Compaq blocks direct route to its US dealers

Compaq has made its most aggressive move yet to bar Dell and Gateway 2000 from using its resellers? services.

The vendor is threatening to exclude from its reseller programme companies that configure or maintain directly sold PCs, while improving incentives to loyal partners.

It is not clear to what extent the US policy ? announced at a meeting of 1,000 dealers in San Francisco last week ? will be implemented in the UK, but Compaq?s European subsidiaries traditionally follow their parent?s lead on channel policy.

Digital and Wang maintain Dell PCs in the UK and ICL Sorbus handles Gateway. The acquisition of ALR last month also gave Gateway a small UK channel.

Michael Pocock, Compaq VP of North American sales, said it was ?hypocritical? for channel partners to support direct vendors, whose business model threatened to cut their market from under their feet.

Announcing new criteria for commercial reseller authorisation at the conference, he said: ?We want to focus Compaq support resources on the resellers who truly focus on Compaq.?

It seems likely that Compaq will refuse to authorise new resellers that do business for Dell and Gateway.

Although they cut out the channel, Dell, Gateway and other direct vendors rely on Vars to provide integration, configuration and software services for their PCs, especially as they move into corporate space.