<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; ">As a certified Polycom reseller, I disagree with a most of what you say here. Our experience has not been a consistently great one, but their product is superior to any in the market in my opinion. Also, we have the ability to work directly with their technical team to address issues and to improve the product line.<DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>I suggest that you identify the Polycom sales resources in your geography and have lunch with them. I think that you will find that they will eagerly involve you and assist you in getting into their certified reseller program.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Obviously, my experience does not include the channel in Canada so I may be completely wrong as it pertains to your situation.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>I hope this is helpful and have a great weekend.</DIV><DIV><BR><DIV> <SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica Neue; font-size: 11px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica Neue; font-size: 11px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><TABLE border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="391" style="font: 11px arial,sans-serif; padding-left: 15px; font-family: arial; "><TBODY style="font-family: arial; "><TR style="font-family: arial; "><TD width="155" style="padding-right: 15px; font-family: arial; "><B style="font-size: 14px; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; ">Bryan Johns</SPAN></SPAN></B><BR style="font-family: arial; "><SPAN style="font-size: 12px; font-family: arial; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; ">Partner</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; "><BR style="font-family: arial; "></TD><TD width="185" style="border-left: 1px solid #CCC; padding-left: 15px; font-family: arial; "></TD></TR><TR valign="top" style="line-height: 15px;; font-family: arial; "><TD style="padding-right: 15px; font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><A target="nw" href="http://www.sheltonjohns.com/"><B style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; ">Shelton | Johns</SPAN></SPAN></B></A><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><A target="nw" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=1805+Old+Alabama+Road%2CRoswell%2CGA+30076%2CUSA&hl=en" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000; font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; ">1805 Old Alabama Road</SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; ">Suite 200</SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "></A><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; ">Roswell, GA 30076</SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; ">USA</SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "></TD><TD style="border-left: 1px solid #CCC; padding-left: 15px; font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><B style="color: #999; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; ">Office:</SPAN></SPAN></B><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "> 678.248.2637</SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><B style="color: #999; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; ">FindMe:</SPAN></SPAN></B><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "> 678.229.1809</SPAN></SPAN><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><B style="color: #999; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; ">Email:</SPAN></SPAN></B><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "> </SPAN></SPAN><A target="nw" href="mailto:bryan@sheltonjohns.com" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000; font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; ">bryan@sheltonjohns.com</SPAN></SPAN></A><BR style="font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "><DIV style="margin-top: 5px; font-family: arial; line-height: 15px; "></DIV></TD></TR><TR style="font: 10px arial,sans-serif; font-family: arial; font-size: 10px; "><TD style="padding-top: 5px; font-family: arial; font-size: 10px; "></TD><TD align="right" style="padding-top: 5px; font-family: arial; font-size: 10px; text-align: -khtml-right; "></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"></SPAN></SPAN> </DIV><BR><DIV><DIV>On Jun 1, 2007, at 11:26 AM, Mike wrote:</DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2">Hi,</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2">I've made a very bad decision in the past: I've standardized on Polycom VoIP phones. Technically, they are good phones. But from a VAR point of view, the company itself is a problem to work with (as some of you know). </FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2">One of the requirements to become a certified Polycom reseller is to have authorization from a technology partner. Now, given that I plug Polycoms on my home-grown Hosted PBX largely based on Asterisk open-source, and that I don`t resell any of those technology partner's products, I doubt they will even talk to me. Digium is a partner though, who should I be talking to?</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2">I am guessing Digium wants to encourage people using their stuff and their partners', and maybe they`ll actually rubber-stamp this....Or maybe I`m just an optimist.</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2">Any other tips on dealing with Polycom as someone who wants to be a certified reseller?</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2">Mike</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class="140232115-01062007"><FONT face="Arial" size="2"></FONT></SPAN> </DIV><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">_______________________________________________</DIV><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">--Bandwidth and Colocation provided by Easynews.com --</DIV><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">asterisk-biz mailing list</DIV><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">To UNSUBSCRIBE or update options visit:</DIV><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><SPAN class="Apple-converted-space"> </SPAN><A href="http://lists.digium.com/mailman/listinfo/asterisk-biz">http://lists.digium.com/mailman/listinfo/asterisk-biz</A></DIV> </BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>