Distributors face fines for dealing with tax dodgers
HM Customs & Excise - the guys that set VAT rules and suchlike - have confirmed plans to fine companies that deal with known tax dodgers. The move, announced recently by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer in his budget, aims to stamp out the practice of distributors in the IT and cellular business dealing with companies that then collapse, taking the VAT and other duties with them.
The VAT fraud process has grown in popularity in recent years with several firms claiming to be shipping goods outside of the European Union and claiming the VAT back. When the goods are never shipped, HM Customs' tries to claim the VAT refunds back, only to see the company go bust.
Most experts agree that some degree of collusion exists between VAT fraudsters and the companies they deal with, but proving the case is another matter entirely. The problem with HM Customs' plans is that it will impose a joint liability on an IT distributor to reclaim the lost VAT, effectively meaning that a distributor would have to prove that they had checked a dealer/company was not a VAT fraud before they dealt with them. If they were unable to prove this, then it looks likely that HM Customs could reclaim the lost VAT from the distributor, leaving them out of pocket.
Microscope, the UK trade dealer weekly, quotes Eddie Pacey, Bell Microproducts Europe's director of credit services as saying that distributors cannot be expected to police the channel against VATR fraudsters. Despite this, Pacey confirmed that any firm applying for an account with the distributor would be expected to provide a VAT number, which would be validated. In addition, he said, Bell Microproducts would be suspicious about a new customer that is trading large volumes of goods in a short space of time.
The problem with taking this approach is that distributor sales staff, by their very nature, are always keen for new customers to buy in volume, so stopping the sale of kit to bona fide dealers is just not going to happen.
Nevertheless, HM Customs says it undergoing a consultation exercise with interested parties and hopes to issue its draft plans later this summer. It will be interesting to see how the trade channel reacts to the draft proposals.
Computer 2000 reports LCD sales taking off
It's taken some time, but Computer 2000, the UK distribution arm of Tech Data, reports that sales of LCD screens are at last taking off, as users start to replace their boring old conventional CRT monitors. According to the distributor, it expects to see sales of LCD screens really take off by the end of the year, as screen sizes increase, prices fall and users become more aware of the benefits of using LCDs. Sales of LCD flat panel monitors, says Computer 2000, are already outstripping CRT sales as resellers upgrade their customers to the new models, replacing bulky and power-hungry CRTs with their thinner, quieter and more energy-efficient counterparts.
Gary Fowle, the firm's commercial director, says that, before long, he expects CRT sales to be confined to specific niches of the market. 'The advances now being made in LCD and plasma screens will deliver screens with larger viewable areas and lower prices and that will make the choice - for both systems builders and end users - very straightforward indeed,' he explained. 'CRTs will still be better for very high resolutions and for applications that need absolute precision, but LCD will be dominating the desktop by the end of the year,' he added. According to Fowle, the move to flat screen technologies is part of a bigger trend that many resellers are now recognising and doing their best to exploit. 'A wave of technology has arrived almost unnoticed, that is making the working environment much easier and cleaner for the end user. Wireless networking, Bluetooth and infra-red are sweeping away the tangle of wires on the desktop and around the office and small storage devices and DVD writers are giving users more options for removable storage,' he said. 'At the same time, the LCD is giving us more space on the desktop and a better working environment,' he added.
Fowle claims that resellers can take advantage of all these trends by introducing these technologies to their users and encouraging them to upgrade their screens, networks and peripherals. 'Everyone wants to work in a clean, efficient and uncluttered environment and upgrading to LCD screens will deliver a tremendous improvement in this regard,' he said. 'It will save a lot of space, improve the ergonomics of a workplace and reduce emissions and the great thing about flat screens is that every customer is a prospect for an upgrade,' he added.
Tripwire links with Pentura to expand channel network
Tripwire, the data integrity specialist, has linked up with Pentura, a UK-based value added reseller, to offer the US firm's network integrity products to the channel. Under the agreement, Reading-based Pentura will become a reseller of Tripwire's data integrity products - Tripwire for Servers and Tripwire for Network Devices. Tripwire for Network Devices is billed as helping to reduce network downtime through immediate detection and notification of changes for routers, switches, and firewalls. Tripwire for Servers software, meanwhile, is said to assure the security and integrity of data on servers by notifying users if, when, and how files have changed.
Announcing the linkup, Ian Tickle, Tripwire's channel manager, said that Pentura's ability to provide a highly integrated solution portfolio to customers, combined with its technical expertise, expands Tripwire's reach into new markets. 'Our partnership with Pentura further enhances our offering to our customers by working with a partner that provides not only a history of trusted security solutions, but one who also understands the need for data integrity assurance in order to provide a comprehensive security solution,' he explained.
Sourcefire launches in Europe<'/b>
Sourcefire, a commercial company founded in the US two years ago to add value to the Snort open source intrusion detection software, has opened an office in London. Launching itself in Europe at the London Infosecurity Europe show in late April, Tom McDonough, the firm's CEO, revealed that he has appointed Graham Welch, a veteran of 15 years in the IT industry in the UK, to head up the company's European operation. Welsh, who was previously area vice president for RSA Security, told this reporter that he plans to offer companies using the Snort open source software a variety of value-added services, including access to round-the-clock support services and extra software modules.
The US-headquartered firm claims to have pushed staffing levels from just four to 70 over the last year and plans on boosting this to around 100 by the end of the year. McDonough said that most of the firm's staff are in research and development, as well as support services.
Perhaps more importantly from a customer point of view is that the firm's software is now undergoing testing for Common Criteria EAL2 certification, an important standard that many companies look for in their security products. Once EAL2 certification is completed, McDonough said, the plan is to submit the Sourcefire Network Sensor software for Common Criteria EAL4 certification. Welch, meanwhile, said that he has already signed a distribution deal with Weybridge-based EIP, and is looking to arrange similar country distribution contracts across Europe.
HM Customs & Excise, www.hmce.co.uk;
Computer 2000, 0044-870-4010505 (GB), www.computer2000.co.uk;
Tripwire, 0044-118-9036037 (GB), www.pentura.co.uk, www.tripwire.com;
EIP Distribution, 0044-870-2405684 (GB), www.eip.co.uk;
Sourcefire, 001-490-2901616 (VS), www.sourcefire.com
From his base in Sheffield, England, Steve Gold has been an IT journalist for 22 years,
17 of them full-time.
E-mail him at sg@mail.com.