Wick Hill and Panasonic partner for new convergence campaign

Distributor Wick Hill is to work with Panasonic (PC)to tap into what they describe as the “under-utilised” convergence space.
Wick Hill MD Ian Kilpatrick says the partnership will firmly focus on the education of both voice and data resellers as well as end users.
“There’s a lack of awareness in the channel, particularly around UC aspect,” he says.
According to Steve Gerrard, marketing manager at Panasonic’s network communications group, convergence has historically been a “toothless tiger”. He says: “Convergence [has been] an umbrella term bandied around, particularly from a vendor perspective. Everyone announced plans for convergence without actually delivering anything. [It] got sidelined into various components such as Unified Communications.”
Both Panasonic and Wick Hill claim the convergence market is under-utilised, as many resellers are still on the sidelines, “scared of the consequences.”
Gerrard says Panasonic started to bring IP-centric solutions together with the creation of Panasonic Systems Network Europe (PSNE). Now, the firm hopes to mine Wick Hill’s channel of resellers to help them get a head start in the market.
“It’s about becoming a trusted advisor as opposed to being scared,” explains Kilpatrick. “As convergence increases there will be more applications on the network. Customers will have IP-based applications on their network. [Voice resellers] need to defend themselves by understanding and managing those applications on the network. Voice resellers are stepping into the IP world... they need to understand IP-based questions.
“Resellers need to go with confidence into a sales environment...rather than sitting on their hands because they’re not sure.”
Kilpatrick also explains that despite the distributor’s reputation as a security specialist, its key competencies are actually around ‘plumbing’ and infrastructure such as QoS, connectivity and network solutions. “Security is just like convergence, it’s just another app on the IP network,” he says.
Wick Hill will be offering its partners sales and technical training around the Panasonic solutions, with a particular emphasis on helping them with their first sales. “Convergence is a journey. [We give resellers] the first hook to get someone on board, but with the up sell opportunities they could continue to sell into the customer for the next five or ten years,” says Kilpatrick.