Channel optimistic about demand for virtualisation

The majority of virtualisation resellers are optimistic about the outlook for the next quarter, with 88.2 percent anticipating an increase in demand in the next six months, according to Citrix’s 2010 Channel Virtualisation Index Survey, conducted at the recent Citrix Partner Accelerator conference.

Desktop virtualisation and server virtualisation present the best opportunities for sales, with 43 percent of respondents saying that desktop virtualisation is the way to go, and 40 percent opting for server virtualisation. In the next three years, the channel predicts that the future lies with desktop virtualisation as the leader for sales, selected by 47 percent of respondents, closely followed by opportunities where virtualisation as part of a broader cloud computing initiative at 46 percent.

Only five per cent of respondents don’t think cloud computing services will have an impact on their business model, while nearly half (49 percent) have already made changes to the way they sell products to accommodate it.

“As the virtualisation marketplace continues to gather momentum, interest in desktop virtualisation has risen sharply over the past year and is clearly now a priority for resellers,” says Kevin Bland, channel sales director at Citrix UK and Ireland. “To support our partners in meeting demand, we’re putting a renewed emphasis on our Citrix Solutions Advisor channel programme, and introducing a Spearhead Programme designed to allow partners and their customers access to the latest desktop virtualisation technologies.”

Citrix (CTXS) says it is enabling resellers to become XenDesktop Virtualisation Specialist Partners, and is providing them with the toolset to “nurture desktop virtualisation opportunities” and identify new ones, saying they can earn up to 25 percent of the total licence value under the Citrix Advisor Rewards Scheme when they sell XenDesktop to new customers.