The VAR Guy

Last call: Register now for today’s MSPmentor Live: CEO Exchange webcast. It’s scheduled for Thursday, October 2 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern. During the event, hosted by MSPmentor.net (The VAR Guy’s sister site) you will have the opportunity to ask top managed service providers about their NOC (network operation center) strategies.

Millions of iPhone users download applications from Apple’s App Store. Now, Cisco Systems is considering a similar online App Store approach in the corporate market. Eventually, the networking giant may launch an online service or central repository to help you find Unified Communications applications and Widgets, The VAR Guy has learned. Here’s the scoop.

It’s official. Even CNBC says the Wall Street meltdown has spilled over into Main Street USA. Credit is getting tighter. It’s going to be difficult for entrepreneurs to make deeper investments in their own business. But don’t panic, folks. Here are five steps every VAR and managed service provider should take — right now — to generate more recurring revenue during the economic turmoil.

Dell Channel Chief Greg Davis says the company is exploring a range of new partner initiatives, including IT certifications for health care and federal government partners. Davis also says changes are coming to Dell’s deal registration system, which currently doesn’t accept engagements valued at under $50,000. For more, check out a podcast with Davis hosted by our sister site, MSPmentor.

Sparxent, a start-up company based in Salt Lake City, Utah, is seeking to acquire managed service providers and VARs that generate roughly $5 million to $20 million in annual revenues. The company, backed by vSpring Capital, today disclosed that it has acquired NetworkD Corp. of Newport Beach, California. Sparxent has also signed a letter of intent to acquire Arbyte of Moscow.

When The VAR Guy heads to CompTIA Breakaway, he’ll be sure to poke around to see what Dell’s up to at the show. In the meantime, here’s some color commentary regarding Dell and its managed service strategy from our sister site, MSPmentor.

The news isn’t all bad at Symantec this week. The company has been working overtime to address controversial channel comments from COO Enrique Salem. But on the other hand, there’s some promising developments involving Symantec Protection Network, the company’s software as a service platform. Here’s the scoop from our sister site, MSPmentor.

(Note: I wrote the following blog for our sister site, MSPmentor, this morning. It certainly applies to VARs as well.) Pick up today’s paper and you’ll see a stunning contrast between Intel and the broader economy. As economic indicators continue to weaken, Intel has announced record quarterly revenue — providing some welcome news to managed service providers and other IT-centric businesses.

I’m upbeat about the managed services market and the IT channel, but I wonder: Will the mortgage crisis at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and IndyMac Bankcorp (among others) begin to impact small business IT spending, lending to small businesses, and the IT channel as a whole?

Whether you’re an established or aspiring managed service provider, time is running out to register for MSPmentor Live: CEO Exchange. The Webcast, hosted by our sister site MSPmentor, starts at 2pm eastern today (Wednesday, June 25).