companies

are enhancing their security infrastructure

as IT gains more critical significance in their

business operations and desired growth.

As IT applications within organisations

grow in complexity and coverage, so

does its security requirements. We expect

deployment of integrated security solutions

to have a massive growth in the next few

years,” said Ahmad Elkhatib, Managing

Partner, Shifra.

At GITEX 2012, Shifra announced

its appointment as the MENA distributor

of Centrify Corporation, a global

provider of security and compliance

solutions. Shifra also showcased

security products and solutions from

Gemalto, a provider of digital security

and end-to-end security solutions

including online authentication, digital

IDs and secure e-banking, in addition

to integrated network security solutions

from Stonesoft, and governance and

archiving solutions from Proofpoint.

Shifra also showcased next-generation

security software solutions from OpenTrust,

which are designed to help today’s

enterprises meet complex security challenges

and establish agile, end-to-end trusted IT

infrastructures, and Bradford Networks’

Adaptive Network Security platform that

fortifies networks and leverages features from

existing infrastructure to dynamically enforce

security policies across both wired and

wireless networks.

highlightsNews

Ahmad Elkhatib, Managing Partner, Shifra

Cizar Abu Ghazaleh, Regional Director for the Middle East, Africa and Turkey at Iomega


StorIT signed a strategic partnership

agreement with Emulex during GITEX

Technology Week 2012. The new

partnership is expected to address the

increasing demand for high performance

kits in virtualisation installations.

Under the terms of the agreement,

StorIT will distribute Emulex solutions across

the Middle East region, particularly in Saudi

Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.

StorIT’s established channel base combined

with their strategic initiatives can help Emulex

in its move to expand its reach while at the

same time reinforce its presence in the

region. With the newly signed partnership,

Emulex now joins StorIT’s leading portfolio

of vendors, which includes EMC, Quantum,

Mellanox, Moonwalk and QLogic.

“We are very excited with the potential

opportunities that this new partnership

presents for both StorIT and Emulex,” said

Bobby Joseph, CEO, StorIT. “Signing this

new alliance during GITEX 2012, one of

the most awaited IT events in the region,

demonstrates our continuous efforts to be

at the forefront of the IT industry. This new

partnership proves to be both timely and

strategic as the Middle East has expressed

a demand for experts that can assess

and meet the growing demand for server,

networks and storage device solutions.

In addition, the alliance will also give our

channel partners the ability to offer high

quality storage offerings and further enabling

them to work on bigger projects--allowing

StorIT ties up with EmulexLifeSize hosts partner conferenceWith a continual focus on its channel

community, LifeSize, a division of

Logitech, recently held its 2012 EMEA

Partner Conference at Hotel Mina

A’Salam in the Madinat Jumeirah Resort

in Dubai.

The partner conference focused

on the growth of the company’s UVC

Platform and its myriad of virtualised video

infrastructure applications. The audience

were treated to meet and greets with

top executives from the company in

addition to presentations on it’s vision

and strategy for the future as well as an

overview of video conferencing market

and customer trends.

“The annual EMEA partner

conference is an event that I truly look

forward to every year,” said Andreas

Wienold, VP of EMEA for LifeSize. “The

event serves as a platform for our partner

community to interact, build stronger

relationships and learn about LifeSize’s

focus, vision and current product

offerings. Because LifeSize sells directly

through the channel, it is imperative that

this event provides the utmost support to

our partner community. With the number

of returning partners who attend year

after year, it is evident that our partners

find great value in this conference.”

them also to address new market segments

in the region.”

Emulex is expected to bring global

channels, strong original equipment

manufacturer (OEM) relationships and an

industry leading hardware roadmap to

its partnership with StorIT. The company

has become widely known for its design,

development and supply of fibre channel

host bus adapters, 10Gb Ethernet network

interface cards, Ethernet-based converged

network adapters, controllers, embedded

bridges and switches, integrated baseboard

management controllers (iBMCs) and

connectivity management solutions.

highlightsNews

Bobby Joseph, CEO, StorIT

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Despec is on a growth wave having signed

on a whole new range of vendors to expand

its portfolio.

“At GITEX this year we have drawn the

focus away from our core business, printers and

storage, to throw the spotlight on a combination

of new and old vendor partners whose products

and solutions hold great potential for the market

across the MEA and Levant region,” said Jaison

Korath, CEO, Despec MERA.

Despec has signed distribution

agreements with vendors such as PNY, TDK

Technologies, Trust, HP Flash, Targus, Xtreme

Mac and Powerocks to make varied additions

to its portfolio. “We aren’t just adding vendors

on an ad-hoc basis but focusing on particular

markets having studied the varied demands

of consumers across the region. For instance,

while our agreement with Xteme Mac and

Targus covers the Africa and Levant region,

the agreement with TDK Technologies

Despec expands portfolio

Focus Softnet launches new services business

Focus Softnet announced its

business expansion plans at

GITEX Technology Week 2012.

The company launched its

new services division, where it

will provide business process

services and e-business

services to customers in

the Middle East region. In

addition to its existing software

offerings, Focus Softnet will

now offer customers a vast and

more comprehensive portfolio

of products and services.

Speaking on the launch, Ali

Hyder, CEO, Focus Softnet said,

“After nearly two decades of

success and steady growth as a

software solutions provider, our

company is at an exciting new

phase, where we are expanding

our business horizons to now

offer our customers business

process services and e-business

services. With the launch of our

new services division, we will now

be able to help our customers

achieve their technological goals

and in turn help them take their

business to the next level.”

Focus Softnet’s business

process services include

business process mapping,

automation and gap analysis,

in addition to implementation

consultancy services.

“Our business process

services ensure a smooth

transition from one technology

to another, be it adding a new

ERP altogether, upgrading the

existing ERP, or adding modules

and solving gaps in the existing

implementation of technology,”

explained Rohan Tejura, Vice

President, Focus Softnet.

Focus Softnet e-business

services range from establishing

a basic and simple Web

presence through a website,

to deploying a complex B2B or

B2C oriented e-commerce and

mobile application solutions

wherein one can actually sell,

collect revenues, and manage

logistics, reports, and a variety

of other value added operations

through Web-based mobile

technology, which is seamlessly

integrated with its ERP solutions.

focuses on distribution in Africa,” said Korath.

He further added: “We are particularly

focusing on adding product lines that are

relevant to the emerging markets of Africa

as we believe that growth will come from

the continent. This is why we have now

tripled our accessories portfolio and actively

included Africa in our roadmap.”

According to COO Faisal Jamal, the 2012

edition of GITEX Technology Week was the

best yet with more business generated on

the event floor. “We have seen and met key

prospects for the region, particularly customers

from Central and West Africa. The decision to

separate Shopper and Technology Week has

clearly benefitted participants because it has

drawn a clear divide between the consumer

and enterprise side of technology. GITEX

Technology Week 2012 has definitely been the

most successful yet with a quality audience that

is ready to talk business,” he said.

highlightsNews

Jaison Korath, CEO, Despec MERA

Ali Hyder, CEO, Focus Softnet


Authorized Value Added Distributor

Genius Computer Technology (GCT)

has completed 15 years of its successful

distribution relationship with Genius- KYE

Systems, representing the brand in the

Middle East region.

At GITEX Technology Week 2012, the

company showcased the latest line up of Genius

GX professional gaming gear which included the

speakers, keyboards, headsets, mice and mouse

pros in addition to a host of other products for

gaming aficionados in the region.

“Over the last 15 years, we have shared

a mutual relationship with Genius catering to

more than 35 partners from the Middle East,

Africa and CIS countries. Our participation at

GITEX Technology Week is an effort not just

to showcase the latest line up of products for

customers in the region but also a relationship

building exercise. At GITEX not only did we

meet our existing partners and customers but

also leveraged the opportunity to meet and

interact with prospective clients, understand

GCT celebrates partnership with Genius –KYE Systems

Brocade to accelerate channel time to revenueAs Brocade partners evolve their

business models in response

to customer demand for

virtualisation, cloud, data centre

consolidation and professional

services, the Brocade Alliance

Partner Network (APN)has

adapted to provide an easy-

to-navigate programme to

accelerate time to revenue.

The new resources include

an online partner portal to

centralise management of

all resources and assets, an

online configuration tool,

online pre-sales training and

new marketing and sales

asset development resources.

Brocade has streamlined

the point-of-sale processes,

and will be increasing rebate

caps and incentives on IP

networking sales focused on

driving new customer growth.

Brocade is making

enhanced configuration

tools available to partners, in

addition to the total cost of

ownership (TCO) calculators,

the Brocade BMI Configurator

and inclusion in the Netformx

Design Expert tool. The

online product configurator

tool will provide easy-to-use

configurations to provide initial

comparisons and compatibility

reviews. The tool is designed

to facilitate early discussions

with customers and accelerate

the sales process.

Brocade is launching APN

Central, a portal that provides

partners with a single online

location for all deal information

and programme updates, along

with access to all marketing,

sales and pre-sales tools.

APN Central helps partners

easily manage their marketing

development funds (MDF), deal

registration, lead management,

education and configuration

needs. These new capabilities

also allow partners to view

business plans, check

programme compliance and

provide direct access to the

new and improved sales

and marketing tools to more

effectively drive growth and

target revenue opportunities.

As part of Brocade Grid,

three new online resources will

now be available to support

partners in their efforts to

drive sales and build their own

brand. The marketing hub,

Brocade pre-sales training and

the sales kit provide ready-

to-use assets for demand

generation, information blasts,

product information, sales and

training, and seminars-in-a-box

that can be co-branded and

personalised. Brocade is also

providing enablement funding

to new Elite and Premier level

partners, and has developed

“kick-start” campaigns that can

be quickly and easily tailored.

By utilising these self-service

marketing solutions, partners

can access advertising,

marketing programmes and

assets to easily extend their

reach and attract both net-new

and current customers to

accelerate revenue growth.

their requirements from us and their capabilities

to help us build the brand further,” said Jihad

Youssef, General Manager, GCT Middle East

According to Youssef, the two companies

have been especially successful in meeting

partners who can represent the brand in

untapped territories, bringing a host of

attendees from around the region to the

largest ICT exhibition of its kind.

The company also successfully

participated at GITEX Shopper, through its

retail partners in the region. Youssef said he

believes that gamers in the region are fast

maturing. “They know just what they want.

They are not fooled by competitive prices but

focus on quality. Gamers need reliability and

that is why Genius GX gaming accessories

are their preferred choice. Not only do all

the products come with a two year warranty,

they also come with a zero to 0.5% failure

rate. Gamers want something new, something

reliable and Genius gives them just that. With

highlightsNews

Jihad Youssef, General Manager, GCT Middle East

a steady string of innovations and constant

support from partners around the world the

company has enjoyed significant growth both

in the region and around the globe with over

40 million products sold worldwide,” he added.


In a bid to transition away from the

distribution of run-of-the-mill memory

and storage products to venture into

the more quick moving accessories and

peripherals line, Goodram Middle East

(GME Distributions) has signed up new

vendor partners.

The distributor has recently signed

distribution rights for Photo Fast, Kogeto,

Midland and Booq. “With Photo Fast we are

the first distributor in the region ready with

a product for the iPhone 5 that consumers

and retailers in the region are hugely excited

about. Kogeto is a camera lens for the Apple

device that offers a 360 degree panoramic

view and consumers can use the Kogeto app

to upload these pictures and videos directly

to Facebook and Twitter. Midland cameras are

another significant addition to our portfolio, a

range of cameras for users who enjoy extreme

sports and adventure. This rugged line of

cameras is made for action packed adventure

and packed into rugged bodies. Finally, we

are introducing Booq, a brand of laptop and

tablet cases for Apple devices. Each of these

GME Distribution boosts portfolio lineupadditions represents a brand fairly new to

the region but one that holds high potential

with customers and therefore retail partners,”

said Houmayem Zid, Sales and Purchasing

Manager at GME Distribution.

