Check Point set to shift gears on VAR margins

Check Point has revealed it is just weeks away from unveiling its heavily delayed new channel programme, which it claims will level the playing field between large and small VARs.
The security vendor has hinted its reseller base will see a radical shake-up as it weeds out large but unfocused integrators in favour of smaller “boutiques” investing heavily in its brand.
In a statement of intent, Check Point recently downgraded giant integrator Affiniti’s status from Platinum to Gold. Currently, allocation to Check Point’s Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze tiers is based largely on raw scale, with all partners netting equal margins.
Nick Lowe, managing director of northern Europe for Check Point, said resellers will now be handed higher margins and early access to products if they demonstrate a high level of customer experience and commercial alignment. “We decided we wanted to have a partner programme that would recognise value and skills over volume,” he said.
“We have three Platinum partners in the UK, but this will allow other partners to come into the fold that you typically would not expect. Likewise, where we have partners with a veneer of skills in multiple products, but the Check Point experience cannot be felt by customers, it’s our intention they will see less margin.”
Lowe said he hopes the programme, which was initially due to launch early this summer, would go live before Christmas. As revealed by CRN, the new programme will also reward distributors with rebates for incubating and developing new partners.
Graham Jones at Check Point Platinum partner Integralis welcomed the new structure, but added: “We’re waiting with bated breath. It has been a year and we would love to see it all there and signed.”
Fausto Amoroso, vice president of marketing at Affiniti, said: “The market is moving from point security solutions to embedding security in solutions. We sell secure solutions, not network security, and that is why our Check Point business has declined. As a whole, our security practice has grown.”
Check Point reassures distributors