What I found astounding was Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s plan to invest billions in science and technology. There have been very few times during past debates when IT is mentioned. Now Harper just said if elected that he would spend on science and technology to create more jobs in that sector. A sector he believes has a future compared to others.

But I wonder how sincere he is about it. Earlier this year when John Chambers, the CEO of Cisco Systems was in Canada he wanted to meet with Harper and the Prime Minister basically blew him off.

Chambers has met with all of the G8 leaders except for Harper. I am not sure if Harper and his staff understand this but Chambers is a global influencer. His company employees many people around the world. Cisco also helps many other companies compete successfully in markets with Cisco products. Cisco also indirectly employs several other people in third party companies that resell Cisco equipment or develop business solutions around these products.

This is a man who knows a thing or two about commerce, technology, job creation, growing an economy, the environment, and many, many other important things that would benefit Canada.

As a Canadian and a person who has met and interviewed Chambers many times; I thought Harper’s decision to not meet with Chambers shameful and a step backward for the IT industry in Canada.

And, it puts into question Harper’s credibility as a leader. Does Harper know the kind of clout Chambers has?

To be fair, Harper was the only leader last night to mention technology, which leads me to believe that it’s not on the radar screen of the Liberals, NDP, Bloc and the Green Party of Canada.

One quick hit before I go. XiTi names Nicolas Babin the new COO and executive vice-president of marketing.

QQ is owned by Tencent and the company is releasing an enterprise version of QQ to compete with Windows Live Messenger and Skype.

According to its Wikipedia page, QQ has more than 300 million accounts and is getting some significant traction in of all places South Africa.

Tencent is in the North America market with its QQ Games. They also signed a strategic agreement with Intel to develop a green Internet.

The two sides will cooperate on server and efficiency optimization projects and will host research on server virtualization. The plan will also include mobile Internet terminals.

QQ was the official IM provider of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and will also be the official provider at the 2010 World Expo. Not bad for a 10 year old company. Tencent’s business plan is to build more services on top of its IM service. These include: mobile & telecommunications services; interactive entertainment services; something called Internet value-added services; E-commerce services, and an online advertising service. The company has also developed its own currency called QQ-Coins.

What makes this strategy interesting is that all of its IM users will be sort of forced fed these other services. Some may not like them, but at the very least they will know about them and may want to try them out.

The strategy will enable Tencent to continue to build on its base of users, increase its revenue from fees from these loyal users, without a lot of marketing or knocking on doors.

QQ.com is the 17^th most visited Web site in the world, according to stats from Alexa.com, which measures Web traffic. QQ.com is ahead of such high profile Web sites as Ebay, AOL, Flickr and Amazon.com.

Very little is known about QQ in North America, but the sense I have is that they are coming after Skype, Yahoo Messenger and MSN Messenger in this space.

The company is also providing a Linux-based version of QQ. Now if that community takes a hold of it then it is possible that QQ may make a splash in North America.

What will make it tough for QQ is that people today enjoy using Skype and MSN. The same way people in China enjoy using QQ. The fact that Skype and Microsoft have invaded its turf means that Tencent will take a shot at the lucrative North American market. Fair is fair and Microsoft and Skype certainly understand this.

As an alternative play in business there is always a chance for a QQ-type offering to make some headway. But, decision makers in the enterprise will look for reliability first and foremost and if you are a solution provider that is something you have to deliver. Would a solution provider risk using an unknown such as QQ over proven technologies from MSN and Skype? I just don’t see it.

But it will be interesting to see how they do.

One quick hit before I go. PR practitioner Karin Scott has moved over to her client Cisco Canada in a yet to be determined role. CDN wishes her all the best.

He also said that no deal is being discussed, nor were there any discussions between the two firms about an acquisition.

You have to take Jackson at his word on this matter. He is a smart person. A man with a lot of character. He is also the CEO of the company. The best course of action if a deal was on the table is not to talk to the press. The fact that he has tells me there is no deal.

It is always interesting and fun to speculate, but that’s all this was.  I am not suggesting that my sources were wrong. A source can only tell you what he or she knows. As a reporter you have to determine how viable the information you have is. It is my practice to take that information and have it confirmed by official company sources.

One quick hit before I go. Atraverda Limited, an advanced battery developer, has appointed Michael Gilchrist
as its chief executive officer.

In the middle of last week one of my trusted sources told me that MetaFore was acquiring Xwave.

I called Xwave’s director of communications Karen Ewing, who after some checking, said to CDN that it was not happening nor were their any discussions. Ewing then posed a question to me: Why would Xwave sell when they have 19 per cent growth?

A good question.

Then on Sunday an insider at Xwave told me that the company is all a buzz with anticipation of being acquired by MetaFore.

So this morning I again called Ewing, who again denied that anything is happening. I have also placed a call to MetaFore CEO Bryant Jackson for his comments.

