Good times, bad times
Who soared and who sunk over the past two weeks?
Good Times
Corporate speak
HPE made another submission to the Buzzword Bible last month when announcing plans to spin off its Enterprise Services division and then merge it with CSC, in a move Meg Whitman dubbed a "spin-merger".
Although it sounds more like the kind of thing you'd expect to see occur on a sticky nightclub dancefloor, it does go a fair way in describing the business activity accurately.
The move, which HPE claims proves its "laser" focus, will be complete by next spring, by which time, we fully expect the phrase "spin-quisition" to be all the rage.
Cisco's channel
Channel-centric vendors love telling their resellers how much they love them. But Cisco has gone a step further, and decided to declare its appreciation of the channel not just to the companies within it, but to the whole world.
Its latest Never Better online campaign consists of social media content and videos designed to talk up the power of partnering to customers, the industry, and, well, anyone who will listen.
And it's not all talk either, according to Cisco's UK partner managing director Angela Whitty, who told CRN that digital marketing campaigns have generated a pipeline of $5.8bn in the last year alone. Not too shabby.
Microsoft partners
A sigh of relief could be heard across the Microsoft channel last month after the vendor announced it is finally making changes to its Pinpoint partner locator and search engine.
The site has been criticised heavily over recent years, with resellers claiming its ranking formula puts too much emphasis on cloud competencies and geographic location, and not enough on Gold competencies, which cost them valuable time and work hours.
But now Microsoft has said changes to its algorithm are coming in. Who said whinging never got you anywhere?
Bad Times
Software thieves
The use of unlicensed software in the UK is continuing to decline, according to the Business Software Alliance. The UK unlicensed software rate stood at 22 per cent in 2015, according to the research, which was carried out by IDC, down from 24 per cent in 2013, 26 per cent in 2011 and 27 per cent in 2009.
Luxembourg, Austria and Sweden were the only European countries with a lower piracy rate than the UK, but BSA CEO Victoria Espinel said the UK rate remains "higher than we would like". The UK should perhaps be among the least of the BSA's worries, with the unlicensed software rate in Zimbabwe and Libya standing at 90 per cent each. Ouch.
Tech Brexiteers
As we reported in the last issue of CRN, Microsoft became one of the first big technology companies to speak up on the Brexit debate, declaring it is pro-Europe and supporting the Remain campaign.
The email Microsoft sent to partners and staff then opened the floodgates, and every vendor and his dog wanted to shout about what they thought. HPE's Andy Isherwood sent a similar pro-EU email to his staff, while EMC's UK leader Ross Fraser also weighed into the debate, coming out as an anti-Brexiter. UKFast's Lawrence Jones piped up too, declaring his allegiance to the EU.
Although many of the large firms have come out against Brexit, anti-Europe feeling certainly exists in the channel, as ANS Group chairman Scott Fletcher proved when campaigning for further devolution. We can't help but wonder - if Microsoft jumped off a cliff, would the rest of the industry follow?
IBM/Symantec/Microsoft
Thousands of vendor staff across the world could be facing the risk of losing their jobs as three technology giants take the axe to their workforce. IBM began a new round of layoffs which could affect up to 14,000 staff - mainly in the US - according to the Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile, Microsoft laid off the final 1,850 staff who formed part of its Nokia business and Symantec said it is looking to trim 1,200 roles in a bid to make cash savings.