Zid adds that because these brands are

just being introduced, GME Distribution is on

the lookout for the right breed of partners to

help promote and grow business for each

of these vendor partners. “We believe these

products hold significant opportunity for

partners in the region. Because we are one of

the first to bring these products to the region,

we don’t see much competition in this space.

Photo Fast, Kogeto and Booq are specifically

targeted at Apple users that represent a huge

portion of the region’s consumer market while

Kogeto caters to the need for cameras that

are not delicate and can be used in the most

rugged of environments,” she added.

At GITEX Shopper this year, the company

partnered with iStyle and Sharaf DG in addition

Virgin Megastores. “GITEX is a platform that

attracts new business opportunities and brings

competitors and potential business partners

highlightsNews

Houmayem Zid, Sales and Purchasing Manager at GME Distribution

together. This is why we are here to reassure

partners that we are constantly bringing new

innovations to the region to help them grow

their own margins and business. We have

recently made new additions to the team, with

the appointments of a dedicated Marketing

Manager and Retail Manager and have also

introduced a brand new company website-

www.gme.ae ,” Zid said.

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Targus, the prominent accessories brand, recently celebrated its 30th anniversary and is making some big waves in the channel with new partnerships and strategies to take the brand to new heights in the region.

Geared for the lonG haul

ANALYSISTargus

“Targus has been in the region for

the last 10 years and has

historically been more focused on

the retail side of the business in

this part of the market. Worldwide we’re

actually as strong in the B2B and reseller

market as we are in the retail space, so we

decided to make some big investments

focused on establishing key channel

relationships to ultimately drive the business

in the region. This is an obvious next step for

us, considering that the last year was a

record year for Targus globally and the team

here has contributed significantly to that. In a

bid to replicate our success worldwide, we

are now making even bigger investments in

the region by attracting and recruiting the

right people, establishing the right

infrastructure on the ground and developing

key reseller partnerships to cover our key

growth markets,” says John Savage, MD,

Targus EMEA.

The company has invested in a team of

four people, based in Dubai who will focus

on driving Targus’ revenues and footprint in

the Middle East and East Africa. “We believe

the most important thing is good talent and

that’s where we’ve started. We’ve also made

investments in CRM tools and started using

Salesforce.com, the intention being to build a

strong database of customers so we can start

communicating in a marketing sense as well

as the sales sense. So the idea is to start the

email campaigning and eventually introduce

the partner advantage programmes that we

have in the rest of the world in the region as

well,” adds Savage.

On the channel side, Targus has invested

in a dedicated person who will focus on

identifying the right reseller partners and

establish the right level of engagement

with these partners. “The idea is to get John Savage, MD, Targus EMEA

24 Reseller Middle East24 Reseller Middle East november 2012

business is about so we can jointly sell more

products,” he explains.

Savage adds that the company is

currently making the most of the rapid

growth of the tablet market and has invested

heavily in creating an innovative and

aethestic portfolio of cases and accessories

to complement the latest tablets in the

market. This strategy, Savage believes has

been hugely beneficial to Targus, having

reported significant growth in the last year

alone. “We are now looking to replicate this

success across the growing smartphone and

Ultrabook market. We have already launched

products for both devices and you can expect

to see a steady stream of innovation from

Targus on both fronts,” he adds.

“We expect the tablet and smartphone

market to continue growing extensively and

you’ll see more products from Targus on both

fronts. We want our partners to understand

that we’re investing heavily to help them tap

into market trends. We’re always looking

to improve our product range and we’ll

bring the same thoughts to any new lines

we introduce. We are now on the lookout

for new partners to extend our smartphone

product line and we won’t forget laptops

either; because we believe these represent

a big chunk of business. We see there are

many opportunities to trade up and make

more margins and that comes down to the

kind of people we put down on the ground

who position the right products and solutions

together to sell more and drive the attach,”

concludes Savage. //

the channel base set and work with these

partners for three months before we launch a

reseller loyalty programme in January 2013.

The programme will start off in the UAE and

we will then pan this across the rest of the

region,” says Riyaz Abdulla, Regional Sales

Director, Targus MEA

Abdulla adds that the company has

already established key distribution

partnerships as part of its first steps last

year. “Having signed distribution agreements

with regional distributors such as Al Falak,

Redington Gulf and ITE Distribution, we are

now focusing on the tier two resellers to set

up an in-country presence. So we’re signing

partners who have in country infrastructure,

local stocking and local people. In the

process we won’t just select any partner but

focus on working with a few crucial partners

because we don’t want to spread too thin at

the risk of losing focus,” he explains.

Abdulla says that right partners are those

that share a synergy with Targus. “First and

foremost we’d like to establish a synergy

between what the partner would like to do

and what we want to achieve in order to

establish a mutually beneficial relationship

that represents a win-win situation for

everybody involved,” he says.

Savage says that the company’s goal

is to be the best at driving attach rate for

customers. “It’s not about selling the products

but about helping our customers drive their

business. While we focus on driving, we

will also end up selling more products. The

key is that we are trying to consult with

our customers and understand what their

Riyaz Abdulla, Regional Sales Director, Targus MEA

“Having signed distribution agreements with regional distributors such as Al Falak, Redington Gulf and ITE Distribution, we are now focusing on the tier two resellers to set up an in-country presence. So we’re signing partners who have in country infrastructure, local stocking and local people. In the process we won’t just select any partner but focus on working with a few crucial partners because we don’t want to spread too thin at the risk of losing focus.”


Prestigio, the PC peripherals and accessories brand, has recently announced its entry into the burgeoning smartphone market following its successful operations in the tablet space.

Leaping ahead

AnAlysisPrestigio

According to Yuri Antoshkin, COO,

Prestigio aims to sell 500,000

tablets before the end of 2012 and

has already sold 400,000 tablets

worldwide. Antoshkin says that the

company’s innovations are witnessing

maximum adoption across the markets of

East Europe and the Middle East. “We believe

that customers around the world are now

aware of all the choices they have across one

product category, they understand the

delicate balance between price and quality

and are looking for devices that offer them

that perfect balance. This balance is what

Prestigio has got right,” he says.

Antoshkin believes that the company

stands ‘smack’ in the middle of the tablet

market, in between the high end tablets like

those manufactured by Apple and Samsung

and the low end tablet manufacturers like

Simmtronics or Touchmate. “We have a

dedicated team that studies the market and

takes note of those trends that seem to be

taking centre stage. With our own software

development team that develops secure

applications internally, we provide consumers

with products that aren’t just economical

but a whole lot safer than the usual low end

brands,” Antoshkin adds.

He says that Presitigio’s development

team is careful to update features and

applications on their devices every two

months having understood the demand for

constant connectivity and change. Prestigio

tablets come with pre installed e-books,

gaming from Gameworld and the full suite of

Office Pro applications along with a host of

many others.

“In a market as competitive as the

consumer IT market, there are three

determinants to success. The first is the

design, the second is the usability and the

third is price. If you bring each of these three

elements together and constantly refresh

the suite of applications that consumers can

access from their device, you’ve given them

the perfect device and this is what we at

Prestigio aim to do,” he says.

After enjoying its success in the tablet

space, Presitigio is now ready to take bold

new steps into the smartphone market.

“We believe our experience in the

tablet space has given us the necessary

experience, strategy and drive to face

the hefty competition in the smartphone

market. We have taken our time to study

the various trends in the smartphone

market and launched the ‘MultiPhone’ with

a 3.5 inch display, 1 Ghz CPU and dual SIM

capabilities. This range of smartphones

runs on Android platforms and comes

with a string of interactive features and

applications all packed into a lightweight

and aesthetically designed unit. As was

the case with our tablet line up, the

‘MultiPhone’ is a range of four smartphones

each varying based on screen size,

operating systems and camera capabilities.

With this we got our customers to choose

the device that suits their unique needs,”

he states.

Antoshkin feels that Presitigio is yet in

its infancy and its latest smartphones will

help boost the business further. “Presitigio

has garnered enough goodwill and loyalty

amongst its tablet customers who in a

natural form of transition will also buy the

smartphones that are essentially an extension

of the brand. This is what we have been

working towards, developing their trust

so they may trust the brand to meet their

connectivity needs,” says Antoshkin.

With resources such as a dedicated

engineering team, Arabising smartphone

content and a strong distribution partner

in Asbis Middle East, who is leveraging its

strong reseller network to extend these latest

products to consumers across the Middle

East, Africa and Turkey, Presitigio is now

ready to witness the next phase of growth. //

Yuri Antoshkin, COO, Prestigio


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History will tell you that Infor road show events usually follow a particular trend - the company announces a major change in strategy each year and that its employees and partners can expect progression within the 12 months that follow. You can then imagine the relief and joy when CEO Charles Phillips, took to the stage in Paris this month and declared that Infor had great news to share – progression through strategy.

Blueprint for growth

analysisInfor

Phillips is closing in on his second

year as CEO at Infor, following the

switch from competitors Oracle in

2010. Phillips brought with him a

close and trusted team and together they set

about constructing a full and future proof

strategy for growth. Although the first 12

months were relatively quiet, things kicked

into gear during the second term and Infor is

showing an incredible rate of growth and

progression in global markets.

“We’re making aggressive investments

and showing solid growth,” says Phillips. “This

is reflective in our product line, and we are

showing good signs for the next few years.”

Infor has recently recorded yearly

revenue of $2.8 bn, 2300 new customers, 140

new key partners, now making up a partner

base of 1500, and 1700 new employees,

equating to a staff base of 13,000, making

them the third largest business applications

company worldwide.

Phillips believes that the major

differentiator that separates Infor from its

competitors is the fact that it doesn’t have

any across-the-board solution, but instead

focuses on specialising individual network

solutions for each vertical.

“We have a far broader product

portfolio than people realise, we want them

to see the breadth of that,” he says. “Our

footprint is complete. We’re covered in so

many sectors such as finance, hospitality,

HR, asset management, etc, and we have

specialised solutions and product portfolios

for each of them.”


websites go down, the whole Internet doesn’t

go down. We’ve done the same thing now,

our applications publish XML – it’s a unique

architecture but it’s highly appropriate for

business applications.”

Phillips describes this era as the Internet

era. This follows on from two previous eras

which he described as the point era, starting

around 1980, which used best of breed

applications and relied on businesses being

fully responsible for integration of applications.

Following this came the monolithic era

around 1995, which brought the addition of

components and replacing suite components.

Now he believes we are in the Internet era.

The innovation and progress will benefit

the Middle East as well, according to Mike

Hibbert, Channel Manager, MENA, Infor.

Hibbert claims that he has been pushing

for Infor to invest more heavily in this region

and that time has finally come. “We have

some key partners in this region, it’s fast

emerging, it’s adoptive and it’s willing to invest

- that’s huge for us.

“We don’t have many people on the

ground here, and that’s what we’ve decided to

change. The major problem with this region,

in relation to not having local support for our

partners, is the work days. If a partner has a

problem which they’re unable to solve and it’s a

Saturday, for example, we wouldn’t be available

to help them until Monday at the earliest. That’s

a third into the working week,” he adds.

Hibbert says that Infor has big plans for

the region and that evidence of that can be

seen now. Major renovations are currently

being made to the Dubai based office to

accommodate the new work force which will

move in soon and be solely dedicated to

assisting the regional partners here.

“Infor has had a fantastic couple of years,

and the Middle East has played a major part

in that. It’s about time we put more people on

the ground here and supported them to show

our dedication to the region,” he concluded. //

Phillips says that following a long period

of consolidation, which all businesses went

through, including Oracle during his time

there, Infor has now made the decision to

move into a more product focused area.

“Becoming more focused on innovation

of products and applications was the crucial

next step for us. We’ve been doing that

for the last two years. We came in and

immediately hired about 600 new engineers

and this year added 400 more, so in a short

time we added about 1000 developers,

becoming one of the world’s largest

developer companies in the world, dedicated

to business applications.”

