Symantec unlocks subscriptions for SMB service providers

Symantec has removed the financial requirements for service provider partners wanting to join the ExSP Licensing Program.

The program, available to ISPs and telcos since 2006, was opened to all companies from today. Service providers in the program can sell Symantec products as a hosted service to their customers and pay for the software in a monthly subscription-based model instead of upfront, as happened previously.

Steve Martin, small business and distribution director at Symantec Pacific, said the minimum quarterly requirement used to be "quite significant".

"We've made the decision to remove the entry barriers, making it more accessible for any type of service provider regardless of their size to get into the program and most importantly build out services on Symantec technologies."

Symantec will also reward service partners by reducing licensing costs as their volume of business increases. Furthermore, the partner retains ownership of the licence.

"This is about Symantec providing our technologies to other partners who are providing their own services," Martin said.

Martin said partners could provide "pretty simple technology" under this program including managed backup, managed security or managed email and anti-spam through to complex tasks such as compliance, disaster recovery and hosted archiving.

The program itself doesn't require specialisation under Symantec's partner program, which launches next April.

"But some of the technologies within the program will require technical certification by the partner to ensure a reasonable level of competency," Martin said.

The message is choice

Martin said that Symantec would continue to push a hybrid sales approach which included on-premise, hosted and cloud models.

On-premise: The customer buys the technology outright.

Hosted: Under the ExSP Licensing Program partners buy Symantec technologies, build out a service of their own and offer it to their customers.

Cloud: The integrator on-sells a Symantec cloud-based service such as hosted mail security.