10 Important Facts to Know About the IBM-Apple Alliance

From a channel perspective, the power of the IBM mobile computing alliance with Apple comes down to the 100,000 IBM consultants that will soon be in the field promoting the development and use of Apple mobile applications. Apple claims that more than 98 percent of the Fortune 500 already use its devices. The challenge has been getting people to use those devices for anything more than reading reports and email. Working together, IBM and Apple plan to develop more than 100 mobile applications for businesses of all sizes that will run natively on Apple devices. That alliance is both a boon for the Objective-C and Swift programming languages developed by Apple and the IBM Worklight mobile application development platform that in the not-too-distant future is expected to be available on the IBM Bluemix cloud platform. In the meantime, IBM channel partners can look forward to years of modernizing legacy batch-oriented enterprise applications that now need to respond to mobile computing devices in real time. Here's a look at the deal. 

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10 Important Facts About Apple in the Enterprise

Most Apple products find their way into the enterprise with help from solution providers in the channel. With so many Apple products now in use, a significant opportunity to provide IT management services for Apple devices has emerged. A recent survey of 309 individuals providing support for Apple products in companies with 100 or more employees found that IT support for Apple iPhone and iPad devices is nearly universal. A full 60 percent of those organizations said they are now providing IT support for Apple Macintosh systems, according to the survey, which was conducted by Dimensional Research on behalf of JAMF Software, a provider of management software for Apple devices. From a channel perspective, the proliferation of Apple devices creates an opportunity to expand managed services beyond Windows systems. In fact, the report finds that, when it comes to the tools that internal IT organizations use to support Apple devices, there's not all that much satisfaction. Indeed, 40 percent of those surveyed said they plan to increase their Apple IT support budgets. Here are key findings from the study. - 


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25 Facts You Should Know About Oracle

Working its way from a small database management company over 30 years ago, Oracle has certainly arrived. Oracle today is a giant. Oracle is considered the second or third largest software company in the world with both database software and enterprise application software, having grown both organically and through a legendary and aggressive acquisition strategy. That strategy has made Oracle one of the biggest technology companies globally, that now also has a hardware play since the Sun Microsystems acquisition. With tens of thousands of partners and hundreds of thousands of customers around the globe, Oracle's impact on the technology industry as a whole and on the channel in particular cannot be understated. Channel Insider takes a look at the Oracle of yesterday and today. Find more fast facts about top IT companies. - 

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10 Important Facts the Channel Should Know About Google

To say that Google is now an important enterprise player is perhaps an understatement.  Yet Google poses a conundrum to some in the channel. The company was once just a search firm that would peddle ads that marketing departments used to boost business, but over the past several years, Google has built its empire across a range of markets, maximizing its effectiveness at taking on Microsoft and other tech giants and establishing itself as a clear contender in the corporate world.  Granted, Google doesn't have the long history with the channel that Dell, IBM, Hewlett-Packard and others have, and there's this sense in the community that with Google now making plays for the enterprise, the impact the channel could have on the average company is uncertain. Yet Tech Data, for example, is working with Google. The distributor manages Google's line of Chromebooks and offers other value-added services and training around the Google products for solution providers. There are many reasons for the channel to trust Google. Its products can be a great value-add for the channel and can improve its relationship with companies. 

Here are 10 fast facts on Google that the channel should know. - 


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