The result of all this, Phillips says, is the next

generation integration platform which it has

produced. Infor, being a fairly new company,

had the advantage of being able to adopt new

technologies more easily and adjust to market

shifts which would be a much longer process

for companies such as Oracle and SAP.

“We have an Internet based integration

platform which is exponentially simpler than

traditional middleware and for our purposes

we think that’s better. This system will require

far fewer checks, which is obviously a good

thing because all application integrations are

complicated, so simplifying that is a positive

move. The major problem for application

integration is that when you change one

thing, 500 other things break, but we’ve

solved that now,” he says.

According to Phillips, the benefits of ION,

the integration platform, are that upgrades

and changes to singular applications don’t

affect other applications and reports. As the

infrastructure is no longer embedded in the

application, it means faster integration and

simplified middleware, resulting in a more

simple way to innovate products.

“The way you solve this problem is by

being loosely coupled. It’s the same way

the Internet works, it’s all HTML based, XML

based, and it is loose linking. So when three

Mike Hibbert, Channel Manager, MENA, Infor

Charles Phillips, CEO, Infor

“We have a far broader product portfolio than people realise, we want them to see the breadth of that.”


When PC Peripherals company, Canyon, launched its limited edition range of products, Chrome, last month at the Canyon Xperience in Amsterdam, it officially cemented its place in the fashion market.

A fAshionAble move

analysisCanyon

It probably feels like a very long

time since Canyon were seen as a

peripherals company, and the

dramatic shift into IT fashion will

have come as no surprise to competitors

who also see that move as a critical decision

in the attempt to survive the changing

landscape of IT trends.

Founded in 2003, Canyon has quickly

announced itself as one of the leading

companies of its sector with potential of

growth despite the complexities of its

shifting market. Canyon claims the brand

is focused solely towards the younger

generation and emerging markets, a

declaration it has supported by opening

regional offices in upcoming areas around

the globe, including Dubai.

Speaking at the Canyon Xperience, Geert

Van Dijk, Vice President, Sales and Marketing,

claimed that due to the advent of mobile

devices, such as tablets and smartphones, PC

peripherals are losing their demand because

they lack the need for accessories.

“Peripherals aren’t growing. Desktops are

going down, tablets are rising and all of our

competitors are struggling to find a way out,”

he said.

“Some of them just lower their prices and

hope for the best. However, Canyon’s plan is

to devise focus groups and identify where we

can be successful. It’s a risk because you may

miss some specific target groups but I believe

it’s the only way out.”

Canyon believes that low cost tablets will

rule the market by 2016 with a 60% market

share, with 686 million being shipped this

year alone.

“This is why companies must shift to

accessories; headphones, tablet cases,

pointers, etc, in order to survive the changing

industry,” Van Dijk added.

Canyon focuses on emerging markets,

such as Middle East and Africa where its new

range of designs have been well received.

“We are strong in the emerging markets.

Our Stripe range, Graffiti range and Rising

Sun range have all done very well in the

Middle East. It’s a fast growing market with

a huge demand on latest trends and styles,”

Van Dijk explained.

“All the retailers we work with in the

Middle East seem to take on our limited

edition ranges. Other markets aren’t so

receptive of limited edition ranges but the

Middle East always takes to them very quickly,

it’s a fantastic market for us,” he added.

Van Dijk stated that the Middle East is an

important area for Canyon on the basis that

the economy is healthy and the willingness

to invest and purchase is higher here than in

other parts of the world.

It’s a bold move by the company to

attempt to reinvent itself, but a move which

has been well received in a region where

innovation, reinvention and courageous

business ventures are common practice.

“We’re a middle sized brand. We hope to

become a very successful fashion brand, certainly

within this region. The future of our business may

lie in reinventing ourselves into a different sector

and the Middle East is one of those regions which

may be pivotal in that transition.”

Canyon is keen to continue to work with

its customers in the Middle East, claiming

that the market is open to new ideas. Canyon

prides itself on being the alternative to black

and grey products at the cheapest prices. Van

Dijk explained that this would be a very safe

strategy for Canyon but the company wants

to be recognised as a risk taking, unique

alternative in comparison to the norm.

“Huge companies like Samsung should

be ashamed, they just supply all these

products in very basic forms, such as

black and grey. They need to turn up with

something unique and different. The reason

they do it is safety, but safety isn’t always

going to give you the best results Of course

if you’re the cheapest today, tomorrow

someone else will be, then you’re just stuck in

a pool with everyone else,” Van Dijk says. //


Learn more at www.EMC.com/VSPEX

INTRODUCINGEMC VSPEXPROVEN INFRASTRUCTURE

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EMC2, EMC, the EMC logo, and where information lives are registered trademarks or trademarks of EMC Corporationin the United States and other countries. © Copyright 2011 EMC Corporation. All rights reserved.

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EMC_VSPES_ADV copy.pdf 1 11/1/12 2:27 PM

Partnering for success2012 is already turning out to be a hugely exciting year for the regional distributor Mindware, which has leveraged its heritage as part of the Midis Group to further its standing in the Middle East channel landscape.

FEATUREMindware

The last few months have seen

the company sign exciting new

deals with vendors such as

Emerson Network Power,

Motorola Solutions and Huawei Enterprise.

Raking in revenues to the tune of $203

million in 2011, the distributor prides itself on

relationships spanning in excess of 20 years

with vendors such as Intel and Microsoft and

continues to extensively build and enhance

its 2500-strong reseller base spanning the

entire Middle East, Levant and North Africa

region.

With branches in the UAE, Saudi Arabia,

Kuwait, Egypt, and Lebanon in addition to

a soon-to- be- launched office in Qatar, the

company is working hard and smart towards

offering both enterprises and SMBs in the

Middle East the best-in-class portfolio.

Over the last few years, the company has

consciously invested in expanding its product

and solution portfolio in order to supplement

diminishing margins from the components

business. “While the components business is

an area that will continue to stay, it represents

a business that has gradually and naturally

reduced over the last few years. Not ones

to make excuses, we then decided to revise

our strategies to supplement this change

in market dynamics to invest in a broader

portfolio beyond the components side into

the software and networking side of things.

For instance, we decided to invest in Dell’s

commercial line and have benefitted with

25% increase in commercial business over

the course of the last year,” says Mindware

GM, Mario Gay.

Mindware is divided into three key

business units -. hardware and components,

software and networking. According to Gay,

the company tries to maintain independent

operations across each of these units with

a dedicated business unit manager and

product manager. “We try to ensure each

line of business carries the best in class


Mario Gay, GM, Mindware


FEATUREMindware

The company has recently signed a string

of partnerships to complement its existing set

of vendors such as Microsoft, Intel, Symantec,

Citrix and Dell to cash in on these changing IT

investments.

“We want to support the most innovative

companies that serve a unique enterprise

need while bringing with them extensive

after-sales services and support to benefit

both customers and partners. This is why we

partner with vendors who don’t just create

innovative products but whose products

complement our existing portfolio so we

may create solutions bundles appropriate to

the wider region, which in turns keeps our

partners and our own business profitable,”

Gay states.

Keeping this strategy in mind, Mindware

has recently signed strategic distribution

agreements with Motorola Solutions, Huawei

Enterprise and Emerson Network Power.

While the partnership with Motorola

Solutions will see the company offer

Motorola’s wireless network products,

applications and services to provide real-time

information and transform business operations

for SME’s, large enterprise and government in

MENA region, the deal with Huawei Enterprise

will see Mindware act as a value added

distributor where it will provide the company’s

customers with logistics and financial support

in addition to post-sales technical support.

However, its partnership with Emerson

Network Power is perhaps the highlight of

its year considering the fact that the Midis

Group has shared a successful relationship

with vendor for over three years now. Under

this distribution agreement, Mindware will

distribute Emerson Network Power’s single

phase uninterruptible power systems (UPS),

power distribution units (PDUs), racks and

accessories across the Middle East region.

Not only does the deal indicate a

significant addition to the distibutor’s portfolio

but is also testament of the company’s

commitment to expand its solution portfolio

to go beyond the traditional hardware and

components business.

Most importantly, Mindware will play

a critical role in helping Emerson Network

Power expand its operations in the region

and drive the adoption of its portfolio within

the Middle East’s growing SME market.

To support the distributor in this task,

Emerson Network Power is also making

significant investments to boost its footprint

in the region. “We are heavily investing in

the region as it represents a vast growth

opportunity. For instance, we have recently

opened offices in Morocco in North Africa in

addition to two more registered companies

in Saudi Arabia to complement the work

of the three already in existence. We also

plan to engage in local manufacturing in

Saudi Arabia. Emerson Network Power has

offices in Abu Dhabi and Dubai and will

soon start work on two additional buildings,

warehousing and manufacturing facilities

in Jebel Ali freezone as part of expansion.

We also have active entities in Basra,Iraq as

well as a Qatar,” says Pierre Havenga, MD,

Emerson Network Power, MEA.

“We decided to engage in a marriage

with Mindware because we don’t just see it

products and solutions and then rationalise

our portfolio to ensure products complement

one another. In a certain sense, we build

a ‘Chinese’ wall between one line and the

other to ensure there are no conflicts or

competition within our own portfolio and

even when we do seem to carry competitive

lines, we ensure they cater to different

niches which ultimately kills the sense of

competition,” he adds.

He says that the distributor follows a

focused strategy where it studies the needs

of the market and then makes additions to its

portfolio by cherry picking from the best in

the industry and follows the same approach

when choosing its resellers. “We follow the

same criteria for resellers as we do for our

vendor partners, we choose the ones we

believe share our values and philosophy

with focus on greater growth as opposed to

one-time profits. We ensure they meet the

basic pre-requisites in terms of credit and

reference checks and categorise them based

on vertical or technical specialisation leaving

them to make the decision on which one of

our vendor portfolios they would like to carry

within their own. We then support them with

education, training and technical support,”

Gay explains.

Burgeoning relationships

Gay believes that the region has witnessed

a business cycle of sorts wherein a few

years ago IT investments were dominated

by the larger enterprises. These large scale

organisations then took a backseat to the

region’s growing SMB sector in terms of IT

spending. Today, Gay says, although the

SMBs continue to spearhead investments

in innovative solutions portfolio, the large

enterprises are once again making their

comeback.

Gay adds that this influx of investment

from the SMB segment may also be due to a

significant increase in offerings for this portion

of the market. “While the large enterprises

and SMBs share requirements from IT, there

was previously a lack of offerings for the

SMBs that combined competitive prices with

enterprise class quality,” he says.

In a certain sense, we build a ‘Chinese’ wall between one line and the other to ensure there are no conflicts or competition within our own portfolio

and even when we do seem to carry competitive lines, we ensure they cater to different niches which ultimately kills the sense of competition.”


AUTHORIZED DISTRIBUTORS*

Tel: + 971 43552270 Email: [email protected]: + 962 65626440 Email: [email protected]: + 254 204442241 Email: [email protected]

Email: info@redington gulf.com

Tel: + 961 048132400 Email: [email protected]: + 966 920000089 Email: [email protected]: + 971 43734712 Email: [email protected]: + 973 17736363 Email: [email protected]: + 201 001562258 Email: [email protected]: + 254 738999344

* Please check our website of respective distributors coverage of countries and channels in the region.

Al Shadawi TradingDespec Levant

Despec East AfricaITE DistributionJarir Bookstore

Lifestyle by RedingtonNational trading house

Nordix EgyptRedington Africa

Designed for Life: Yours

operate in. What we launched with Mindware

is not just a product; we provide a close

partnership and an effective solution to the

customers. Mindware’s got the vast amount

of value that they bring to the partnership

and we will deliver these solutions as a joint

partnership. We don’t believe in signing on

a whole basket of partners in the region

because we believe that creates confusion.

