Sun and HP in reseller clear-out

Vendors send termination notices to UK resellers

Aftershock gripped the channel last week as Sun and Hewlett-Packard (HP) made seismic adjustments to their reseller bases.

Sun has sent termination notices to 70 of its UK resellers as part of an "evaluation of its channel", according to Steve Raby, UK director of partner sales at the company.

The Sun resellers were classified as Systems Providers, and there were 120 before the cutback. The vendor also has 80 Solutions Associates in the UK.

Raby added that the resellers have been given 90 days to either obtain proper accreditation or lose their status as Sun channel partners.

"The Sun badge has to mean something for the rest of the channel and for all those partners that have invested in Sun in terms of training and accreditation," Raby said.

"This is not a bolt from the blue. We have given them plenty of prior warning and this is their final wake-up call."

He added that Sun and its Channel Development Partners, Clarity and tplc, are looking to take on new resellers willing to invest in the Sun brand.

Simon Welch, marketing manager at distributor Clarity, said: "Some resellers were using their contracts to sell grey-market products and undercut the legitimate channel. We want resellers that invest properly in Sun."

John Fison, chief executive of Sun integrator Keltec, said: "This is a long-overdue move and I admire Sun's courage in following it through. It shows Sun's belief in partners that do invest in its technology."

Meanwhile, HP has sent termination letters to 30 UK resellers, as it moves to replace pre-merger Compaq and HP contracts with its new PartnerOne contracts. The termination cut-off point has been extended from 31 April to 31 August.

Andy Dow, commercial director at HP distributor Westcoast, said: "This is consolidation of blue and red, which has been anticipated by the channel for some time."