Nortel reduces partner discount thresholds

Nortel Networks has slashed discount sales thresholds for its nPower partners across the Asia-Pacific region.

Previously partners of its "Volume" component of the partner program had to sell US$25 million in Nortel equipment and services per annum to become entitled to a six percent “volume discount” on purchases. This threshold has now been reduced to US$10 million.

At the bottom end, partners that sell between $1 million and $2 million per annum in equipment and services receive a one percent discount per annum.

Nick Avakian, general manager, enterprise networks at Nortel A/NZ, conceded that reseller discount targets had been too high.

“We wanted to align it with where we are in the Asia-Pacific market," he said. "It’s a developing market for [local partners but] the discounts were previously based on volumes done by North American partners."

The “value” component of the program has also changed. Resellers that commit to product training and certifying staff receive discounts while those who don’t get discounts taken away from them.

The company has also tweaked its business development fund (BDF) which allows the reseller to receive some BDFs during the year and the rest when a particular sales target is reached. Previously BDFs were only paid when the reseller reached the target.

The nPower program has also been opened up to specialist partners that focus on areas such as call centres or security.