Comments for Virtualization: Friend or Foe of the Refurbished Market? at http://www.wdpi.com , comment 0 to 1 out of 1 comments http://www.wdpi.com Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:53:26 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.wdpi.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=136&Itemid=349#pc_18 Virtualization is certainly a great technology development for IT users when it comes to ease of management, resource allocation and numerous other benefits, but I still don't feel you've addressed the question of what it ultimately means for the refurb market... Yes, companies like World Data and ours have more opportunities to buy "take-outs" or lots of equipment available from corporations who can now run 20 virtual servers on one platform instead of 21 physical systems. The question at hand though is, who do we sell that equipment to if they need fewer systems? My answer is that timing is on our side (for now at least)... With the economic downturn we're currently facing, IT user's budgets will be constrained, forcing them to turn to more economical solutions and component upgrades rather than system replacement. Both of our companies are poised to benefit from this need by providing refurbished systems and being the go-to source for EOL and discount upgrade parts. The culmination of the current economic climate creating demand for our products and the excess equipment from projects such as consolidation and virualization will ramp up our supply allowing our marketplace to thrive for the near future. A looming question remains though... once this economic cycle bounces back, what will the demand be for the products in our industry?... I don't think the market will ever go away, but I suspect we'll see some ongoing consolidation, especially amid the smaller resellers... in 2008 though, opportunities for resellers (and our clients) abound! As leaders in the marketplace, I'm confident that companies like World Data and Vibrant have long and fruitful futures in this industry. - Corey Donovan Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:34:33 +0100