The release of
Dell's
Vostro
product line for small businesses is the first step in the expansion of the
vendor's reseller programme.
Businesses will be able to purchase the
Vostro
notebook and desktop systems directly from Dell or through local resellers.
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"We see Vostro as way of enhancing the reseller channel by delivering a
series of products and services designed specifically for small businesses,"
Mark Jarvis, chief marketing officer at Dell, said at a company event in San
Francisco.
Vostro delivers client systems that require a minimal amount of maintenance,
lacking the so-called
bloatware or trial
versions of commercial software applications that tend to slow computers
down.
The products also come with a free one-year subscription to a 10GB online
backup service, and feature management software that automates system
maintenance tasks.
Resellers could, for instance, set up the new management features or provide
additional services that make the new computers easier to maintain.
Dell is known for its direct sales model that cuts out the middleman, but the
computer maker does have a reseller business that accounts for about five per
cent of its annual sales.
The firm abandoned its exclusive focus on direct sales to consumers earlier
this year when it
unveiled a
partnership with
Wal-Mart.
It has also promised to revamp its reseller strategy by the end of the year.
Company executives refused to elaborate on the changes that resellers should
expect, but stressed that Vostro would be part of it.
For now, however, resellers hoping for a better relationship with the world's
second largest computer seller have to settle for nice words and promises.
"We are openly talking about [resellers] as a viable way to gain technology
from Dell," said Jarvis. "I do not think that you have seen us historically
talking as much about choice as we do today. I view that as a pretty big change
internally at Dell."
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