Instead we narrow the choices down; select

the significant few and we build the business

together. We want to grow Mindware because

if their business is growing, we grow. On our

end we will provide them the best technology

available, product availability and logistical

management and that’s how we are going to

go forward,” says Havenga.

Channel first

What stands out about the distributor

is that in the wake of all this change, it

hasn’t compromised on its ability to upskill

its channel partners, opening it to new

opportunities and helping them to be

profitable.

An essential part of the company’s

channel strategy is its incentive programmes.

“Channel incentive programmes are

extremely important for our business to drive

sales. Not only do these programmess help

in capturing market share but they also help

promote greater loyalty with our partners

who then collaborate with us on building

a strong customer database, enable us to

launch new products, enhance margins,

reduce cost of sales, increase product

adoption and even help us attract more

partners to help us expand our geographical

reach. These incentive strategies promote

cross selling opportunities and ultimately

help us strengthen our relationship with

as distributor but a critical partner. Although

it was a very detailed process, it was an

easy decision to make because not only is

Mindware part of the Midis Group, it also

shares the same value system as Emerson.

We both believe in doing ethical business

and focus on availability and reliability as

core competencies. Both Mindware and

Emerson strive for growth and ensure we

supply the proper solutions to the customer.

And if that wasn’t enough, this agreement

gives us access to Mindware’s wide network

of resellers who can help us provide the right

levels of after sales service and support to

customers across the region. We don’t just

sell products and solutions, we want to make

sure it is maintained and working according

to expectations on a continuous basis,” he

explains.

According to Gay, this opportunity is

open to all of Mindware’s channel partners

and the only criterion for selection is the

drive for success. “We are going into this

partnership with a broad strategy that opens

the opportunity to all our resellers. The aim

is to reach out to as many customers armed

with Emerson’s leading product portfolio

bundled into the right solution offerings at the

right prices that we will further complement

with after sales support and services. The

only way to go is further up,” Gay says.

With this goal in mind the company is

now in the process of recruiting channel

partners, educating them on the varied

product portfolio, helping them price

and position the products in addition to

familiarising them with the technical details of

the portfolio.

“We strive to be number one on all our

business platforms across all the countries we

partners in order to maintain a strong sales

cycle,” says Gay.

Over the last year, the company

has revised its channel strategies to go

beyond the traditional ‘monetary’ gains to

offer incentives that help partners cover

operational costs or at other times re invest in

the business.

For instance, the ‘Mindware Fulfillment

Incentive Programme’ was launched in July

this year to further encourage its channel.

The programme was structured with the

intention to reward the participating channel

partners and involves a partnership with

Majid Al Futtaim for the incentive payout

via a Visa pre paid card that is valid for the

duration of three years from date of issue and

is conveniently redeemable at all operating

merchants accepting Visa worldwide.

“We have already paid out incentives

with the newly introduced programme

for promotions related to Intel, Microsoft,

Dell and Symantec, proving its success.

Participating in the scheme is as easy as

registering for it and keeping an eye for

all the promotions communicated to them

by our sales team. The aim we hope to

achieve from this programme is that it will

improve performance while retaining our

channel partners and will motivate our sales

team which in turn only helps the success of

our business,” he says.

The company echoes this focus on

the channel even when working out its

vendor portfolio. “We are careful to partner

with those vendors who we believe share

the same value system as Mindware, they

believe in the need to support and grow

the channel and most importantly help us

devise strategies and programmes to keep

our partners satisfied and competitive. We

are careful to provide our partners with

extensive in-country technical support and

stock availability to ensure they are on

top of their game. In addition, we invest

heavily in training and education, not

only when signing new partnerships but

throughout the relationship lifecycle to

ensure they are constantly updated and

geared to go,” Gay adds. //

FEATUREMindware

We don’t believe in signing on a whole basket of partners in the region because we believe that creates confusion. Instead we narrow the choices down; select

the significant few and we build the business together.


Our standard product line ranges from 12” to 55” and is available in the most popular and proven technologiesin today’s markets. And if you have special requirements, our “custom solutions” team is at your command.

DubaiP.O. Box: 32610, Dubai-UAE.Tel: +971 4 3426060Fax: +971 4 3547779Email: [email protected]

Our standard product line ranges from 12” to 55” and is available in the most popular and proven technologiesin today’s markets. And if you have special requirements, our “custom solutions” team is at your command.

DubaiP.O. Box: 32610, Dubai-UAE.Tel: +971 4 3426060Fax: +971 4 3547779Email: [email protected]

EmErging rElationshipsDeveloping countries in the Middle East offer a vast business opportunity for technology vendors. The number of IT vendors setting foot on the Middle Eastern shores is rising faster than ever, and those who can bring right products into this regional market can tap these fast-growing markets. Many of these vendors are relying on partners to acquire customers and expand the sales coverage across the region. We feature some of the new entrants who are scouting for channel partners to grow their business.

FEATURE


pantum

Veeam software

www.pantum.com

www.veeam.com

Pantum is a newly created printer brand

that serves the market with reliable and

affordable printing solution and services. This

Chinese brand provides printing solutions

to consumers, home offices as well as

businesses and governments with a full range

Veeam was founded as an organisation to

focus solely on the virtualisation environment.

Since its inception in 2006, the company

claims it has experienced huge growth

quarter on quarter and more than doubling in

size every single quarter since then.

of laser printers from single function laser

printers to Multi-function printers (MFPs) and

colour printers.

Pantum is in the process of setting

up operations in Dubai as a long-term

commitment to its partners and customers

in the region. “We have seen almost no new

brand entering the market over the past 20

years in the industry. Pantum is aiming at

bringing new innovation, new technology

and new value into the market. The MEA

market is one of the most important markets

for Pantum worldwide. By our unique

business model, we believe we can bring

long term benefit to our partners and the

market,” says Robert Liang, Sales Director,

MENA Region, Pantum.

Pantum did a soft launch in the MEA

market at Gitex, and says it has received

a very positive feedback, as resellers and

distributors are excited about the entry of a

new brand into the regional printer market.

Veeam, which has been present locally in

the Middle East for over 18 months now, has

grown its resources in the region, including

management, technical, sales, channel and

marketing, and boasts 30 new customers

every quarter.

“The current spending pattern now in

the Middle East centres around security,

virtualisation and disaster recovery. Fortunately,

Veeam plays a key role in two of those areas by

providing virtualisation and disaster recovery

for VMs,” says Gregg Petersen, Regional Sales

Manager – Middle East, Veeam Software.

Veeam is a 100 percent channel focused

company globally and in the Middle East. “We

will not transact a deal directly at all. We have

two distributors – Aptec- an Ingram Micro

Company and Magirum, which is now owned

by Avnet Distribution. We have over 150

partners in the Middle East, all on the various

levels given by Veeam from basic to silver to

gold partner status.”

“We are in the final stages of deciding who

to partner with. We believe in partnership

model to guarantee long term win-win

benefit relationship with our partners and

grow together with them,” says Liang.

Pantum says it has fielded many inquiries

from distributors and resellers across the MEA

market during GITEX. “The biggest challenge

we have at the moment is to select the right

partners who can add value to our brand

and the market, and who are truly willing to

develop the market and grow together with

us,” says Liang.

Pantum is gearing up to launch its

printers in Iran, UAE, other GCC markets, East

and South African markets in the next few

months, and expects to gain an impressive

market share by the end of 2013. “We will

keep launching new products such as MFP

and higher speed laser printer and updating

the market with our products every quarter in

the coming years,” adds Liang.

Veeam’s growth strategy in the region

hinges on the channel. “We at Veeam believe

that this is a two-way relationship. Sure

we rely on the partners to drive and grow

our business but they also rely on Veeam

to help them grow their business too. We

rely on our partners’ local knowledge with

regards to relationships in their customer

base, pre-sales skills and ability to generate

revenue for Veeam. Our partners rely on

Veeam for customer focused sales, marketing

and training for sales and technical people.

Together this is proving to be a winning

formula for Veeam globally and in the Middle

East,” says Petersen.

He says the biggest challenge for the

company has been introducing the channel

to a relatively new and disruptive technology.

Though the initial focus for Veeam in the

Middle East was to acquire customers, now

the company is gearing up for the next phase

of growth enabled by the channel.

Robert Liang, Sales Director, MENA Region

Gregg Petersen, Regional Sales Manager – Middle East, Veeam Software


Enable your workforce with Intermec and let downtime disappearIntermec offers best-in-class rugged mobile computers, fixed and mobile printers, scanners, RFID products and services that can help you achieve the productivity and accuracy gains your business demands.

Companies around the world rely on Intermec technologies and solutions to transform their inventory processes, drive competitive advantage, and meet complex asset management needs.

For more information about Intermec please visit www.intermec.com or contact us at +971 4 391 1940.

For all local enquiries please contact:

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17509-Mirnha Ad-207x270mm-V3.indd 1 05/10/2012 08:29

sourcefire

Virtualsharp

www.sourcefire.com

www.virtualsharp.com

Sourcefire provides intelligent cyber

security solutions with a focus on increased

visibility and control to help enterprises

manage and minimise network security

risks. The Middle East region is of strategic

importance for Sourcefire.

“Through our distributors’ efforts, we have

seen a significant increase in business from

the region and felt it was the right time for us

For those organisations that are evolving

IT services to private clouds, disaster

recovery is a must-have to keep the

to have a local presence. Growing Internet

and e-commerce activities have created a

greater need for IT security solutions in the

region as well as increased awareness of the

potential risks that can impact organisations

in the Middle East,” says Maher Jadallah,

Regional Manager of MEA at Sourcefire .

He adds that there is a growing demand

for enhanced IT security solutions due to the

sophisticated and evolving nature of today’s

threats. “What makes the case even tougher

is the unpredictable affects these threats

can have on the IT environment, which

put the IT security staff into challenging

and new situations where the traditional,

static security tools that organisations have

come to rely on are heavy and incapable of

defending against,”Jadallah adds.

The channel is a crucial part of Sourcefire’s

growth strategy for the MENA region. “We

transact a significant amount of our regional

business through our channel, which shows

how important our partners are to us. We have

partnered with FVC and Secureway in the

region to drive growth,” says Jadallah.

business running. They must be able

to both assure the delivery of the

service, as well as support business

continuity to their lines of business,

customers and auditors. VirtualSharp

Software has pioneered the concept of

Recovery Assurance in order to address

this complex problem specifically.

The company, which has successfully

introduced this concept within several

enterprise customers across the world, is

now eyeing the regional market.

“Since the Middle East market has

adopted the VMware virtualisation

quickly and that the region has a lot of

focus on the aspects of high availability

and DR makes this the ultimate region

for a solution like ReliableDR from

VirtualSharp,” says Michael Hillewaert, VP

Sourcefire says it is committed to

achieving and maintaining a high level of

mutual success with its partners. The vendor

has a Global Security Alliance channel

partner programme in place with unique

programmes and incentives to help drive

market penetration and partner loyalty.

This programme enables its channel with

flexible levels of participation based on their

organisation’s business goals and growth

strategies. “We provide marketing resources

and channel enablement programs to help

our partners further strengthen customer

relationships and loyalty for a true win-

win relationship. Our programme also

provides partners with deal protection, sales

enablement training, market development

funds and financial incentives for increased

commitment to Sourcefire,” says Jadallah.

Over the next 12 months, the company

is planning to hold a series of road shows in

the region, in addition to continue to invest

in training and certification programs for

partners in this region to provide them with the

knowledge and resources to serve customers.

of International Sales at VirtualSharp.

VirtualSharp is foraying into the

Middle East market with a 100 percent

channel strategy. “ It enables us to scale

quickly and importantly to regionalise our

customer approach. In order to build out

our Middle East channel, we’ve partnered

with Aptec- an Ingram Micro Company,

which has shown to be able to do that

successfully with VMware, a company we

work closely with,” says Hillewaert.

