Cisco offers UK rebates

Cisco offers UK security and IP resellers chance to double margins through new rebate programme

Cisco is offering UK resellers specialising in security and IP telephony the chance to double their margins through a new rebate programme.

Last week CRN revealed Cisco's decision to bring its value incentive programme to Europe following its launch in the US earlier this month (CRN, 17 March).

According to Edison Peres, Cisco's vice-president of emerging technologies worldwide channels, the programme will reward resellers which have committed time and resources to specialising in the two product areas.

"Resellers will receive a 10 per cent additional rebate at the end of a six-month period if they meet the criteria we set. This will double the margins resellers currently receive," Peres said.

Criteria include achieving sales targets, customer satisfaction levels and specialisations.

Peres said the extra margin will help resellers gain entry into emerging markets and reduce the risk associated with immature markets.

"We are trying to facilitate the creation of profitable partners in security and IP telephony. We want to get resellers into these new markets in a way that will increase the probability of success," he said.

In the UK the programme is currently available to about 32 IP telephony specialist Cisco partners and about 80 security partners.

Peres said the IP telephony programme is available only to resellers with that specialisation, but the security element is more open. "We want to encourage the use of security related to all our products," he said.

However, Greg Carlow, managing director of Cisco security reseller Repton Computers, said that despite the rebate, products are still being sold more cheaply on the grey market.

"We have lost Cisco security deals where competitors have offered prices 40 per cent lower than us," he said.

Carlow added that he would prefer to see a level playing field with the same prices, regardless of where products come from. "We are regularly cold-called by organisations offering us cheap Cisco products," he said.