Dell unveils hybrid cloud finance package

Dell Cloud Flex Pay allows customers to trial hybrid cloud technology for six months at discount price

Dell has launched its Cloud Flex Pay (CFP) finance product in EMEA today as it looks to encourage customers to invest in hybrid cloud technology amid economic uncertainty.

Dell CFP has been available in the US for some months now, and from today is available across 19 countries in EMEA, including the UK.

The offering, which runs on Microsoft hybrid cloud technology, allows customers to trial hybrid cloud infrastructure for six months at a "significantly" reduced price of between 40 per cent and 50 per cent off. After the six-month period, customers can either buy the kit outright, transfer it to another longer-term finance package, or return it for no extra cost.

The finance offering is available through Dell's channel partners as well as direct from the vendor.

The UK voted to leave the EU less than a month ago, sparking significant uncertainty in the economy. Dell Financial Services director Alan Petters said it was "purely coincidental" that the finance package has been made available straight after Brexit, but said some customers are looking at the proposition due to general economic uncertainty.

"I met with a CIO yesterday and one thing they were concerned about was access to capital, especially with the uncertainty in the economy," he said." Recently we've seen banks reduce their access to capital and their lending capacity. So this CIO's comment was 'I'm concerned about getting access to capital today so we can transform tomorrow'. That's something we're hearing more regularly. When you think about a large IT infrastructure investment, it comes with a big price."

But he did say Dell Financial Services has been busier than usual since Brexit.

"We've seen over the last four weeks since the vote an increase in not just traditional Dell revenue, but requests for DFS to support customer requirements," he said. "I'm not sure of the significance of either of those things. Everybody's concern before was if we come out, the world is going to stop. But it hasn't. Things have moved on as normal. We are having the same conversations with customers. In the four weeks since the vote, we've not seen any deterioration in our business."

EMC shareholders voted yesterday to approve Dell's $67bn takeover, meaning just regulatory approval from the Chinese is needed before the biggest tech acquisition can go ahead.

Petters insisted that the CFP initiative will not be affected by the changes.

"It is certainly safe to say Dell is committed to its current technology and I think Michael has shared that publicly," he said. "There's no risk of any unavailability of support. This announcement underpins Dell's commitment to offer this longer term. We wouldn't be announcing it now if there was a risk to customers that it wouldn't be in place for the foreseeable future."