He adds that the plan the next 12-18

months is to set up a local VirtualSharp

team to support both partners and

customers in the region. “We have seen

that being present in a region always

accelerates the adoption of a technology

and we have high hopes for it in the

Middle East.”

Maher Jadallah, Regional Manager of MEA at Sourcefire

Michael Hillewaert, VP of International Sales at VirtualSharp

FEATUREEmerging relationships



pivot3

mi-token

www.pivot3.com

www.mi-token.com

Pivot3 with its HQ in Houston, Texas

was founded in 2003 on the idea that a

revolutionary scale-out architecture would

deliver large-scale, high-bandwidth storage

using off-the-shelf hardware components

combined with specialised software. Pivot3’s

architecture aggregates the storage capacity

Mi-Token, which provides two-factor

authentication solutions, set up its office in

Dubai in September this year to support its

so that all virtual desktops have access to all

of the storage resources on all appliances,

which makes performance more predictable

during peak times.

The unified storage vendor started its

operations in the Middle East in early 2011,

after earmarking it as a potential high-growth

market. “The Middle East market is known

to adopt latest technologies and making

investments for the future. Energy and

resource management takes precedence in

markets like the ME where cost control and

energy efficiency is key. Pivot3 VDI solutions

are capable of delivering exactly this for end

user computing,” says Anand Chakravarthi,

Director of Sales - Middle East & India, Pivot3.

Pivot3 has recently signed with Aptec-

an Ingram Micro Company as its distribution

partner in this region. “As a value added

distributor Aptec provides us the right

platform to reach out in this market with

their well-established channel. Resellers

are always looking up to their distributors

in assisting them develop a viable solution

local partner Help AG in their drive to support

clients remove static passwords completely

from their environments by deploying easy to

manage One Time Password systems.

“We also recognised the need to build a

broader trusted third party partner network

across the region and needed to be here

to meet, vet and recruit the best security

integration partners. There is an increasing

awareness of the risk of weak and static

passwords and this was highlighted recently

by major incidents occurring at Saudi Aramco

and RasGas,” says John Nolan, VP of Mi-

Token Middle East.

Mi-Token is currently in the process of

recruiting partners in the region, having had

a very successful relationship with Help AG in

the UAE. “We are currently seeking similarly

qualified security gold partners in other

territories. However, finding partners that

architecture for their customer base. Aptec

is one of the very few who deliver such a

support to their channel,” says Chakravarthi.

He adds that customers today are not

merely looking for quick fix solutions but a

long-term relationship with the technology

providers . Pivot3 says the company along

with its channel is focused on developing

such relationships with the end customers

rather than just delivering solutions.

“We plan to establish, grow and invest

further in this market as we see high growth.

Developing the right channel and creating

value opportunities is the key. The possibilities

are limitless, but aiding customer as a trusted

advisor and able to deliver what you promise

will eventually provide the desired business

objectives and boost business.

“Our solution is relatively a new

innovative category and our vision is to

create such newer category of products and

solutions to be market leader, strive to deliver

value to the market and eventually customer

success,” says Chakravarthi.

understand security solution selling has not

been easy,” says Nolan.

Mi-Token has worked closely with Help

AG over the last 12 months in the UAE,

which has been instrumental in establishing

Mi-Token as a key and integral component

in most major security projects that it has

undertaken.

Nolan says Mi-Token’s target is to be

the number one two factor authentication

solution for cloud and OWA (Outlook web

access) solutions in the region over the

next 18 months. “We have an attractive

partner revenue share plan and technical

support program to reward our trusted

partners. We are also seeking Application

development partners that can use our

software development toolkits to embed One

Time Passwords (OTP) and Secure Payment

capabilities within their applications,” he adds.

Anand Chakravarthi, Director of Sales - Middle East & India, Pivot3

John Nolan, VP of Mi-Token Middle East


Zebra technologies

my-hD

www.zebra.com

www.my-hd.tv

Zebra Technologies offers a broad portfolio

of products in printing technologies. It

includes kiosks, printers, RFID printers and

label printers.

“We also have software to back our

hardware that we offer. We do a lot of

printer management, print monitoring, label

design software and ID designing software.

We have software professional teams. And

lead by innovation, and try to expand and

serve the needs of the customers. We have

also been growing in the region, achieving

growth in double digits for the past

few years,” says Pratik Kajaria, Channel

Account Manager at Zebra Technologies.

The system integrators play a crucial role

in Zebra’s business. “They basically integrate

our products into the existing infrastructure of

the customer. We do work with the distribution

channel too, as many of our products are

available off- the-shelf. We have over 100

partners in the region now,” says Kajaria.

Zebra has its Partner First programme

to offer value to existing partners and to

recruit new ones. “Our channel programme

offers training and assistance, facilitates

easier work flow and gives more visibility of

the market. We have a channel team who

work with them based on the programme.

In addition, Zebra has a distribution

model where we engage with distribution

partners, and premier level one partners

also. Though it’s not new, we continuously

work on the programme, and fill the gaps

by applying the right level of partners,”

says Kajaria.

Zebra also has a partner portal that

offers training online. “We engage with

My-HD was founded earlier this year to

help broadcasters make that transition from

Standard Definition (SD) to HD by providing

a secure premium free Pay TV Platform with

a single viewing card solution for all HD

channels in the Middle East and North Africa

(MENA) region.

“We started the My-HD operations

in June 2012 to provide MENA television

households the best viewing experience at

the lowest cost through an approved decoder

and My-HD viewing card, while providing an

opportunity for HD channels to share revenue

from the low cost viewing card,” says Cliff

Nelson, CEO of My-HD Media.

My-HD has a growing network of

distributors across the MENA region.

the partners by offering them extensive

technical training, and we often invite

our trainers from the UK to run training

workshops across the region,” says Kajaria.

In addition, Zebra works very closely

with ISVs to add value and position its

products to high-end customers. “The ISV

programme was launched two years ago

and we have recruited a high number of

ISV partners since in the region. We also

recruit specialist partners and offer multiple

vertical solutions spanning retail, healthcare,

manufacturing, etc,” says Kajaria.

Zebra targets both mid-sized to

large scale enterprises market. “We offer

supplies, after sales, and care contracts.

We have independent Zebra authorised

service partners in the region, who have

specifically trained knowledge with our

products and solutions and can assist in

after-sales

Zebra which is focused on its three key

verticals - government, healthcare and

retail – is planning to enhance its portfolio

over the next 12 months and launch more

entry-level products to cater to the needs

of the specialised printing market.

Approved decoders and viewing cards are

also available in major hypermarkets and

department stores in the region including

Carrefour, Panda, Expert, Lulu and Sharaf DG.

“We also have some very exciting partnerships

and announcements in the pipeline to assist in

strengthening our HD offering,” says Nelson.

He says a strong distribution and retail

chain is critical to the success of My-HD. “In

many respects, buying a My-HD viewing card

at very modest cost – less than $25 per year

– is an impulse purchase for customers and so

visible retail distribution is critical. It also offers

an incremental revenue or incentivise up-sell

opportunity for retailers who can also bundle

the viewing card with an approved receiver, an

HD television and installation.”

Pratik Kajaria, Channel Account Manager at Zebra Technologies

Cliff Nelson, CEO of My-HD Media



During an age of incredible technology’ stylish smartphones, tidy tablets, and luxurious laptops, we’re spoilt for choice in innovative, mobile treats. However, as great as the selection is, these devices come at a cost. The lower end of the market, let’s be frank, has always lacked the spark that the higher end products promise to deliver. So, you can imagine the Eureka moment Huawei must have had when it completed the Ascend G300, a low end, affordable smartphone that actually warrants its place beside the iPhone, Galaxy and BlackBerry.

Huawei ascend G300

reviewHuawei

In response to the next

generation consumers, the

Ascend G300 is a brilliant device

from the outside in. It’s stylish,

light (140g), and solid. The solidity is

something worth mentioning because it is a

cheaper option of smartphone, and these

devices can often feel that way. However,

Huawei have bridged a significant gap with

this model and it feels complete in your

hand. Ok, it’s a little rough and ready, the

finish doesn’t ooze quality, but that’s not the

point. The Ascend isn’t trying to distract you

from the fact that it’s a cheaper smartphone

option (asides the metallic disguising plastic

cover I suppose); it plays to its strengths.

The boring details; it runs on the

Android OS, Gingerbread v2.3, 5mp camera,

4 GB of memory, full touch screen, and

480x800 pixel resolution. Not too bad so far,

considering its price.

The screen isn’t nearly as crisp as the

more expensive models, fine face on, but

slightly off axis you’ll easily recognise the

difference. However, it’s packed full of

decent features which are highly enjoyable

regardless. Simple things like live wallpapers,

similar to the Galaxy, swipe panel options for

the home screen and an extremely fast start-

up time, all add neat touches.

I recorded around about four and a half

hours of battery life when Wi-Fi browsing,

that’s more than I could get from some recent

high end market releases - that’s impressive.

The company claims that the talk time is over

five hours, but I don’t have that many friends,

so I can’t confirm this.

The Qualcomm Snapdragon processor

(1GHz) on board the G300 is a very good

runner. It’s fast enough, plays high quality,

3D games, and makes light work of the

swipe browsing, which makes the phone

very user friendly. Too often have I thrown

a device (literally) because of slow reaction

speeds. Rest assured, your family, friends and

colleagues are safe in your presence when

you’re holding the G300.

I’m a snappy happy chap, and I had a

lovely surprise when I tucked into the camera.

In good light, and in focus, the Ascend takes

fine photos. There are a few good camera

options/settings and I had a good couple of

hours enjoying them. It isn’t a fantastic piece

of work but it’s adequate considering the

asking price. The shutter speed is pretty fast,

as is the auto-focus, so I wasn’t complaining.

It’s a pretty good social phone, you won’t

be lagging behind your pals too much if they

have the more expensive models. However,

it doesn’t have a camera built into the front

of the device, so you will get left out of the

video calls.

Final verdict?

I have awarded the Huawei Ascend G300 two

thumbs up. It has a great battery life, and is

stylish and sturdy with a good list of features.

The pitfalls of most cheap smartphones

seemed to have been addressed and

answered to a fairly decent standard in the

G300. The winning element of this phone

though, is of course the price – a criminal

AED 799. //

This review was done by Joe Lipscombe, Sub-Editor of CPI Technology


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Leading figures from the technology world descended into Dubai World Trade Centre throughout the week of October 14 for what was dubbed the biggest ever GITEX Technology Week.

Best in show

Now in its 32nd year and ran under the

theme ‘Where Technology Means Business’,

GITEX Technology Week is widely regarded

as one of the world’s top three international

ICT events. It followed GITEX Shopper, the

consumer electronics retail show, which also

saw great success this year with record-

breaking attendance and sales.

“GITEX Technology Week has always

been a vital force in driving the ICT sector to

generate both profit and performance in the

industry, not only throughout the MEA region

but also on a global stage,” says Helal Saeed

Almarri, CEO, Dubai World Trade Centre.

“As the momentum of traditional ICT

markets slows down and reaches saturation

in developed nations, the MEA region offers

lucrative opportunities for investors and global

companies in a rapidly expanding industry.

Over its successful 32 years, GITEX Technology

Week has been a catalyst and influence in

growing technology tourism and strengthening

trade ties with Africa as the continent

experiences an ICT boom,” he adds.

GITEX Technology Week is an authority

in the region and has proven each year

its adaptability in presenting trending

technologies and setting the current business

agenda. It has highlighted key focus areas

including Africa and its burgeoning ICT market,

start-ups and innovation in an SME zone, the

consumerisation of IT, big data and the ongoing

cloud phenomenon.

Presence of international companies

at GITEX grew once again this year and

represented more than half of the total

exhibitors, with Algeria, Denmark, Malaysia and

New Zealand among the countries exhibiting

for the first time.

