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To: hlpinout who wrote (89617)	2/9/2001 9:05:50 PM
From: hlpinout	Respond to of 97611

Sounds like a new processor for the iPAQ. -- Intel Says XScale Brings Handhelds Up To Speed By Amanda Stirpe, CRN Irvine, Calif. 2:02 PM EST Fri., Feb. 09, 2001 Increasingly, solution providers are finding that the innards of mobile devices--not bandwidth--are the reason for application limitations. Intel touts its XScale processor as the next-generation mobile processor, boasting speeds starting at 200MHz at the low end. XScale will enable high-performance applications such as streaming video, speech recognition and games, using one single piece of silicon, the company says. Current processor speeds do not provide mobile devices with capabilities beyond a basic organizer, which range in speeds from 130MHz for inexpensive devices to 206MHz at the most expensive level, say analysts. The Compaq iPaq Pocket PC devices, for example, cost about $500 and offer 206MHz--proving performance equals price. XScale also will incorporate packet-switched data, currently being used in Japan's iMode connections. Packet switching lowers the cost of data and allows more reliable data connections than the circuit-switched connections used in U.S. cellular networks. Solution providers can anticipate cellular connections built into the XScale-enhanced PDA devices to be marketed to attract vertical professionals such as field sales and medical workers, says Mark Casey, director of marketing for Intel's handheld computing division. XScale was unveiled six months ago at Intel's Developer Conference. Since then, Intel has worked with OEM partners such as Compaq to roll out product this year, says Casey. "Prices [of devices with XScale] will start at the higher end, but will become integrated into the devices in time--leading to a reduction in costs," he says. Currently, some handheld-device makers use the StrongARM processor, which Intel licenses from Korean microprocessor maker ARM. Palm licenses Motorola's Dragonball chip for use in its PDA devices. France's Trium currently works with Motorola and Nokia to offer cellular-enabled PDA devices using the StrongARM processor. Intel says the Xscale processor will draw one-tenth of the original consumption of StrongARM. XScale's dependence on silicon concerns analysts who have been waiting for Bluetooth to overcome silicon shortages. Intel, however, says there is no silicon shortage. LCD screen shortages are a separate concern for Intel, which says these shortages could cause handheld demand to outstrip supply.

To: hlpinout who wrote (89617)	2/9/2001 9:14:05 PM
From: hlpinout	Respond to of 97611

Sets up a nice image for future growth. -- The Distribution Play In Hosted Services Will Grow By Robert Faletra, CRN President, Technology Solutions Group 5:08 PM EST Fri., Feb. 09, 2001 Successful products are not born, they are managed. Over the years, many products that have been superior from a technical standpoint have failed due to poor sales management practices. It's the old story. You can find plenty of people who understand technology, but those who understand sales channels and how to leverage them are a scarce commodity. There are success stories being born right now, however, by companies with senior executives who fundamentally understand the channel leverage point. Cable & Wireless a-Services is one. By creating an ASP program that can bring in recurring profits for solution providers, Cable & Wireless is driving a successful new model. Snap Appliances is another such company. With a potentially disruptive storage technology and a channel-only market strategy, the company has captured a dominant market share. There are some seasoned resources behind both companies. With Cable & Wireless, it's Compaq and Microsoft. In the case of Snap, it has been Quantum. For those that don't have a big brother, distribution is a critical leverage point. This is proving to be true with the new class of service products. Distributor Avnet Hall-Mark, for instance, recently teamed up with Epoch Internet to offer a hosting service product to solution providers. One of the real attractions for the value-added channel is the potential to sell someone else's service and obtain recurring revenue. Hall-Mark understands that and has the VAR customer base to leverage that point for the new class of service provider suppliers. Ingram Micro has jumped into this as well with a program that is driving toward an aggregation model for application service providers. Tech Data is moving in a similar direction. It would be hard to imagine Tech Data, Ingram Micro and others a year from now not having well-designed programs with a number of core partners for VARs to choose from. As the ASP model matures, distribution will play a key role in offering better pricing and programs for VARs interested in selling other service providers' products. Once again, there is value in distribution using its purchasing and marketing power on behalf of VARs. The efficiency gains are generally not lost on others attempting to break into the value-added channel with products and services. Many ASPs are discovering that attempting to sell their hosting services or other products direct is challenging and, more importantly, expensive. Feet on the street is always the deciding factor in the amount of business you can bring in. The best way to get the largest number of feet out there is leveraging the VAR channel. This will be as true with hosted services as it has been with hardware over the years. The difference, of course, will be in how hosted services are priced and managed. Because most of these services will result in recurring revenue for the solution provider that recommends and sells the product, distribution is likely to have a management role that results in it obtaining a piece of that monthly fee. There has been much written in the analyst community about the ASP model and the likelihood that it will consolidate quickly into a few players. Like any new market, there are too many variables to accurately predict, at such an early stage, how quickly it will evolve. More hosted service providers are realizing that in order to be one of the survivors, they need to use leverage points. Distribution will play an increasingly larger role in this emerging market as we move forward, simply because it reduces the risk for service providers attempting to achieve profitability. That's good news for both the VARs and the service providers that understand how to leverage the two-tier channel. Make something happen. I can be reached at (516) 733-8612 or via e-mail at rfaletra@cmp.com.