eXpansys and HP agree out of court settlement

Lengthy grey market battle ends with VAR becoming an authorised HP partner

Hewlett-Packard (HP) has agreed an out of court settlement with UK VAR eXpansys as part of its continuing grey market crackdown.

Earlier this year, HP commenced litigation to stop eXpansys’ importation of HP PDAs into the European Economic Area (EEA), and initially received a summary judgement in its favour.

The two firms have been working together since to explore how they can enter into a constructive trading relationship and as a result eXpansys will become an authorised UK HP channel partner and has agreed to help the vendor in its future grey market efforts across Europe. The out of court settlement is for an undisclosed amount.

Roger Butterworth, managing director of eXpansys Holdings said: “We were struck by HP’s willingness to expend time, effort and resource in support of its authorised distribution network. That represented a value proposition that we decided we could benefit from.”

Jos Brenkel, vice president HP Solution Partners Organisation EMEA said: “HP is dedicated to providing a level playing field for both itself and its authorised partners. We will not cease in our efforts to provide that trading environment for the partner community, or in our efforts to reward efficient partners that are capable of, and continue to invest in, delivering the highest total customer experience.”