On the surface I can’t see why MetaFore could buy Xwave. After some research I think MetaFore can make this deal happen.

MetaFore is No. 5 on CDN’s Top 100 list at $250 million to $300 million. Xwave is No. 4 with the virtual the same amount of revenue. MetaFore can afford Xwave more than likely on its own. If you factor in Hartco, which owns MetaFore along with MicroAge, MicroServ and NorthWest Digital then they would have plenty of cash to make this type of a deal.

This still does not answer Ewing’s question on why Xwave should sell when they are so profitable.

I can only venture a guess. Xwave is a division of Bell Aliant, which is a company made up of regional telco providers such as NorthernTel, Telebec, and KMTS. Xwave isn’t exactly a regional telco provider. And, the best time to sell an asset is when it is at its most profitable so that the seller can maximize the most from that asset.

There is another reason. According to Janet Waxman of IDC, VARs are acquiring other VARs and this trend will not decline. The market is consolidating because customers are demanding more integrated solutions. These mergers and acquisitions will alter the very fabric of what the channel is, she wrote.

A merger or acquisition between Xwave and MetaFore would do exactly that. If this deal were to happen then a combination of MetaFore and Xwave would rival SoftChoice as a $400 million player at the very least.

To reiterate this is all speculation. Nothing has been officially confirmed by either party. CDN will be tracking this story and providing it to you when or if it ever breaks.

Three quick hits before I go. Sorry for not blogging more regularly. I have been off. But I am back and ready to inform you on many topics concerning the channel.

My first quick hit involves that Xbox tester who exposed the poor manufacturing in the product. Well he lost his job. Robert Delaware worked officially for Excell Data, a temp agency as a tester, but he was told of his fate by his Microsoft manager.

David King is joining Acision as COO from UTStarcom.

And, Honeywell’s channel chief Martin Kirmis has lef the company to become the European sales director of BlueStar, a POS and RFID distributor.

Mike Gazdic has been given his walking papers by the distributor, according to one outside source with knowledge of the situation.

CDN has been unable to get confirmation of Gazdic’s departure from the distributor. Ingram Micro Canada’s media relations staff told CDN that they can neither confirm nor deny that this move was made by the subsidiary. A press release will be issued tomorrow to address this situation, and CDN has been promised a copy.

A call has been placed to Mark Snider, the GM of Ingram Micro, to get his comments on the matter.

To say that Gazdic was well liked in the industry and channel community is an understatement. I would go as far as to say he was adored. Mike made time for everybody. Every vendor and every solution provider that mattered in the Canadian IT industry knew of Mike and the great work he had done for them.

For him, it was all about building relationships, and through these partnerships he was able to grow Ingram Micro Canada’s business greatly along with vendor business and channel business — the holy trifecta of business success.

Gazdic epitomized hard work, family values and friendships. His approach was based on the team concept he learned from playing hockey. Gazdic, as they say, had a cup of coffee in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres, but his real success came in the channel.

His former boss Martin Kalsbeek, when told of the situation, said it was too bad and that Gazdic will clearly land on his feet because of all of the great friendships he has.

I too am very sad to see him leave Ingram Canada, if that is the case. Gazdic always had time for CDN. Whenever I saw Mike he always had a big smile on his face. He always enjoyed talking about his kids and would always ask about mine. He loved talking about hockey, but he also has a passion for this industry.

I know he will land a new job. I have no doubt about that, but I hope it is with a distributor because Gazdic is excellent at conveying vendor messages.
Whatever the news is tomorrow I wish Mike the best of luck.

A lot of quick hits before I go:

Jeannine Edwards is joining ConnectWise as director of business services.

Former Cisco executive Reza Mahdavi will now be the president of Ipanema Technologies.

And Altair Engineering Inc. appointed Jean-Pierre Roux as president of Altair Canada. Roux replaces Robert Little who became the president of SolidThinking Inc.

Luckily though, Canadian VARs needn’t worry because HP Canada and CDW Canada are not looking to bring this arrangement here. An HP Canada representative and Mary Ann Yule, the general manager of CDW Canada, confirmed to me that this is not happening, nor is it on their radar screen.

However, one senior channel chief told me that HP is open to bringing this arrangement to CDW Canada. Now, whether it makes it up here on not, if you look at the co-funding deal on its own I have to say that it does make some sense.

This type of co-funding arrangement solves two big problems in the channel: finding qualified people that can sell IT solutions and growing the bottom line.

I can’t see a downside to it. I don’t think a reseller will care if they sell more HP than IBM or what have you, so long as sales are going up. Finding and training people is a challenge to say the least. If you are already a strong HP reseller I see no harm in having your vendor partner do all the leg work for you at virtually no cost.

