Greg, I agree. Peripheral to the Office365 matter, I would like to see Microsoft with a more prominent "marketing presence" than has been so in the last many years. But not to the extent and manner of Apple Stores and the Genius Bar.
Perhaps the 3-year deal with Telstra hinged on Telstra's large commitment to 'cloud' in Australia, a platform which did require some selling - as did software as a service. I know the SBIT Pro group members were annoyed at the Telstra-only model, and I don't think the addition of Optus would ameliorate that irritation. It was interesting to note the 1Tb cloud storage trumped by Google announcing 'unlimited'. _____ Ian Thomas Victoria Park, Western Australia From: ozdotnet-boun...@ozdotnet.com [mailto:ozdotnet-boun...@ozdotnet.com] On Behalf Of GregAtGregLowDotCom Sent: Saturday, June 28, 2014 10:41 AM To: ozdotnet@ozdotnet.com Subject: RE: Optus to sell Office365 I don't want to see it forced through any reseller. I just want to have the option to deal directly with Microsoft. Other people in the loop just complicate support for me. I can do that with Google and with any number of other global providers, so why not Microsoft? If I was running a milk bar or a cafe, I might feel differently. Both options should be available (ie: dealing with a partner if you need that type of help, or not dealing with one if you don't need that type of help). And partners that push the products should be part of the ongoing return on the products. I used to like the model that some companies used when ADSL first appeared. Customers could deal directly with them if they wanted. Partners could be involved in getting people signed up, and if they did, they were part of the revenue stream from that point on (indefinitely in relation to those connections). Bottom line is that I shouldn't be penalised for being based in Australia. Regards, Greg Dr Greg Low 1300SQLSQL (1300 775 775) office | +61 419201410 mobile│ +61 3 8676 4913 fax SQL Down Under | Web: <http://www.sqldownunder.com/> www.sqldownunder.com From: ozdotnet-boun...@ozdotnet.com [mailto:ozdotnet-boun...@ozdotnet.com] On Behalf Of ILT (O) Sent: Friday, 27 June 2014 7:56 PM To: ozdotnet@ozdotnet.com Subject: Optus to sell Office365 I know the Small Business IT professionals groups around Australia have been p!ssed off with O365 sales being Telstra-controlled for so long, so this <http://www.smh.com.au/it-pro/cloud/optus-gearing-up-to-fight-telstra-on-mic rosoft-365-turf-20140623-zse9x.html> announcement (SMH, today) is good news. Optus gearing up to fight Telstra on Microsoft 365 turf Optus is preparing to tread on Telstra's turf in the cloud computing market after securing a long overdue partnership with Microsoft. There's more interesting information in that SMH IT Pro article. _____ Ian Thomas Victoria Park, Western Australia
