Kingston pairs up with MS

Kingston also plans to sign UK corporate resellers after it opens itsSunbury office in January

Memory giant Kingston Technologies will team up with Microsoft to offer memory upgrades to software users. At the same time, it emerged that the company will sign major corporate resellers in the UK when it opens an office in Sunbury on 31 January 1997.

John Tu, president of Kingston, which was recently acquired by Softbank, said the disastrous slump in the memory market in 1996 will be offset by a growth of sales because of the rise of Windows NT.

Tu said: 'Kingston is partnering with Microsoft to offer a little more memory.' He said the company had already struck a deal with Microsoft in the US to offer additional Kingston memory in the States. That scheme will eventually be extended in the UK.

'Worldwide, about 18 per cent of existing PCs are still not capable of running NT. Kingston is a bridge between the users and the software people. We are co-marketing the solution,' said Tu.

John Holland, vice president of European sales and marketing at Kingston, confirmed that it will review its previously exclusive agreement with Datrontech to sell its memory when its office opens.

'European turnover is $230 million, which is 20 per cent of our business,' he said. 'We will have a grand opening of our 40,000 sq ft office in Sunbury on 31 January. We have broadline and specialist distributors and we see a role for both types of companies.'

Holland refused to be drawn on whether Kingston will appoint another broadliner, but he confirmed his company was in discussions with major corporate resellers.

Kingston sells its memory in Germany through Ingram Micro and Merisel.

Holland said that corporate resellers were capable of providing the level of service and support that users need.