Fruity tax-dodging cargo-cult Apple has just staged a night-of-the-long knives on its education partners culling them down to just 14.
Word on the street is that between 24 and 26 Apple Solution Experts – Education (ASE) previously, with Softcat, Insight and Misco are off the books.
All that are left are Academia, MCC, GBM, Trams, Albion, KRCS, Western Computer, Toucan, Jigsaw24, XMA, BT Direct Business, JTRS and for Ireland Wiggle and Compu b.
The theory is that Jobs’ Mon wants to push more through a smaller number of harder working channel partners in the education sector. Apple wants more sustainable services which wrap-around either the iPad or the Mac, apparently.
Apple’s relationship with the channel is fraught due to it being a little inflexible and always wanting things its way. It has been slowly reducing its resellers over the years as it leant on its own retail channel. This way it can have greater control over how its products are presented and with Apple, presentation is everything.
This being the case, the recent cull will probably do more to lesson Apple’s influence instead of promoting it.