Comments on: Four Steps Novell’s Next Channel Chief Should Take

By: HurdyGurdy

HurdyGurdy — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 23:15:24 +0000

I do agree with you on your #3. Didn’t Lehman Brothers loose a couple of Novells in the last quarter alone? $5-10B? It does really demonstrate how much $1B is, in reality. Not much.

By: The VAR Guy

The VAR Guy — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 00:50:43 +0000

@HurdyGurdy: Some answers to your questions…

1. The VAR Guy doesn’t think Novell enjoys the “grassroots” enthusiasm they enjoyed during the NetWare 3.x and 2.x.

2. What’ more profitable to the SMB reseller – Novell or MSFT? That really depends. Is the reseller just focused on Windows Server vs. SUSE Linux? Either way, there’s no money in file servers these days. At the application level, MSFT Dynamics is a hot play, but so too are options like SUSE with SAP. So which is more profitable? It depends on your app focus.

3. Novell, contrary to what you say, is NOT a huge bull. They are a $1 billion company. Microsoft is 60 times the size, at $60 billion annual revenue. Plus, SUSE Linux is only 12 percent of Novell’s annual revenue, or about $120 million annual. Who’s the bull in the China shop?

Novell has done a very nice job stabilizing its business and growing its SUSE Linux business. But let’s be clear, much more progress is needed. Novell doesn’t post consistent profits, and the partner strategy has earned an “incomplete” from The VAR Guy.

By: HurdyGurdy

HurdyGurdy — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 18:40:13 +0000

In one of your later articles, Varman, someone mentioned ‘energizing the channel partners’, but in this article their marketing approach is not mentioned. Is their marketing approach working or not working? Do they have the same grassroots enthusiasm from partners as they did in the past during the 2.x and 3.x days? Which is more profitable for the SMB reseller? Selling Microsoft or selling Novell? Is it easier to sell Novell into a Microsoft shop or to sell Microsoft into a Novell shop? I think I know the answers, myself, but all VARs ask themselves these type of questions everyday.

Now that Novell is in the crowded Linux business, have they done a good job of differentiating themselves from the other flavors. No doubt, Novell is a huge bull and can lock horns with Microsoft if they want to, but maybe they are just knocking over the china in the china shop?

I think your list of 4 here represents more of the same and does not appear to be a path to marketshare growth.