Scott Ferguson

A federal judge sentenced the owner of a Web site that peddled more than $4 million’s worth of pirated software from such companies as Adobe Systems, Autodesk and Macromedia, to six years in federal prison, the Department of Justice announced Aug. 25. The Web site owner, Danny Ferrer, 37, of Lakeland, Fla., must also pay […]

Lenovo Group has poached its fourth Dell executive and will tap him to lead a new business unit that will address customer service. Christopher J. Askew, 44, was appointed senior vice president of the new Lenovo Services unit on Aug. 24, the company said in a statement. He will be based in Singapore and report […]

Apple is recalling 1.8 million notebook battery packs, which contain cells manufactured by Sony. The Cupertino, Calif., computer maker is recalling the packs, shipped with certain of its 12-inch iBook G4, 12-inch and 15-inch PowerBook G4 notebooks and also sold as extras and replacements, citing a fire hazard. The Aug. 24 Apple recall—which affects only […]

IBM announced on Aug. 23 that it is acquiring Internet Security Systems, a maker of network security and appliances, for $1.3 billion, or $28 per share. The purchase of ISS, the fifth largest in IBM’s history, is the fourth acquisition for Big Blue since the start of August. In less than four weeks, the Armonk, […]

A little more than a year after IBM started its Public Sector Edge program, the company is offering a new set of initiatives, networking opportunities and marketing resources for its partners, in an effort to reach vertical, public sector markets. The new benefits are a way for ISVs, VARs, consultants and system integrators to take […]

Azaleos, an e-mail managed services provider, is announcing a new certification program for VARs as the company releases an update of its QuickStart E-Mail Assessments service. The new certification, ACE (Azaleos Certified Experts), trains solutions providers in the updated QuickStart service. Once trained, VARs can offer IT departments an assessment of their current e-mail environments […]

GroundWork Open Source, an open-source management solutions company based in San Francisco, is taking steps to enter the channel by starting a global partner network for VARs and systems integrators. GroundWork announced the new Partner Network at the LinuxWorld Conference & Expo in San Francisco on Aug. 16. The company has promoted itself as a […]

With Dell ready to recall some 4 million notebook batteries—one of the largest recalls in history of consumer electronics—the question is whether the channel that the vendor has so often disparaged can capitalize on the situation. The answer, according to several solution providers, is that the user will have the final say in the matter. […]

Fujitsu Computer Systems is tapping Synnex to distribute its notebooks, desktops and tablets as the vendor attempts to widen its presence in the small and midsize business market. Fujitsu, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., already has a distribution relationship with Synnex in Canada, and this new agreement will expand that partnership to the United States, where […]

D&H Distributing will begin offering its VARs in the SMB market the new line of Lenovo desktops and notebooks, as the Chinese computer maker continues its push within that growing segment of the channel. By teaming with D&H, Lenovo, which has been criticized for not making more use of the channel, picked a distribution partner […]

IBM, in its ongoing efforts to increase its SMB presence, is collaborating with ISV eOneGroup to provide solutions for several businesses. These partnerships are part of a strategic effort by IBM to reach out to ISVs and partners who have established relationship with small and midsize businesses, said Leslie Givens, IBM’s program director for ISV […]

As its first order of business at Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, Apple announced the new Mac Pro desktop with the Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 processor. With the announcement of the Mac Pro, Apple has completed its transition to Intel-based Macs. In addition to the new Dual-Core Intel processors, CEO Steve Jobs and Phil […]