And this HP/CDW US-only co-funding plan is being looked over by other vendors. This same senior channel chief said it would be better for him to invest inside the partners who are the main feet on the street for his organization rather than his own company.

The only downside to this plan is that it must be managed tightly by both parties. If it’s mismanaged then its basically wasted money. Another option is to fund an employee for a year, and then if the channel partner decides to retain that person the vendor partner will fund a new employee for the next year. This way, the skills sets of the channel partner are up-to-date with that specific vendor.

This sort of arrangement reminds me of car dealerships. Channel partners are already being asked to specialize; why not specialize on one vendor or maybe just a handful of vendors?

If this plan ever came to Canada it would send a warning signal to many solution providers to really become trusted advisors to their customers. Let’s face it: solution providers should not compete solely on price. They have to become the leading experts in IT in their local community and service customers to the max.

By doing this, and gaining trusted advisor status, you can compete and make better margins.

Three quick hits before I go. John Tennant, after six years at Canada’s Technology Triangle, is leaving the organization based in Waterloo. He will be replaced by John G. Jung. Tennant will be missed. He did diligent work at the triangle and was a tireless worker for the organization. Jung will have big shoes to fill.

Also Robert G. O’Malley, CEO of InFocus was elected chairman of the CompTIA board of directors at the association’s annual Breakaway conference.

And, Dao Tran will be leaving High Road Communications, which is Microsoft Canada’s PR agency. I wish her well.

Pupo, a former Channel Elite Awards (CEA) sponsor for many years, touched upon something very important: How do you distinguish your company from the one down the street? Like Pupo said, the Channel Elite Awards is the perfect program and event for doing this.

Let’s face it, the IT channel in Canada is very competitive and has many great solution providers. The Channel Elite Awards is a program that can help you grow your business by showcasing the winning IT solutions to a market place that is interested in learning about them.

Pupo also said that the Channel Elite Awards is a great opportunity to reward employees for a job well done. I could not agree more. Over the years of the CEA many solution providers have brought their best employees to the event. You would see tables filled by just one company’s personnel. It is great to see. I really enjoy meeting these people because you can see the passion in their eyes, and you can hear in their voices that they really care about the company the work for and the solutions they provide for their customers.

Like Pupo said it’s free to participate in the CEA. Just go online to www.itbusiness.ca/cea and submit an entry. We have streamlined the process to make it faster for you.

We have also increased the number of categories with our managed services and collaborative solutions. Also new is the Best Green Solution. In this category, we’ll recognize solutions that effectively serve to reduce environmental impact. The winning solution will have effective ways of reducing energy consumption, the carbon footprint or the ecological impact of any business activity or function or, by design, the solution itself has demonstrably less negative impact on the environment than alternative solutions.

With the Green category this will give solution providers another way to differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack. Like Pupo said:

“What makes you different from the guy next door? The process of completing a submission gives you the opportunity to further evaluate what makes you a valued provider to your clients. You’ll be surprised what can be found by a company self evaluation. What you take for granted because you do it every day or think is “OK” could be remarkable in the eyes of someone else.”

I’ve always said that people make great stories, and the channel community is made up of great people who do great things for their customers.

This is why the Channel Elite Awards is the best recognition program available to a solution provider. It’s a chance to talk about the great ROI solutions you build, the fantastic employees you have and what a great business you are to deal with.

Make sure you don’t miss out on your chance to tell your story. Go to www.itbusiness.ca/cea for an online application form and submit an entry to this year’s awards. The deadline is September 10th.

One of the many fascinating stories from last year’s event comes from Don Conaby of Conpute.

The Oshawa, Ont.-based solution worked with the Town of Georgina to provide the community with wireless broadband, along with solutions for the South Shore community and the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board.

Each of the implementations had its challenges said Terry Buchanan, Conpute’s vice-president and CTO.

The Town of Georgina project, for example, saw Conpute coordinating the laying and digging of foundations and the pouring of concrete to erect 120 foot towers with wireless IP equipment, and also introduced the company to the nuances of government regulations and permits. The towers were needed to bring wireless broadband Internet access to the rural area.

“It was a new forte for us that we’re now very comfortable with,” said Buchanan. “We do a lot of towers now.”

A key to success in all three projects, said Conaby, was that all involved areas of emerging technology that Conpute began to invest in five years ago when Buchanan joined the company, such as broadband wireless, VoIP, disaster recovery and business continuity.

It’s stories like Conpute’s that make the Channel Elite Awards a great event to be at. So make sure to get in the contest and go online to submit your great solutions story.

Tidd will get an opportunity to work his magic at D-Link, an opportunity he wasn’t so fortunate enough to have in his last job at 3Com.

CDN still needs to talk to Tidd about this opportunity, but I think it can be a perfect situation for both him and D-Link because they both sort of need each other right now.

