Cloud push as Polycom joins Ingram Micro unified comms stable
Ingram Micro has added Polycom to its stable, signing a distribution deal for Australia and New Zealand which will see a greater emphasis placed on creating cloud-based solutions offered by Polycom's ecosystem partners, including Microsoft.
The two companies say they will work together to create value-added bundled packages for channel partners, including cloud providers' services such as Microsoft.
Felix Wong, Ingram Micro ANZ chief country executive, says: "Channel partners will see tremendous value in how Ingram Micro plans to build the Polycom portfolio across ANZ.
"Hardware-as-a-service is just one area of focus," Wong says. "It is effectively bundling Polycom products with cloud-based solutions offered via Opex-friendly terms.
Mark Braxton, Polycom ANZ director of distribution, says the company's go-to-market plan will see it focus on unlocking more opportunities with Polycom's ecosystem partners, with Microsoft being top of the list.
"Ingram Micro has the in-depth industry knowledge and experience to help us achieve our goals and keep our leadership title," Braxton says.
The addition of Polycom to Ingram Micro's unified communications portfolio is one of several new additions expected for the distributor's Kiwi business in the coming weeks.
Earlier this week Ingram Micro New Zealand unified communications business manager Danny Meadows spoke exclusively to ChannelLife about the opportunities the distributor sees for itself and its resellers in the UC market.
Last year the distributor's New Zealand business pulled all its UC brands together under one business unit after channel demand for a distributor 'to take unified communications by the reins, pull it together and make it more cohesive'.
Last month at Polycom Innovation Conference in Sydney, partners heard that the impact of digital transformation is making customers rethink what they need from workspaces.
Jeff Rodman, Polycom co-founder and chief evangelist, told attendees traditional offices are being replaced with more open, technology-enabled environments – albeit at different speeds.