With over 80% of leading global ICT brands

present and C-level executives representing

ICT budgets of over $50 billion, the exhibitors

and speakers list was packed with industry

heavyweights such as Cisco, Dell, du, Etisalat,

Facebook, Google, HP, Huawei, Kaspersky,

Microsoft, Nokia, Oracle, RIM, Samsung, SAP

ANALYSISGITEX


PLATINUM SPONSOR GOLD SPONSOR CONNECT PARTNER

FOUNDING PARTNERS

COUNTRY HOST PARTNER OFFICIAL MEDIA PARTNERS

ORGANISED BY SOCIAL MEDIA PARTNER

KNOWLEDGE PARTNERS

and Symantec.

Notable new exhibitors included Chinese

telecommunications equipment company ZTE,

Saudi Telecom Company, Sage, Vocalcom

and African IT distributors Mitsumi. The event

had new technology giants, over 130,000

industry professionals and more than 3,500

suppliers attending from 144 countries across

five continents.

Government entities were also out in force,

with Abu Dhabi Police, Dubai E-Government,

Dubai Health Authority, Emirate of Abu Dhabi

Judicial Department, Fujairah Free Zone, Ras

Al Khaima Free Zone and Sharjah Free Zone

all present.

Dubai eGovernment’s stand saw a

particularly large turnout by attracting over

7,000 visitors. The 2,700-square meter stand

accommodated the 26 government entities

and contributed to raising public awareness

about eServices.

“Gitex 2012 provided the audience with a

single platform to explore the latest eServices

and mobile applications offered by Dubai

eGovernment and government departments

and entities under one roof. This will certainly

boost the demand for such type of services from

citizens, residents, visitors and businesses,” says

H.E. Ahmad Bin Humaidan, Director General,

Dubai eGovernment Department.

Bin Humaidan notes that the success

of Dubai eGovernment’s stand in attracting

increasing numbers of visitors year after year will

motivate more government entities to join it. By

virtue of the stand’s success this year, the number

of participating government entities is expected

to rise by 16 per cent next year, he says.

Also hot on the radar at GITEX 2012 was the

first UAE public demo of the widely anticipated

and now recently launched Windows 8.

As well as showcasing Windows 8 at its

stand, over 20 Microsoft partners featured

their own innovations they had developed on

Microsoft platforms such as Lync, Dynamics

and Office 365.

On the eve of GITEX, Emerson Network

Power announced a strategic alliance with

Mindware, a locally established IT channel leader.

“The alliance will see the partner provide

single-phase uninterruptible power supply

systems, racks and accessories and power

distribution units to organisations in the Middle

East and North Africa,” says Pierre Havenga,

Managing Director, Emerson Network Power

(Systems), MENA.

“GITEX went really well for Emerson this

year. We wanted to leverage attention on the

show to highlight our new partnership with

Mindware,” he adds.

Epicor used the event to promote its next

generation enterprise resource planning (ERP)

solution, Epicor ERP.

“As GITEX is the only technology

tradeshow in the region that provides an

active platform for IT and technology vendors

to interact with prospective customers

and prospective partners, we successfully

capitalised on every opportunity and have

gathered a significant number of contacts and

potential business leads,” Kanaran says.

For many companies, GITEX is about

visibility. Raymond Al Chabab, Director of Sales

and Marketing, STME, confirms this was the

case for STME.

“We have recently done rebranding and

are working on a new website, so for us it was

ANALYSISGITEX


a great opportunity to work on our presence.

We have already grown our sales substantially

this year and whatever we get from GITEX is of

course a bonus and a great addition,” he says.

For Despec, GITEX 2012 was all about

having a bigger stand, bigger assortment and

bigger reach.

“The main focus was to showcase our

new ranges in the channel,” says Dipika Goyal,

Marketing Manager, Despec. “Having acquired

a successful ‘supplies-only’ distributor status in

the channel, Despec is now not only expanding

the in-country distribution model, but also

growing in the product assortment catering

mainly to the SMART technology range. We

announced our new partnerships with some of

the top vendors in the channel and promoted

the new ranges.”

GITEX brings in visitors from across the

Middle East and Africa, who are looking for

new technologies, according to Tarek Helmy,

Regional Director Gulf & Middle East, Nexans

Cabling Solutions.

“It is a perfect event for us to scout for new

resellers and meet potential customers and

promote our solutions to them. GITEX 2012

opened up a lot of new avenues for Nexans

and helped us to promote our products. We

use every feedback and experience from

GITEX to prepare better for the event next

year,” Helmy says.

Apart from receiving sales queries, Golden

Systems Middle East (GSME) had one to one

meetings with its vendor partners and customers

from the Middle East and North Africa.

“Further we were able to promote our

latest innovative technologies and sign new

partnerships thus meeting our main objectives

for participating in GITEX. Our participation in

GITEX this year was fruitful. We did manage

to get a lot of positive feedback from our

customers and partners on our products. We

also signed on new resellers in countries where

we were looking to increase our presence,” says

Chantelle Tavid, Marketing Manager, GSME.

Focus Softnet’s participation in GITEX

2012 was also a success, says the company’s

CEO Ali Hyder.

“Apart from launching our new offerings

such as Focus CRM, Retail Management

System and our new services division at the

event, we were also able to increase the brand

awareness for our products and received a

lot of sales queries. Our sales team is busy

following up on the potential leads we received

at GITEX and we are confident these leads will

result in business for Focus,” Hyder says.

FVC used GITEX to showcase the

Polycom Telepresence solution, a new

customised video conferencing solution

devised by the team at FVC.

“We also introduced portable video

conferencing solutions for industry specific

issues as well as other solutions within

security and networking, and we announced

our partnership with Microsoft and signed an

MOU with STC to launch Managed Video as

a Service in KSA. Generating leads for new

business and increasing an awareness of what

we do are the important aspects for FVC to

participate in GITEX,” says Dharmendra Parmer,

General Manager, Marketing, FVC.

According to Nassir Nauthoa, General

Manager, GCC, Intel, GITEX plays an important

role for both Intel and the growth of the

region’s ICT industry.

“During the show we partnered with

McAfee to address cloud computing and

security concerns in the region with a focus on

four key areas; securing cloud data centres,

securing the network connections, securing

the devices that connect to cloud services;

and accelerating the development of unified

standards for cloud security,” Nauthoa says.

ANALYSISGITEX

Cliff Nelson, CEO, My-HD Media,

emphasises the importance of the Middle

East and events like GITEX in growing its

distributor base.

“My-HD has a growing network of

distributors across the MENA region.

Approved decoders and viewing cards are

also available in major hypermarkets and

department stores in the region including

Carrefour, Panda, Expert, Lulu and Sharaf DG.

We also have some very exciting partnerships

and announcements in the pipeline to assist in

strengthening our HD offering,” Nelson says.

Over at GITEX Shopper, Emax aimed to

showcase its wide range of products available

under one roof. “Emax featured one of the

largest exhibitions at the GITEX Shopper

event and this was a reflection of our large

scale operations and an indicator of our vision

to be the leading and preferred electronics

destination in the region. Emax was hugely

popular and successful at the event,” says

Neelesh Bhatnagar, CEO, Emax. //

Quality Gulf, which owns the Touchmate brand, is riding the crest of a growth wave in the tablet market. This local brand, which has proven popular in the second-tier market, is now gearing up for future growth with innovative products in its arsenal. Vasant Menghani, MD of Quality Gulf, spoke to us about the growth strategy.

A homegrown success story

IntervIewtouchmate

Can you tell us about your company?

From our very humble beginnings as a retailer

in 1998, we have grown as a brand that boasts

1100 products in the portfolio. The Touchmate

brand was conceived at the behest of HH

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum,

who wanted a made-in-UAE brand. Now, our

products are available in 60 countries across

the Middle East and Africa through retailers and

160 hyper markets. In fact, we were the first

ones to convince hyper markets in the region

to carry IT products, as they were initially

sceptical of consumers buying PCs off the

shelf. Our success can be attributed to the fact

that we do the right things at the right time.

How was GITEX for you?

We have been part of GITEX since its very

inception and we participate at the show every

year to support our retail partners, who have

significantly contributed to the growth of our

brand. They have helped reach out to a wider

audience and constantly encouraged us to

keep innovating. This year, we showcased our

entire range with a special focus on our tablet

range, which now includes 25 different models.

Isn’t the second tier tablet market already

crowded?

I don’t think so, because it is a hugely

untapped market. We do not compete with

the likes of Apple or Samsung, but cater

to the medium to low income segment of

consumers, who are looking for value for

money products. We have worked very

hard at creating products that deliver the

experience of a much more expensive

brand at half the cost, and this strategy

has paid off. Touchmate branded tablet

was launched at last year’s Gitex, when

we sold 300 units. This year, during The

show, we have sold 85000 units and that

speaks volumes of the kind of growth you

can see in the tablet market. We bundle

our products with lot of value-addition. For

example, our retail partners sold our tablets

with a bundled holiday package offer, which

itself was worth $200.

Do you think the launch of Windows 8 will

spur the PC market?

Yes indeed and I believe Windows 8 will

change the dynamics of this market. As a

Microsoft gold partner, we have a roadmap

that includes a range of Windows 8 tablets

and we are excited about the new products

built on this fantastic platform. We work very

closely with Intel as well, as the only desktop

manufacturing vendor in the region.

How about your software business?

Our software portfolio is growing and

basically comprises office automation

products. We work very closely with our

partner Unistal, which has a development

centre in India and we have plans to expand

our software portfolio further next year.

What are the other plans for next year?

We are in the process of setting up direct

presence in both Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Though our products are already available in

these markets through the distributors, we felt

the need to invest in resources on the ground

to support our partners. We are foraying into

the European markets such as Switzerland,

Germany and Netherlands. We are also

exploring the opportunities around the home

appliances market. //

Vasant Menghani, MD of Quality Gulf


preferred partners in this region recently.

We’ve got around 44 here now, that number

has increased by about 15-20% in the last

six months.

Within these programmes we try to

specifically cover individual competencies

- solutions, network, security, cloud, etc. We

work on four key elements revolving around

simplicity, rewarding, enabling and training.

What we do is allow partners to see what

they need to do in order to develop their

competency in these areas. We compliment

their skills set with our portfolio.

Dell is extending its reach further into the channel to attract more partners. John Coulston , Director of Channel Programs and Operations at Dell Middle East, explains the partner strategy.

Can you please tell us about your

distribution strategy? Is Dell

committed to partners?

Historically we’ve been a direct

vendor, but in the Middle East we’ve

always just dealt with channel partners.

Our total partner programme - Partner

Direct - was launched about five years ago.

It’s a globally award winning programme

which is segmented into three categories:

registered, preferred and premier partners,

though we haven’t launched premier in this

region yet. We’ve seen a real increase in

Defining new value

Do you have partners working across your

entire portfolio or are they all segmented?

We have partners who work in only separate

areas. Preferred partners who work on storage

are an example. We want to push capability in

specific verticals through our partners.

How does a registered partner become a

preferred partner?

It comes down to capability really. We will

take a business plan, review it, and see if

it’s appropriate for us. We need to see if the

commitment from us will match the revenue

we think it will bring. The opportunity is in

understanding where the partner will take

their business.

From your experience here in the region,

what are the trends emerging in the channel?

There are a lot of different channel trends

at the moment. Here, we get a lot of mega

projects, but not all partners have the ability

to play in those areas. We have bigger ones

that do and that is a distinct advantage for

Middle East partners.

The main thing is that customers are

demanding more and more specialist skills

mainly around virtualisation, cloud and

networking. They want to know that the

organisation knows how to deliver, and they

want to know that the vendor is going to be

standing behind them throughout to support

them.

How do you make sure that your partners

are equipped with these skills?

