Canalys announces largest and most prestigious independent channels conference ever seen in Europe

Resellers, distributors and vendors will head to France in unprecedented numbers this September to attend the inaugural Canalys Channels Forum. An impressive audience is guaranteed through the participation of the three largest and most influential vendors in the EMEA channel community: Cisco, HP and Microsoft. Each has taken a Platinum sponsorship position and will be inviting select partners from across EMEA to participate in the forum.

This sponsor-led invitation model means large numbers of resellers from across EMEA will join shoulder-to-shoulder with key executives from the vendors and distributors. Canalys will be guaranteeing an independent and open forum with content designed to inform, educate and entertain. The sweet spot of the agenda will be aimed to interest mid-market resellers, where so much growth potential exists.

This conference will not follow the traditional pattern, where leading sponsors repeat tired messages, aware that their competitors are listening too. Instead independent third-party experts will join with Canalys analysts to debate the topics that matter most to the channel. Likely agenda themes include unified communications, compliance, the environment, web 2.0, enterprise mobility, the economy, channel financing and marketing. Canalys will also use the event to premiere its annual keynote global channel trends presentation. Top executives from the leading sponsors will participate in private sessions with resellers by invitation, where they can safely go into detail on their programmes and plans.

Alan Cardy, VP business development said, “Since we first started discussing the concept of this event with a few vendors last September we have been overwhelmed by the positive response. Many have commented to us that, for several years, EMEA has lacked a credible and independent annual channels event. There is a need for a forum where ideas can be shared and innovation encouraged. We know that many vendors compete fiercely with each other on a daily basis, but they also share a common interest in encouraging resellers to invest in a prosperous future. We are confident that, following this announcement, many more vendors will be rushing to play a major role in this event.”

Senior analyst Alastair Edwards continued, “Channels are becoming more important than ever as they reassert their cost advantage over the struggling direct models. The telecoms and IT industries are converging rapidly, with applications and services becoming more important differentiators. Resellers have plenty of opportunities ahead, and through this event we will help them make the right decisions.”

The forum will contain a mixture of plenary sessions, open and invitation-only breakouts, as well as an exhibition and meeting area. There will be many opportunities for formal and informal networking, including a one-to-one meeting request service. All guests will be welcomed at a cocktail reception to open the event and invited to a glorious open-air gala dinner on Wednesday, September 5th. The conference is open to all and will appeal most to IT and telecoms vendors, distributors and resellers. Delegates will be able to register to attend via the conference web site, and resellers will also be able to request a funded place from a sponsor. A limited number of places will be available for the press too. The main conference will be held at Monte Carlo’s famous Grimaldi Forum. For more information visit www.canalyschannelsforum.com or call +44 118 984 0520. For sponsorship details please contact Rita Chaher on +44 118 984 0539 or e-mail rita_chaher@canalys.com.

About Canalys

Canalys specialises in delivering high quality market data, analysis and advice to the world’s leading technology vendors. It is recognised as a key provider of continuous advisory services and confidential custom projects for marketing managers and strategists within blue-chip IT, telecoms, navigation and consumer electronics companies. It has unrivalled expertise in European routes to market for all kinds of high technology products and services in the consumer, SMB and large enterprise segments, and provides worldwide market data and trends analysis.

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