Crane lifts convergence market

Partnership with FrontRange offers integrated CRM and telephony solution

Voice and data distributor Crane is enhancing the convergence market by teaming up with software vendor FrontRange to offer an integrated customer relationship management (CRM) and telephony solution exclusively through the channel.

Both firms have claimed that the partnership will help boost all their channel partners' business in the small to medium sized enterprise (SME) space.

The partnership, which is still in its early stages, will integrate FrontRange's GoldMine and Heat software with the Intel Converged Communications Platform, which was launched through Crane earlier this year.

Also heavily involved in the partnership is opportunIT, a FrontRange Solutions Certified Partner, which will provide professional services and support to Crane channel partners implementing the technology.

Leon Conway, product strategy manager at Crane, explained that the partnership is good news for the channel.

"It will allow Crane resellers to gain ground in a wider market and will help resellers to target the SME market with integrated CRM and telephony solutions," he said.

"Crane resellers can partner with opportunIT to gain full pre- and post-sales support and choose the level of support they require."

Conway added that Crane's main objective is to support existing partners and provide them with more opportunities.

Steve Feeney, sales director for UK and northern Europe at FrontRange, said: "This is good news for Crane resellers because a lot of companies buy telephony systems from them.

"This agreement means that they can offer additional value-added data applications on top of that.

"It is the same for our channel partners which have sold just our software solutions in the past. We are helping them to widen their portfolios."

Steve Blunn, managing director of opportunIT, added: "This will mean quick return on investment and provides a golden opportunity for telephony resellers to open up new markets."