Oracle builds up link with dealers

All business except top accounts to go through database giant?s dealers

Oracle has responded to channel pressure by altering its sales structure to ensure all business outside its top-named accounts will go through resellers.

The company will announce to its top reseller and distributor partners this week that it intends to push all its business outside its top 250 accounts ? known as the general business unit ? through the channel.

Oracle UK alliances director Allen Swann said: ?In theory it used to be a 100 per cent indirect model, but in practice territory managers used to discount in such a way that partners effectively lost margin. Partners complained that their margin was being given away.?

Oracle will offer incentives to its general business territory managers so they will not lose out, while ensuring it will push sales through the channel. In addition it is allowing Vars to set their own street prices.

The initiative is designed to counteract attrition of the database giant?s lower-end markets by Microsoft?s business division ? the applications customer development unit ? set up to push the company?s SQL database products.

Oracle is also targeting independent software vendors and is looking to recruit about 500 in a range of vertical markets.

Nick Kandola, Azlan UK product marketing manager, said: ?What it is saying is that outside of named accounts, Oracle guarantees everything will go through the channel. It used to be a maybe, maybe not situation. It also gives it access to markets which would be prime Microsoft targets.?

Two weeks ago, Oracle admitted that it would release version 8 of its database without its companion toolset, Sedona (PC Dealer, 18 June).