Ingram Micro mulls over program revamp

Distributor Ingram Micro Australia would wait at least 12 months before deciding whether to adopt a US-led program that lets resellers choose how they're charged for products and services.

Earlier this week, Ingram Micro in the US unveiled Choice Advantage -- a program that lets its customers choose their own level of purchasing with the distributor. This can range from a 'bare-bones' transaction that offers the lowest possible product price with little support to a model that includes higher prices but more services.

The program evolved from plans to increase profits that would save the distributor more than US$160 million per annum.

Steve Rust, managing director at Ingram Micro Australia, said he would wait for 12 months before deciding whether to adopt the US strategy at the Australian subsidiary.

'It's been two years planning in the US. We'll monitor and watch this over the next 12 months,' he said, adding that he plans to fly across to the US next January for an update.

Under the program, resellers would choose one of three base levels -- Independent Choice, Active Choice or Professional Choice, which include specific service-level criteria.

The Professional Choice option within the Choice Advantage program was something that Ingram in Australia had been investing in for some time, Rust said.

Ingram Micro's US-based senior group VP of sales and marketing, Pat Collins, this week played down the move as a direct attack against competitor Synnex. 'Distributors running around beating each other up on price is not healthy for the channel in the long term,' he said.

'When that happens, value-added services start to disappear and cost shows up somewhere else. Nothing would please me more if competitors start to adopt this. We want to compete based on value, not price,' he said.