F5 Networks Signs Distribution Agreement with Ingram Micro
Agreement Broadens F5's Footprint and Diversifies
Its Market by Giving Resellers, Solution Providers, and System
Integrators Access to F5's Suite of Performance-leading Products
F5 Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq:FFIV), the leading provider of Internet
Traffic and Content Management (iTCM) products, today announced that
it has signed a distribution agreement with Ingram Micro Inc.
(NYSE:IM), the largest global wholesale provider of technology
products and supply chain management services.
As a F5 Advantage Premier Distributor, Ingram Micro will begin
distributing F5's suite of iTCM products to resellers, solution
providers and system integrators in North America, expanding their
options for supporting their end-user customers. The distribution
agreement adds greater efficiencies to F5's Advantage Partner Program
and benefits the company in three ways: (1) Through Ingram Micro's
ability to effectively support and manage a large number of channel
partners; (2) By broadening and diversifying F5's market; and (3) By
allowing F5 to have greater focus on initiating and supporting its
strategic partner relationships.
"We are pleased that F5 has chosen us to distribute their
enterprise solutions products," said Sally Stanton, vice president,
general manager sales, Ingram Micro U.S. "F5 can now offer their
partners the convenience and benefits available through Ingram Micro.
We provide the logistical support and programs that will allow F5 to
effectively target solution providers, enter new markets, and
penetrate specific verticals like healthcare and education. Ingram
Micro is the source for open enterprise solutions."
Ingram Micro will carry F5's most popular products, bundled with
F5's installation and support services. This allows solution providers
to recommend F5 products with complete confidence, ensuring high
customer satisfaction. With advanced communication and sales support
tools at their disposal, Ingram Micro can assist F5 with increasing
their awareness and impact in the channel. The Ingram Micro
partnership will raise F5 product awareness amongst a broader
selection of partners and end-user customers, which in turn will help
drive demand for F5 products back through the channel.
"To successfully maintain our steady growth at F5, we must look to
business relationships that allow us to effectively scale our
resources and infrastructure," said Tom Pettigrew, vice-president of
OEM and channel sales at F5 Networks. "Our relationship with Ingram
Micro will enable us to expand our partner program and offerings,
since we can rely on Ingram Micro to provide state-of-the-art partner
management. This allows us to stay focused on our core competency of
developing superior iTCM solutions and enables us to concentrate our
internal resources on supporting F5's strategic partnerships.
Additionally, this move gives customers a greater choice for their
traffic management and content delivery infrastructure needs."
Partners with existing Ingram Micro relationships should contact
their current Ingram Micro representative to obtain F5 SKUs. It is
recommended that partners interested in transitioning their purchase
relationship to Ingram Micro contact their F5 Representative for
assistance. Interested solution providers in North America may call F5
Networks at 1.888.88.BIGIP for more information.
About Ingram Micro Inc.
Ingram Micro Inc. is the largest global wholesale provider of
technology products and supply chain management services. The company
operates in 36 countries with sales of $30.7 billion for the fiscal
year 2000. Ingram Micro's global regions provide the distribution of
technology products and services, marketing development and supply
chain management services to more than 175,000 technology solution
providers and 1,700 manufacturers. The company is focused on
maximizing shareowner value and achieving customer satisfaction
through innovation in the information technology supply chain. Visit
www.ingrammicro.com/corp.
About F5 Networks
F5 Networks is the leader in Internet Traffic and Content
Management (iTCM), and delivers application aware networks through its
open Internet Control Architecture. F5 features the industry's leading
set of integrated products and services that manage, control and
optimize Internet traffic and content. Our solutions automatically and
intelligently deliver the best possible Internet performance,
availability and content distribution for service providers,
enterprises and e-businesses. Our products remove bandwidth congestion
and optimize the availability and speed of mission-critical Internet
servers and applications, including web publishing, content delivery,
e-commerce, caching, firewalls and more. Our solutions are widely
deployed in large enterprises, the top service providers, financial
institutions, government agencies, healthcare, and portals throughout
the world. The company is headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and
has offices throughout North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. F5
Networks is located on the web at f5.com.
This press release may contain forward looking statements relating
to future events or future financial performance that involve risks
and uncertainties. Such statements can be identified by terminology
such as "may," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates,"
"believes," "estimates," "predicts", "potential" or "continue" or the
negative of such terms or comparable terms. These statements are only
predictions and actual results could differ materially from those
anticipated in these statements based upon a number of factors
including those identified in the Company's filings with the SEC.
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CONTACT: F5 Investor Relations
John Eldridge, 206/272-6571
j.eldridge@f5.com |
