Microsoft gets aggressive at channel summit

Microsoft has pledged to get aggressive with VMware

Microsoft used its UK channel summit to repeat its pledge to get aggressive with key rivals such as VMware.

The software giant employed a belligerent tone during its Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) in July and hammered home its pugnacious message to UK LARs and distributors present at yesterday's bi-annual event.

Alex Tatham, sales and marketing director at distributor Westcoast, said Microsoft was getting “particularly aggressive on the competition”.

“From a distribution perspective, VMware is one they really have their sights on,” he said.

This could mean Microsoft leaning more heavily on partners to sell Hyper-V in virtualisation projects, Tatham suggested.

“Office Communications Server could be the focus later on in the year,” he added.

David Simson, commercial director at LAR Softcat, added: “There was nothing that took us by surprise. Microsoft is looking at being more competitive towards its competitors but it said that at WPC.”

One Microsoft partner, who wished to remain anonymous, urged Microsoft not to go overboard.

“Microsoft wants resellers to be 100 per cent Microsoft solution partners,” said the source. “But Hyper-V only has five per cent of the install base, so it would be a bad business decision for a reseller to be 100 per cent Microsoft.”

Although Microsoft did not unveil any changes to partner Ts&Cs, Tatham said the vendor was asking for more from its distributors. “It is asking us to come up with new ideas and then execute,” he said.