Posted: 12/2001
Partner Channel
An Internet Infrastructure Channel Partners Program with Dash of Hollandaise
By Tara Seals
Eggs are in just about everyone's refrigerator. But serve them with English muffin, a slice of ham and some hollandaise sauce and you have the ultimate breakfast value-add: Eggs Benedict.
Nowadays, everyone has Internet. But Equinix Inc. hopes its channel partners can "benedict" their businesses by bundling IP network infrastructure with services such as e-mail, web conferencing and web hosting. This fall, Equinix kicked off its channel partner program to market custom Internet operations solutions to enterprises.
The program recruits partners that will incorporate Equinix offerings with their own services, making for a total Internet package for the end user. Partners can be members of Equinix's Internet Business Exchange (IBX) centers, or outside independent consulting companies selling complementary services such as web development, performance monitoring and managed hosting services.
Equinix's IBXs are neutral facilities that provide one location for IP network interconnection. The centers provide service delivery, availability of bandwidth from multiple networks, scalable interconnection and multilevel physical security. Its customers are enterprises, carriers, ISPs, managed service providers, content distribution networks, content providers, ASPs and e-commerce companies, including Cable & Wireless plc., Charles Schwab & Co. Inc., MSN, UUNET/WorldCom Inc. and Yahoo! Inc.
In addition to the IBXs, Equinix maintains an open Internet marketplace, where members access each other's service and product options for Internet infrastructure development.
Equinix could be offering a significant value proposition, according to analyst firm Frost & Sullivan.
"We believe that facilities like Equinix's Internet Business Exchange centers will play a pivotal role in enabling the next generation of network connectivity required for enterprises to streamline their operations," says Pete Dailey, a Frost & Sullivan partner.
So far Equinix partners appear to see that proposition. Equinix already has signed up more than 30 of its member companies as channel members, including IT management companies Amdahl Corp. and Nuclio Inc.; managed service providers (MSPs) Coradiant Inc., NOCpulse Inc., Totality and SiteLite; and MSP/ASP/professional services company EYT (formerly Ernst & Young Technologies).
"Through these partnerships, Equinix and its partners are leveraging our respective service sets and direct sales forces to deliver a winning solution to enterprise customers," says Marjorie Backaus, Equinix' chief marketing officer.
Partners are supported by dedicated channel managers, and have access to Equinix's direct sales team for joint selling opportunities. The company has not revealed publicly details about the compensation model.
Backaus says the channel program is a natural fit for the company, given its open Internet marketplace for Internet infrastructure development.
"At Equinix we provide a dynamic environment that encourages interchange and the selling of best-of-breed services," she says. "Channel partners are critical as we seek to maximize the productivity of our sales efforts and present customers with comprehensive solutions in the marketplace."
