Microsoft Surface Tablet Sales: Partner Program Rumors Return
Microsoft (MSFT) Surface tablets sales may soon involve value-added resellers (VARs). Indeed, chatter about a long-rumored Surface channel partner program has started again. And most folks are pointing to a July 2013 launch, shortly after Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference 2013 (WPC13) in Houston.
Two separate sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans say it’s increasingly likely that a Surface partner program will be announced at WPC13, with the program rolling out shortly after the event. Special incentives — rewarding partners that sell Surface tablets with Office 365 cloud services and Office subscriptions — could also emerge, the sources said. Microsoft has previously declined to discuss such speculation with The VAR Guy.
Meanwhile, Microsoft is trying to clear inventories of Surface RT (the low-end tablet) by offering free Touch or Type covers/keyboards with purchases through June 30. Some folks think the clearance sets the stage for a Surface 2 launch, perhaps with a 7.9 inch display. But Surface 2 (aka Surface Mini or Surface Plus) may not arrive until 2014.
For now, most Surface sales currently involve Microsoft’s online store and retail outlets. The device has also caught on with many channel-focused executives — including CA Technologies Senior VP Adam Famularo, LabTech Software CEO Matt Nachtrab and TechSquad CEO Chris Wiser.
Still, a formal Surface partner program designed for VARs has not yet emerged. In Microsoft’s the defense, the company has only gradually expanded Surface’s distribution. Rather than shipping it worldwide from the get-go and flooding all markets, Microsoft took a slow approach — studying user reaction and sales data before expanding Surface’s availability across more and more markets.
Further complicating matters, Microsoft has its hands full developing Windows 8.1 — which the company will preview at BUILD 2013, a conference in late June.
Perhaps by mid-July, Microsoft will finally invite VARs to the Surface party.