Ingram Micro's Digital Signage Division Helps Partners Capture New Revenue Streams and Boost Profitability

Download as PDF

Innovative technology distributor makes it easier for solution providers to sell, install and support digital signage offerings with dedicated resources and strategic alliance with national installer

SANTA ANA, Calif., Dec. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM) today announced a new Digital Signage Division focused on accelerating partner growth and establishing new revenue streams. Unique to North America, the new division complements Ingram Micro's growing success in the consumer electronics (CE), converged IT and data capture/point of sale (DC/POS) markets, and enables solution providers to successfully sell, service and support complete, end-to-end digital signage solutions.

"Digital signage offers a wide-variety of flexible and highly customized IT solutions for the communication needs of virtually any market place," says Kevin Prewett, vice president, vendor management, Ingram Micro U.S. "Business owners are searching for smarter and more efficient ways to brand, broadcast and communicate in real time with their employees, clients and consumers. Now, with digital signage technology, companies of all sizes can dramatically enhance communications and create new ways to streamline operations with tighter inventory management and controls."

Led by Prewett, Ingram Micro's Digital Signage Division offers a dedicated team of marketing specialists, category specialists, vendor managers, technical support staff and a growing number of cross-trained digital signage sales professionals. In addition, solution providers have access to a number of business-building resources through the new division. These include hands-on and remote training and education seminars, field-deployable sales and technical engineers, and the Ingram Micro Solution Centers -- two multi-million-dollar high-tech solutions labs equipped with the industry's latest and most popular digital signage solutions.

Ingram Micro's new division also teamed up with the Ingram Micro Services Network (IMSN) to leverage its digital signage expertise and tap into the reach of national installer United Service Source, Inc. (USSI). As a new IMSN member, USSI technicians will be available to help Ingram Micro solution providers with designing, deploying and servicing digital signage solutions throughout North America.

"Digital signage signifies an explosive growth opportunity for solution providers in North America -- especially those with existing expertise in POS, CE or networking," says David Christiano, president at USSI, a world-class service provider that specializes in installing and servicing communication systems. "We are absolutely thrilled to be aligned with Ingram Micro's new Digital Signage Division and pleased to join the IMSN and team with Ingram Micro solution providers to successfully sell, deploy and service digital signage solutions."

With access to thousands of solution providers focused on networking, CE and POS, Ingram Micro's Digital Signage Division also provides a strategic sales, marketing and recruitment advantage to CE and IT manufacturers specializing in large format displays, peripherals, connectivity hardware and specialized software. "Ingram Micro's keen ability to source the total solution and identify and recruit qualified solution provider partners who are eager to sell digital signage is world-class," says Christopher Franey, vice president of sales and marketing, Samsung. "The sales momentum we've gained in the last year at Samsung is impressive and our partner base continues to grow at a rapid clip."

To date, the value-added distribution giant maintains strategic relationships with several of today's leading manufacturers including Samsung, NEC, Sony Electronics, ViewSonic, Planar, Cisco, Peerless, AOpen, AVI, and Minicom.

"The Digital Signage Division serves as a growth catalyst for our solution providers, as well as our manufacturer partners," says Keith Bradley, president, Ingram Micro North America. "As technologies continue to converge and become mainstream communications vehicles for businesses and consumers, the value the IT channel will place on having a single-source distribution partner for all their technology and professional IT services will rise and become an invaluable resource."

For more information about Ingram Micro's new Digital Signage Division, solution providers and IT manufacturers should contact their Ingram Micro sales or vendor management representative.

About Ingram Micro

As a vital link in the technology value chain, Ingram Micro creates sales and profitability opportunities for vendors and resellers through unique marketing programs, outsourced logistics services, technical support, financial services, and product aggregation and distribution. The company serves more than 150 countries and is the only global broad-based IT distributor with operations in Asia. Visit http://www.ingrammicro.com.

SOURCE Ingram Micro Inc.

Released December 3, 2007