ArcSight switches distribution horses
Wick Hill ousted as Westcon relationship is rolled to the UK
ArcSight will look to push more business through a two-tier channel model in the UK after switching distribution allegiances from Wick Hill to Westcon.
The HP-owned security information and event management (SIEM) vendor appointed Wick Hill in 2008 but has ceased working with the distributor after extending its partnership with Westcon to the UK.
Jonathan Cooper, director of channel sales for EMEA (pictured), said Wick Hill had focused on its lower-end appliance technology but that Westcon is set to enjoy access to a wider product set. This would include its enterprise-focused Enterprise Security Manager software.
“I expect to see more of the product line go through distribution,” he confirmed.
ArcSight works with 120-130 VARs across Europe, including Vistorm and ITC Global Security in the UK.
Cooper stressed that all will now buy from Westcon, which ArcSight has been working with in five continental European countries, including Germany, for three years.
Niall McGrane, UK country manager at Westcon Security, the division of Westcon which owns the ArcSight relationship, said: “ArcSight leads Gartner’s Magic Quadrant and its solutions complement a lot of what we do from a networking and infrastructure standpoint."
McGrane claimed Westcon had seen a "high level of interest" from VARs since the partnership went live last month.
The SIEM market grew 15 per cent last year, according to Gartner, and Cooper hailed HP’s acquisition of ArcSight in September as a “massive endorsement” of the market’s potential.
Cooper denied that partners would be worried by the $1.5bn deal: “The feedback we have had to date from our partner base has been very positive; there will be an opportunity for resellers to leverage the HP brand.”
Wick Hill inked a partnership with rival SIEM vendor LogLogic last year and Wick Hill chairman Ian Kilpatrick said he was happy to focus on that franchise.
“We have an incredibly successful relationship with LogLogic,” Kilpatrick said. “We have found them to be straight, organised and channel friendly."