We’re doing a lot of work to bring our global

IP and share that with our partners. Anything

we know, they know, that’s the goal. Bringing

our best practices and implementing them in

the region. We take our vertical sector teams

and go round and share them across our

preferred partners in the region.

vendor focusDell

John Coulston , Director of Channel Programs and Operations , Dell Middle East

56 Reseller Middle East october 2012

In actual fact, we have a specific expert in

the field who goes around and actually talks

and trains people on the skills which have

been acquired from outside the region.

What are the investments from a customer

point of view, what technologies do they want?

Cloud is a big area at the moment. They

want to know what it means, how to

take advantage of it, etc. However, cloud

questions for mid market are different to

higher market questions. They want to know

how to take advantage of storage, whereas at

mega project level it is how to build a private

cloud, and how can their employees use it.

Also, security is not going to go away, that’s

big now. So we focus a lot on this area.

How does Dell define value?

Value for us is around bringing a number

of technology areas together to provide a

solution for a partner. It could be in a physical

sense, building an entire office environment or

conference rooms equipped with telephony

and digital white boards. Alternatively, it

could be about virtualising a data centre, and

introducing virtual solutions. So long as the

package is complete, manageable and of high

expertise, we consider it valuable.

We also want to be valuable towards the

widest range of the market as possible. With

the growth and maturity of online transactions

and purchases, you are going to see a lot of

SMB start-ups and they’ll be looking for help.

So this is a big opportunity in this region.

Do you have SMB focused partners, and do

their demands differ from larger enterprises?

We have generic partners focus on the mid

market and smaller businesses. And then the

specific partners we have will focus on the

bigger corporate companies and projects.

In general the larger enterprises have

resources in house to some degree and

they’re responsible for specific negotiation in

specific technologies. SMBs will just require

more outsourced support from us, certainly

more manageability.

How much of the cloud discussion is a

reality in active partners?

It depends what your definition of cloud

is. We have small business storage

environments similar to SkyDrive, for

example. That’s you first step into a cloud

environment. Then you’ve got higher abilities,

virtual desktop capabilities via the cloud. It

could be any device accessing your data

independent of where you are, that’s the

cloud, and that’s realistically using it.

How do you revise strategies and keep

them relevant?

We weren’t always committed to stable

strategies and people didn’t like this, so now

we’ve changed that. We’re far more focused

on being strategically stable. Our partner

programme will stay the same, as will the key

elements of the strategy. Our partners can

now rely on that.

How are incentives changing?

The maturity of the channel has increased

here in the Middle East over the past few

years. The question now is: how can I build

my infrastructure so that I have the most

competitive offer for my customers out there,

how do I build my capabilities and how do

vendors support us during that?

We also need to look at how we work

together to make sure the technology is up

to scratch.

The technology is becoming more

sophisticated, fortunately Dell has a huge

depth of knowledge, and our partners love

that from us. We’re built to work directly with

customers and partners can take advantage

of that if they plug into it.

Dell is actively expanding, what will the big

announcements be in the coming months?

Our major announcement is our re-launch of

the preferred partner programme, though it’s

not really a re-launch as we never launched

it properly in the first place. That’s our focus

for the next couple years. You’ll see us launch

a cloud competency programme in the very

near future too. We already have storage and

we’ve closed the acquisition of SonicWall, so

the security programme will come out soon.

We have our WADIM (workshop/assess/

design/implement and manage) approach,

and we will push that over the coming years

and share it with our partners.

What will your main focus be for your

partners?

We will focus heavily on what they need in

order to demonstrate ROI and what they

need going forward. Building a long term

relationship with new partners is a key focus,

making sure the data centre is always up and

running etc. That project management type

of approach is a critical element that partners

are interesting in and I see that being a big

trend in the coming months.

What are the main challenges facing the

channel and how does Dell help address these?

The key challenges come from the pace

of technology change, the cost of keeping

up to speed with change is dramatic. The

requirements partners need to increase

investments grows all the time.

If we can keep our programmes to our four

pillar strategy then we’re on the right track.

Partners have specifically said ‘help us get

specialised’, ‘don’t ask us for one thing today

and a different thing tomorrow’, and ‘if we

invest with Dell, will we see a return on that?’

These are the main areas we need to focus on

in order to serve our customers’ challenges.

Our commitment to our partner

programme is just getting bigger and bigger

over time. Investing in our partner programme

is so important to us here at Dell.

A main partner fear is the commitment to

technologies during times of change. We’re

in it for the long term, we won’t change our

strategy and we won’t lower our support.

We’re staying put and we’re committed to

standing side by side with those partners. //

We’re doing a lot of work to bring our global IP and share that with our partners. Anything we know, they know, that’s the goal. Bringing our best practices and implementing them in the region. We take our vertical sector teams and go round and share them across our preferred partners in the region.

Reseller Middle Eastoctober 2012 57

LifeSize CEO Colin Buechler was in Dubai recently to attend the company’s annual EMEA partner conference. He spoke to us about his company’s go-to-market strategy and what sets it apart from competitors.

viDeo conferencing for every buDget

What is LifeSize’s unique value

proposition?

LifeSize is the innovation leader

in video conferencing. We were

actually the pioneer that created high

definition video communications. We first

launched our first product in 2005, so we’ve

been shipping for seven years. We operate

Colin Buechler, CEO, LifeSize

vendor focusLifeSize

in 80 countries around the world with tens

of thousands of customers. Much of the

industry-firsts have come out of LifeSize.

We have been defining where the

industry has been going since inception. As

well as being the first to launch HD video

conferencing, we were also the first to launch

it for under $5000, so we brought price

performance to the industry. Our vision is to

provide high quality video communication

to anyone, anywhere. We wanted to make

video conferencing mainstream, rather than

just in the largest boardrooms in the largest

companies in the world. To do that you have

to create a flexible architecture that can be

accessible to any company of any size.

One great example is we were the

first company to provide one button push

streaming, recording and archiving, so not

only can you collaborate in high definition,

but you can record that with just one button

push and then you can stream that out to

thousands of participants and then archive

that to provide either on-demand or live.

We continue to provide those types of

innovations around ease and simplicity.

We’re usually not looking where we are but

where we’re going. We saw mobility being

an explosion in our industry. It went from

something that was interesting and nice to

have about a year and a half ago, to being

mandatory in almost every deal that we

look at, which has really been driven by

tablets, specifically the iPad and increasingly

Android devices. So we saw this trend

happening and about a year and a half ago

we bought a company called Mirial out of

Milan, Italy, that was the leading provider of

mobile high definition video communication

that support the broadest array of mobile

devices, both iOS and Android devices, in

the world.

Another great example of innovation

from LifeSize is our virtualised infrastructure.

We defined this incredible high quality video

collaboration, but it was connected to almost

arcane and backwards-facing infrastructure.

Our industry has been very slow to adopt

technologies that have been evident in many

other IT stacks. Some of us don’t necessarily

come from the video conferencing industry. My

Head of Products and I both come from Dell and

so when we looked at infrastructure, we didn’t

want to build what other people build, that’s not

what LifeSize does. We try to redefine it in a way

that we believe customers can take advantage

of. We did the same thing with infrastructure so

instead of building products that our competitors

had, we built a very flexible infrastructure that

we call our Universal Video Collaboration (UVC)

platform, which was the industry’s first virtualised

infrastructure platform.


vendor focusLifeSize

How do you see investments in video

communications picking up in the Middle

East and what would you say to end users in

the region?

We’re starting to see bandwidth being one

of the top three priorities that governments

are talking about as they try to improve

the e-networks in their countries and really

starting with the cities and working their

way out. We’re really seeing a meaningful

investment in trying to improve the

broadband networks. One of the things

that we do at LifeSize though is our codex

support over 200 native resolutions. In the

first place we provide high definition at the

lowest bandwidths in the industry, which is

768kb. However, we understand that not

every customer can take advantage of that

bandwidth, so our codex will automatically

readjust themselves to lower bandwidths

and correct in order to provide the best

quality of experience in any bandwidth. So

we understand that not all networks will be

perfect and we try to adjust for that with the

technology rather than the customer having

to adjust for that within the network. But the

more investment we see in the network, the

more opportunity there is for companies to

take advantage of collaborative technologies

like video.

What feedback are you getting from

partners and customers in this region and

what are the things they need you to help

them with?

The feedback we get tends to fall into a

couple of areas. One is around awareness

with people wanted us to dispel some of the

myths when it comes to video conferencing.

The second is to make it far easier for them

to understand and deploy. A lot of partners

want to take advantage of providing video

as part of a broader solution, but they need

help in how to deploy and build those video

environments in order to provide the best

quality experience. Others are looking for

help and assistance in order to make it easier

for them to participate in the broader solution.

Do you try to balance your expertise

between technology and business?

Yes, we want to provide solutions to

customers’ problems, not just sell them

equipment. You find that if you can

understand a customer’s needs and provide

them solutions to their problems, they’re

going to be loyal customers. If you come

in and convince them to buy a product and

they’re still in the same place afterwards,

they’re going to go and try to find somebody

else. We respect the intelligence of our

customers and want to help them solve

problems – that is what our technologies

are enabling them to do. The Middle East is

a very exciting market for us because there

is so much change that is going on in the

region and visual technology is a redefining

technology. We’re finding that industries,

education, healthcare and business services

are redefining themselves around visual

technology because it’s what’s new and

different in unified communications. Many

industries are built around areas of expertise

and you have to bring people to those

experts in order to take advantage of that.

Data and audio don’t really change any of

that, but with visual communication you’re

able to bring those experts to the people

where they are. In universities around

the world we’re seeing distance learning

explode and we’re seeing healthcare

redefine itself where it’s not only training

but remote diagnostics all the way to

telepsychiatry is being built around high

definition video communications. We’re

seeing that start to happen in the Middle

East as well, where public entities and

companies are getting past the awareness

of what high definition video can do as

compare to what they had before.

Are you customising solutions based on

vertical sectors?

That’s something that we do with our partners

and we really look for partners that have that

expertise, whether it be vertical expertise

or application-based expertise. A lot of

partners add value to their customers by

understanding those end customer needs

well. So we have capabilities within our

solutions that are built to verticals, especially

some of the more public verticals like

healthcare and education. But we really look

to our partners to try and add value-added

services on top of that to provide unique

experiences for our customers.

What sort of partners do you look for?

We have distributors around the world that

we work with but we look for distributors that

have a partner network that can add value,

whether we sign direct partners or through

distribution. The partners that we’re looking

for are ones that are going to add value to

the solution whether it’s a vertical focus or

application focus.

How will cloud change the role of the

channel?

The channels that want to embrace the cloud

can and will be very successful. It requires

an ability to build both a transactional

business and a value-added business.

SMBs require the same level of support as

large organisations, but they live on smaller

budgets. In order to touch and reach a broad

group of small businesses and treat them like

larger customers, but do it in a cost effective

way, through a strong marketing engine and

strong inside sales engine, those companies

are going to be successful moving towards

the cloud. The other companies are the

ones that are going to be able to add value

on top of cloud-based services. There are

many partners out there that provide unique

capabilities and qualities of service on top of

a cloud-based offering. Those are the ones

that I think are going to be very successful.

Those companies that fight the cloud and go

against the cloud I think will struggle.

“The partners that we’re looking for are ones that are going to add value to the solution whether it’s a vertical focus or application focus.”


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In association with

Asus has unveiled a completely new

line-up of Windows 8 products, including

notebooks, tablets, all-in-one PCs and a

unique dual-screen device.

According to Asus, the new range

enables new forms of functionality and

applications targeting the entire spectrum of

home and office users, while setting a new

standard in performance, ease of use and

innovative design.

The front-runner amongst the new

launches is the Taichi. A fusion of notebook

and tablet, Asus Taichi is an ultra-slim

notebook that features a unique dual-screen

design with 1080p IPS displays. In standard

mode, Asus Taichi is a convertible and

powerful Ultrabook designed for demanding

productivity tasks.