D-Link is stuck in a retail funk. For example, they have a Try Before You Buy program, which is great for the Harry Hard Luck or Sally Sob Story type of customers who source their own IT products. But for channel partners who do real business in the SMB or the enterprise these gimmick programs are not taken seriously.

It is this change in perception where Tidd can definitely help. He has the experience and the know-how to change and enhance the market’s view of D-Link and its products.

When you think of enterprise or SMB networking players you do not automatically think of D-Link, but the company is trying to sell more into this space. D-Link has released more than 40 new business solution SKUs from 2007 through 2008.

Hiring Tidd as general manager for D-Link Canada and vice-president of North American channel development is the next step in this evolution process for D-Link.

However, the next big market opportunity for D-Link is in VoIP and unified communications and it is here where Tidd can really help a player like D-Link.

Tidd was able to cobble together a channel network of more than 100,000 worldwide partners for 3Com at a time when everyone wanted Cisco gear. That’s quite impressive, and I believe he can do the same kind of work for D-Link.

The company already has VoiceCenter, which is ideal for small businesses. It’s a phone system with Microsoft Response Point Service Pack 1 aimed at customers with 50 phones or less. This area is the sweet spot in the market and especially in Canada, with more than a million businesses in this segment.

The biggest challenge will be to build on the VoIP business with unified communications. In May, I had a chance to interview J.C. Liao, the D-Link CEO in his headquarters in Taipei and he told CDN that a build-out in unified communications products was a key priority for D-Link.

The margins in unified communications are between 50 and 60 per cent for the company. This margin range nearly approaches Cisco’s average of 70 per cent.

Liao said D-Link will enhance switching capabilities to start to deliver unified communications solutions simply because the profit margins are high. He anticipates that D-Link channel partners can get 50 per cent and higher margins in the SMB market globally.

I think it will be Tidd’s job to execute this and enhance it. This is where the money is and D-Link needs a channel executive such as Tidd to go out and get it.

Dave Walsh, then of Ingram Micro Canada, told me to keep an eye on Long View. Walsh said that this 30 person solution provider was doing things right during a period of time that was simply awful for the channel and the whole industry for that matter because of the tech bubble.

Doing things right is exactly what Long View has done for the past seven years. The company now has 575 employees in seven locations in Canada and the U.S. and with its first-ever I Technology event held in Calgary this past Monday they have set a new standard for channel partners.

I have attended many conferences and events in my time and I Technology for a first-ever show was a home run.

Putting on an event of any kind is a nerve racking experience. People’s anxiety levels are at an all time high. And, show organizers and staff are always fearful of holding an event that no one is interested in.

Trust me on this. I know. CDN puts on two events every year and each time the team here goes through these sets of emotions plus others. The biggest compliment I can give Long View and its show organizer Souzan Basmahjian is that they were able to floor a show. That is the toughest thing to do.
The I Technology event had great vendor booths from Net App, Google, Axia, Akorri and others. The conference keynote speakers NetApp vice-chairman Tom Mendozza, Gartner Fellow Ken McGee, and former NHL goalie Kelly Hrudey were superb.

But what must not be overlooked is the attendance. In a city the size of Calgary attracting 100 people for this event would have been great. Long View managed an attendance of more than 1,100 people. That is simply off-the-charts fantastic.

To give you some perspective, the one-day VM World conference that I attended in Toronto last month had 1,500 attendees, which was also very good. But Toronto is three times the size of Calgary.

I was asked during the event by many Long View executives to compare I Technology with other events in the IT industry and I am simply unable to do it. I Technology is a special case because it comes from a channel partner. I have attended other reseller events and those have all been great, but they are almost always small gatherings and they are not that strategic in nature. They are more like seminars than conferences.

Channel partners as a whole do not put on events. In Canada I only know of two who do. The distributors do a great job of putting on strategic events. And, not that I want to blow my own horn, but CDN’s Top 100 Solution Providers and Channel Elite Awards events are on everyone’s calendar.

For a one day event, I Technology delivered a lot of value for attendees. Most of the booths had local executives that could give attendees real world examples of their technology.

Mendozza’s keynote was nothing short of spectacular.

McGee gave great insight and market analysis from a Canadian perspective. Hrudey told great stories even though he was feeling under the weather.

The VIP reception afterwards was again, top notch.

It takes dedicated, hard working people to put on a show like I Technology and it also takes the same kind of people to make a show successful. If there is anything I’ve learned from attending this event, it’s that Long View has great people who are committed to their customers, the industry, and the city of Calgary.

One of the reasons why Long View put on this show was that they wanted to get their name out in the public. I think they did this and more. Congratulations.

One quick hit before I go. I want to wish Charlie Spano all the best at CanWest Global. Spano was terrific to deal with and he will be missed by many in the Canadian IT channel.