Shiva closure angers resellers

Intel's decision to close its Shiva division this month has angered resellers, which claim they have been left with portfolio gaps and unhappy customers.

Intel's decision to close its Shiva division this month has angered resellers, which claim they have been left with portfolio gaps and unhappy customers.

The vendor announced that all Shiva remote-access products would be discontinued from 4 January, but promised two years of support. Intel acquired Shiva in February 1999 to integrate the company's remote-access servers into its product range.

Alan Murphy, virtual private network product manager at Intel, said: "The product has reached the end of its life in line with our focus on the data centre strategy." He believed this new approach will mean more business for resellers in the long run.

However, resellers are unhappy about the decision. Phil Kennerdal, senior sales consultant at Abtec Network Systems, said: "It has caused our customers problems. A customer contacted me for a module to attach to the Shiva server, but now I can't get hold of one."

He explained that he was upset that he had been given no notice about the discontinuation of the line. "They could have given me a couple of months' notice so that I could have stocked up," he said.

Murphy stressed that if resellers cannot get the products they need from their distributors, they will be able to get them directly from Intel until 5 February. "We are committed to giving our customers the products they need," he claimed.

Peter Graham, vice president of sales and marketing for Europe, Middle East & Africa at vendor Perle Systems, said: "Intel is focusing on its local area network product rather than the wide area network range, and I believe it left resellers high and dry without any other route to solution."

He claimed that resellers looking for replacement products have approached Perle. "We are happy to assist resellers with products," he said.

Nick Patching, sales manager at reseller Grantham Sutch Associates, told Computer Reseller News: "I know that these things happen from time to time, but many of our customers are totally dependent [on these products] for their remote access."