In tablet mode, Asus Taichi is a

“lightweight powerhouse” featuring

intuitive multi-touch capabilities optimised

for Windows 8. In dual screen mode, both

Asus unveils WindoWs 8 line-up

dell delivers neW WindoWs 8 devices

screens can also be used simultaneously or

independently for user flexibility.

According to Asus, the Transformer Book

is the world’s first detachable notebook to

combine the best features of a notebook

and tablet. When it comes to work, it is a fully

featured notebook with high-capacity storage

and connectivity options. Then when it comes

to play or travel, the high-definition display

detaches from the keyboard dock and the

Transformer Book becomes the thinnest and

most powerful Intel Core i7 based multi-touch

Windows 8 tablet available today.

Asus referred to its VivoBook Series as the

“world’s most affordable touch innovation.” The

S200 is entering the market at 1499AED, whilst

the S400 costs 2299AED. With specifications

that include 3rd generation Intel Core processors

for multi-tasking performance, VivoBook is

available with an 11.6” of 14” high-definition

screen and features a large multi-touch touchpad

and a choice of hard drive and hybrid storage.

Dell is helping customers touch the

future with a refreshed portfolio of

business and consumer PCs built for

Microsoft Windows 8, designed to

provide a more intuitive computing

experience and address evolving

customer desires. Dell has made

available for pre-order three new PCs

in its upcoming fall portfolio: the XPS

One 27 and Inspiron One 23. Further,

Dell is offering Windows 8 as an option

on its current XPS, Inspiron, Latitude,

OptiPlex and Precision brands.

The XPS One 27 All-in-One is

designed for creative enthusiasts with

a super high resolution display and

performance graphics for multimedia

creation and entertainment. The

gorgeous, space-saving design

features a 27-inch Wide Quad HD

Display, which has 78 percent more

pixels than a Full HD display, and an

articulating stand that tilts the display

to a 60-degree angle, providing

additional options when using the

touchscreen interface. Whether one

is designing a digital masterpiece

or experiencing HD entertainment,

the XPS One 27 delivers the power,

sound, graphics and pixels for a

brilliant multimedia experience.

Hot productsReview


Sony unveiled three of its latest cameras:

the Alpha SLT-A99, the NEX-5R and

the NEX-6. The A99 allows serious

photographers to explore the creative

possibilities of full-frame imaging and

the responsiveness of Translucent Mirror

Technology. The successor to the flagship

Sony Alpha A900 DSLR, the new A99 is

the first camera with Translucent Mirror

Technology from Sony to feature a full-

frame 35mm image sensor. Translucent

Mirror Technology is an innovative optical

system that opens up dramatic new

shooting possibilities such as high speed

shooting and quick auto-focus. The A99 also

debuts an advanced new AF-D continuous

autofocus mode that is supremely effective

with moving subjects. The 19-point AF

system provides reliable depth focusing

information. It is complemented by the

102-point multi-point focal plane phase-

detection AF sensor to seamlessly manage

subjects traversing the focal plane.

Unique to the A99, a newly developed

full-frame EXMOR CMOS sensor with 24.3

effective megapixels is teamed with a

highly advanced BIONZ image

processing engine. This

powerful sensor/

processor

combination

guarantees

ultimate

image

quality which

never goes

out of focus.

The

enthusiast-

focused NEX-5R

and NEX-6 offer

the benefits of DSLR-

quality imaging with less

to carry. Both the models feature a resolution

of 16.1 megapixels, an APS-C image sensor

in the ultra-compact body and a new, fast,

sony debuts neW cAmerAs

hybrid autofocus system, enabling users to

catch precious moments in DSLR quality.

Additionally, the NEX 6 sports a built in

view finder, mode dial and a multi-interface

shoe giving intuitive DSLR-like operability.

nikon lAunches d5200Nikon Middle East has launche the D5200 digital SLR

camera, a compact and lightweight entry-level model

that delivers exceptional performance via Nikon’s all-

new DX-format CMOS sensor, which has an effective

pixel count of approximately 24.1-million pixels.

Building upon the D5100, this camera possesses

greatly enhanced optical technologies, including an

optimised EXPEED 3 image-processing engine, based

on the one built into Nikon’s D4 flagship camera.

Created for full-scale photography enthusiasts,

the D5200 boasts an image-processing engine that

offers superior resolution and image quality with

very little noise at high sensitivities, the same quality

and more delivered by the EXPEED 3 built into the

high-end Nikon D4, D800, D800E, and D600 digital

SLR cameras. This model’s performance is further

enhanced via Nikon’s brand new DX-format CMOS

sensor with an effective pixel count of approximately

24.1-million pixels. And just like the D5100, the

D5200’s side-hinged vari-angle monitor gives users

shooting flexibility from any angle and the ability to

take self-portraits.

Reseller Middle Eastoctober 2012 63

Hot productsReview

As part of the LANmark Fibre range, Nexans

has introduced Slimflex fibre patch cords,

specifically designed for environments with

increasing port density, such as the data

centre. Slimflex patchcords support Nexans

fibre cable strategy to use the right fibre

type in the appropriate place. Cost effective

traditional fibres are used in backbone

cabling where there is little need to use

more expensive bend insensitive fibres.

However, the use of GIGAlite Flex bend

insensitive fibre inside the Slimflex patch

cords, means the cords are able to withstand

very tight bends in patch areas without

signal degradation, eliminating the risk of

loss or application failure.

Slimflex patch cords feature a bend radius of

only 7.5mm – as opposed to 40mm for traditional

patch cords – dramatically reducing the risk of

failure due to accidental over bending where

it is most likely to occur. The cords use a small

round cable with a diameter of only 2.6mm,

which also reduces space requirements by 30%

and is easier to handle as there is no preferential

bending as would occur with a twin construction.

The cable uses an advanced flexible sheath

material featuring high abrasion resistance,

whilst remaining flexible and kink-free but

without a memory effect. Additional features

include low loss connectors, with insertion

loss of only 0.3dB, and a reduced footprint to

improve visibility in densely populated panels.

nexAns lAunches slimflex fibre pAtch cords

commscope intros pre-terminAted copper solution

CommScope has introduced a pre-

terminated copper connectivity solution

designed to provide quick and easy

deployment of large-scale cabling

infrastructures in data centres as well as

provide a future migration path to higher

performance systems.

InstaPATCH QUATTRO, now available

in the Middle East, is a 10GBASE-T and

1GBASE-T cassette and trunk-based

connectivity solution. It combines high-

performance with “plug-and-play” simplicity

for fast data center deployment and easy

modification as a network’s needs evolve.

“Pre-terminated connectivity has grown in

recent years as a trusted means for designing

and deploying data center infrastructures,”

said Ciarán Forde, VP, Enterprise Sales,

CommScope MEA. “InstaPATCH QUATTRO

combines the performance and quality of our

SYSTIMAX solutions along with the design

freedom and installation ease associated with

our InstaPATCH fiber solutions. We believe

this solution corresponds with our customers’

infrastructure and data center needs today

and for the future.”

InstaPATCH QUATTRO installs easily,

adapts quickly and performs reliably even

under the most demanding conditions.

InstaPATCH QUATTRO solutions include

panels, modular cassettes, trunk and breakout

cables. With the addition of InstaPATCH

QUATTRO, CommScope now offers a full suite

of high performance pre-terminated cabling

solutions (copper, fibre and cabinet) that enable

true end-to-end fast deployment of connectivity,

from core to aggregation to access layers. It is

an ideal solution for the deployment of pods

and/or data centre modules.

Each InstaPATCH QUATTRO component is

factory tested and certified by Fluke Networks

equipment to ensure consistency and quality.

Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) has

launched its Black Series with AMD FM2

chipset– Golden Limited Edition: A85F2-A

GOLDEN. The ECS A85F2-A GOLDEN builds

on their already strong performance of FM2

motherboards by adding a host of powerful

new features in the Trinity technology

platform and also adapting the exclusive gold

plating technology for the strictest quality and

a higher outstanding performance.

The key features include AMP

Technology support to take the full

advantage of their unique operating design,

newest graphical uEFI BIOS and easy-to-

use function radically takes full advantage

of the performance, high-end gaming, multi-

tasking and Windows 8 support.

ECS A85F2-A GOLDEN is said to

be one of the most powerful and reliable

motherboards for gaming solution. In the

ATX format, this ECS motherboard features

2 PCIe x16 slots for graphics card upgrades

and CrossFireX support, as well as 3 PCIe

x1 and 2 PCI slots for different demands.

Up to 64 GB of dual channel DDR3

memory can be installed in 4 DIMMs, with

full maximum speed from 1866 to 2133, or

up to 2600 for high-end overclocking.

Expansion and connectivity options

in the A85F2-A GOLDEN include 7

SATA 6 Gb/s connectors, 6 USB 3.0

ports, 8 USB 2.0 ports, Gigabit LAN,

and a eSATA 6Gb/s connectors for fast

external storage. Separate HDMI, DVI,

D-Sub and Display Port provide graphics

output, and 8-Ch HD Audio support.

ecs unveils Golden motherboArd edition


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iPad

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Apple’s iPad Mini has launched at last, and the market has reacted positively. It is estimated that Apple has sold 3 million units during the first weekend following the launch. Ashish Panjabi, COO of Jacky’s Electronics, gives us his first impressions about the new iPad.

Frenzy For iPad Mini

Ashish Panjabi, COO of Jacky’s Electronics

We expect to see the iPad Mini

launch to do well and the fourth

generation iPad should continue to

help maintain the lion’s share of the

market for tablets. Apple has spoken of a fairly

rapid roll-out this time around with a whole host

of countries coming into the first wave of launch

of the iPads announced last night. The time to

market has gradually been reducing and while

we don’t have an exact date from Apple yet, I’m

fairly optimistic it will be here before the

year-end. As always, there may be grey goods

imported into the country earlier but we advise

customers to wait for the official launch as

prices are normally exorbitant initially but once

the official launch happens, we can expect

prices to be much more closely aligned to those

in other countries.

While it is announced that Apple has

decided to charge a premium on iPad mini

over other 7-inch Android-based tablets,

I believe they quite rightfully can do so

because of its uniqueness and for the thought

that has gone into designing the product.

Also, there is the App experience that Apple

tablet users can get as compared to an

Android user, which was shown last night.

Whereas, the problem with many of the 7-inch

Android tablets today is that they vary largely

in terms of engineering quality, finish, screen

resolution and user experience. Most of them

are black slabs and if you were to cover the

brand names on most tablets, you couldn’t

tell the difference between one and the other.

Apple has never been a brand that’s

played to mass market pricing. Their

Macbooks are often more expensive than

that of most PC vendors. Their smartphones

have also always been priced at a premium.

Apple for example never entered the netbook

race when it started a few years ago and

decided to launch products like the Macbook

Air or iPad instead at a premium. There is an

aspirational value that Apple has managed

to derive from consumers and this was

somewhat expected to continue with the new

iPad Mini as well.

The buzz around the iPad’s has been

immense, especially for the smaller factor

device but Apple also managed to surprise

a lot of consumers and industry pundits

last night with the announcement of the

iMac. At 5mm, it’s a stunning piece of work

for a desktop computer and at a time when

most desktop computers have become

commoditized, it’s encouraging to see how

Apple has managed to continue innovating

and charging a premium for their desktops. //


© 2012 Avaya Inc. All rights reserved.

With Avaya, your next video call is always just a click, swipe or touch away. And unlike

other vendors, we connect to your existing infrastructure to create a video system

that’s simpler and more affordable. To learn more about video and support services

where everything just clicks, visit avaya.com/click.

Connecting your business with video comes easy with Avaya.

Click. Click.

Let the video collaboration begin.

© 2012 Dell Products. Dell, the Dell logo and Latitude are registered or unregistered trade marks of Dell Inc. in the United States and other countries. Intel, the Intel Logo, Intel Inside, Intel Core, and Core Inside are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. Windows and the Windows logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Other trademarks or trade names may be used in this document to refer to third-party products (such as operating systems and software) included with the products

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