This week in the ICT Channel...

Comms Dealer magazine rounds up the top channel news that broke during the week.....

Record shortlist for Comms National Awards 2024

Over 100 channel companies have been shortlisted for the Comms National Awards 2024, the comms industry’s most coveted awards extravaganza,?following a record number of entries.

For 2024, The CNAs?will be hosted at the Park Plaza Hotel on the 26th September, with Giacom returning as Headline sponsor. Over 200 entries from 101 companies will be recognised during the evening.

The event has been organised annually by BPL Business Media for over 20years to recognise?resellers, vendors, distributors, network providers and service providers that have excelled in their delivery of innovative products and services over the last year.

BPL Business Media MD Michael O'Brien said: “To receive a record number of entries is testament to the ongoing health and success of the channel.

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SME education on switch off still lacking

Just under a quarter (23%) of respondents to a bOnline / TechRound survey are still operating on copper ADSL lines for their business internet activities, highlighting that a lack of education continues to hold back penetration.

A similar number (24%) believed they were on hybrid copper FTTC lines, with nearly a fifth not knowing. Most business owners (54%) were completely unaware that ADSL lines would become redundant.

According to the findings, the majority (72% in total) of those surveyed either want to be on FTTP (50%), are currently trying (7%) or have already upgraded (15%).

However, 70% of UK SME’s either don’t know if Openreach ’s Ultrafast FTTP broadband has reached their area or believe that it is not yet available.

Anthony Karibian , CEO and founder of?bOnline, said: “Small business owners simply don’t accurately know what is going on. The long-term cost to UK plc is significant with the country’s next generation of businesses being left to stall in the digital slow-lane.”

CNA Awards 2024 - Book your table now!

The Comms National Awards, the channel’s most coveted awards extravaganza, are now closed for entries - So now is the time to beat the rush and book your table at the most extravagant awards event of the year!

In addition to tables and places, we have a limited number of VIP table packages where you can entertain your team and your customers in style with the best seats in the house! We also have sponsorship packages which deliver a fantastic amount of branding profile before, during and after the awards. Message Heather Miles to book your place or visit Comms National Awards (cnawards.com) for further details.

The event will take place at the Park Plaza Hotel, Westminster, on 26th September 2024, celebrating stand-out MSPs, channel partners, vendors, carriers, service providers and distributors. Don't miss out!

Jola helps raise ￡250K for Cancer Research

Jola Cloud CMO Cherie Howlett completed the Race for Life in Derby with her daughter Bella, aged 10 to?raise money for Cancer Research and prevent families from losing their loved ones to the disease.?

They raised over?￡800 as a pair and over ￡250k as a group.

“We lost my Dad and Bella’s Grandad to a rare form of cancer in October 2020 and Bella wanted to help Cancer Research fund new innovative treatments to help more people survive," said Cherie.

"Neither of us likes running, so we trained with the Couch to 5K app to get fit to face the challenge. The support we received for this has been amazing. Thank you!”?

Giacom scoops brace at Vodafone’s Business Partner Awards

Giacom secured two commendations at Vodafone ’s Business Partner Awards 2024, winning in both Distribution Partner of the Year and Transformation and Growth categories.

The first award acknowledged Giacom’s double-digit growth year on year, growth in the number of active partners and ability to provide commercial stability.

The Transformation and Growth award recognised Giacom’s launch of the Cloud Market for Vodafone Business portal.

Andrew Wilford , Giacom’s MD – Mobile, said: “Our partnership with Vodafone is central to our mobile proposition.

“These wins reflect our commitment to innovation, excellence in customer service, and the strong partnerships we have built.”

Kathryn Platt , Head of Indirect at Vodafone Business, added: “These awards are recognition of the collaboration with our partners across the UK who have harnessed Vodafone’s expertise to drive growth in their markets.”

Tollring?joins Amity Group in AI-focused alliance

Tollring has entered a strategic equity alliance with?Amity Solutions to accelerate the development of Generative-AI powered applications and enhance?Tollring’s product offerings and global reach.?

As part of the tie-up, Amity Solutions will become a majority shareholder of Tollring, deploying its AI Lab resources to help Tollring power its voice analytics software solutions with advanced Generative AI capabilities.

The deal will also bring complementary software solutions in customer engagement, including an AI-powered chatbot/voicebot platform,

Amity’s network and presence in Southeast Asia will play a pivotal role in accelerating Tollring’s international expansion.

Tony Martino , CEO of Tollring, said: “The next chapter of our journey, as part of Amity Group, will enable us to deliver unprecedented scale and value to our customers and partners, especially during this time of immense transformation and opportunity in our industry.”

Keng Teik Koay , Group CEO of Amity Solutions said: “We have been very impressed with Tollring’s management team and will support the business under Tony’s partnership.”

Commsworld secures ￡35m connectivity contract

Commsworld has won a new contract worth over ￡35m over five years to provide network services to Glasgow City Council.

The company?now has responsibility for Glasgow’s LAN, Wi-Fi, firewall and security and remote access, to add to its delivery of a robust, resilient WAN solution and IP telephony.

In total Commsworld has provided 525 WAN connections, connectivity to a 500-seat contact centre, and linked up all the council’s 18,000 phones on one unified network.

Steve Langmead , CEO of?Commsworld, said: “We aim to help citizens who live and work in this benefit from the best cutting-edge technology available today.”

Thanks for reading and we hope to see you back here next Friday for the latest news update. Be sure to subscribe at the top of this newsletter to get your copy.