Dell vs HP dust-up at IMOne event

Ingram Micro's showcase event spiced up by onstage banter between UK execs during vendor Q&A panel

Dell and HP have always been fierce competitors, and the rivalry came to the fore during a vendor Q&A panel discussion today at Ingram Micro’s One event in Milton Keynes.

Following a keynote by HP Enterprise Group’s vice president Marc Waters, he was joined on stage by channel stalwart David Poskett, who is now UK channel director, ESG at Dell, but whose CV includes a 20-year stint at HP; Intel’s UK channel sales manager Tim Stone; and Connectwise COO David Bellini, for a friendly discussion at Ingram's showcase event, about how the market is developing and how vendors are adapting to the changes.

After discussions about hyperconvergence, cloud and the Internet of Things, predictably the conversation turned to Dell’s recent acquisition of EMC.

Poskett said: “Of course the deal is subject to the usual regulatory conditions, but we plan to acquire EMC. It is a massive opportunity [for Dell]. Dell is an end-to-end solution provider in its own right. We are the number one storage vendor in the world and our acquisition of EMC will make us twice as large as our nearest competitor.

“It is a fantastic opportunity to leverage Dell’s capability in the enterprise space with what EMC brings to the marketplace. We have to provide choice. We are trying to see it from the partner side. We are going to bring together two companies that will allow research and development to bring great products to the market. Partners need only go to one vendor to provide that solution to their customers.

“Of course we have to respect the competition and the marketplace as well,” he said.

Waters’ response was pointed.

“We [HP Enterprise Group] have a really strong balance sheet and we can invest,” he said. “We can drive R&D and innovation if we feel strongly in that regard. Having that position is one of our strengths.

“Acquisition and integration is a different experience for employees, partners and customers,” he added. “Our strategy [for 2016] is clear. There is no complexity. No [product] overlap and no distractions. I’m happy I'm sitting in this seat.”

Stay tuned to ChannelWeb tomorrow for more news from the Ingram One event.