Press Releases & News
AVG Technologies signs reseller agreement with Probrand
Amsterdam, the Netherlands, 12 December 2008 - AVG Technologies, one of the world’s largest providers of internet security software, has selected Probrand to assist in marketing and supporting its products for public sector customers in the UK.
With offices in Birmingham and Manchester, Probrand has grown swiftly since its launch in 1992 to become a major UK reseller of IT products and solutions, providing a channel for some 1600 vendors. Probrand’s rapid growth was recognised in ‘The Sunday Times Microsoft Tech Track 100’ 2008 annual league table due to a growth in sales of 45% a year from £11m in 2004 to £33.5m in 2007. For more information, visit www.fasttrack.co.uk.
AVG is actively recruiting reseller partners that can service small business and the education fields, which is part of the decision to partner with Probrand, a reseller with strong market share in both areas.
Behind Probrand’s success is an innovative and pro-active approach to sales, including its creation of the unique IT Index (www.theitindex.co.uk), an Internet-based IT buying hub that searches over 500,000 line items and daily publishes best price and availability for more than 125,000 products.
Probrand is one of only six suppliers in Europe to achieve Reseller Framework Lot 1 status, indicating that the company is considered a reliable one-stop-shop for all IT requirements, rather than a specialist in a particular aspect of IT. Additionally, the Office of Government Commerce has awarded Probrand’s government-specific site at www.theitindex.co.uk/gov CATALIST status, another important landmark in the reseller’s development. Formally known as GCat, CATALIST is a framework agreement with the UK’s leading I.T. suppliers, negotiated on the Public Sector’s behalf by OGC buying.solutions, an Executive Agency of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) in the Treasury.
Mike Foreman, Managing Director, AVG Technologies UK, comments:
“Probrand is an entrepreneurial and agile value added reseller which has competed successfully against much larger resellers to become a significant player in the UK. Its clear commitment to its vendor brands, its strong presence in the SME and education sectors and its focus on results were key in our decision to work with them.”
Adele Wilkinson, Vendor Partner Manager at Probrand, adds:
“We are delighted to be partnering with AVG, and look forward to demonstrating how our approach and processes will enable AVG’s proactive security solutions to stand out.”
About AVG Technologies
AVG is a global security solutions leader protecting 85 million consumers and small business computer users in 167 countries from the ever-growing incidence of web threats, viruses, spam, cyber-scams and hackers on the Internet. Headquartered in Amsterdam, AVG has nearly two decades of experience in combating cyber crime and one of the most advanced laboratories for detecting, pre-empting and combating Web-borne threats from around the world. Its free online, downloadable software model allows entry-level users to gain basic anti-virus protection and then to easily and inexpensively upgrade to greater levels of safety and defense in both single and multi-user environments. Nearly 6,000 resellers, partners and distributors team with AVG globally including Amazon.com, CNET, Cisco, Ingram Micro, Play.com, Wal-Mart, and Yahoo!.
About Probrand
Established in 1992, Probrand is a major supplier of top-branded computer products - ranging from a floppy disk to a fully implemented network. Located in the heart of Birmingham, and employing more than 50 people, Probrand is a multi-million pound corporation servicing a wide range of public sector and business customers throughout the UK. The IT Index was created by Probrand as an online trading hub to gather prices and stock availability for more than 125,000 products from over 1,000 suppliers and conducts price and availability comparisons on a daily basis. The IT Index system then presents the most competitive price with stock availability on a customer’s Private Procurement Hub. This gives Probrand's customers signed up to The IT Index a bespoke catalogue for the IT products they use.
PR contacts for AVG:
Siobhan MacDermott, AVG Technologies
E-mail: siobhan.macdermott@avg.com
Mobile: +420 725 695 132 or +1 415 299 2945
AVG UK Media Contact:
Robert van der Meulen, CitySavvy
E-mail: robert@citysavvy.com
Phone: +44 791 777 5164
PR contacts for Probrand:
Matt Royle or Tom Cummings
Powell Communications
Phone: +44 161 828 5400