Peter Lorant

Peter Lorant, the head of enterprise partners for Google EMEA, explained to Channel Business Solutions, "Partners are making an increasing contribution to the Google Enterprise business in EMEA and extending our relationship with Ingram Micro increases the scale and reach of our channel network."

The proof is in the stats; when Google and Ingram Micro sealed their deal in 2007, they were talking about having sold 9,000 units.  Now, Lorant continued, "We . . . have over 10,000 search customers globally and having access to Ingram Micro’s large reseller base means we can bring the power of Google search that millions of consumers benefit from to many more businesses across EMEA."

One thing he didn’t discuss is timeframes; it remains unknown how long Ingram Micro can expect to handle Google’s business.  Still, the two companies seem quite happy together, so a sort of open-ended agreement isn’t out of the question.

The prices of the Google Mini and Google Search Appliance should, for the record, remain unchanged.

“[W]e want to reach out even farther,” wrote Rodrigo Vaca, Google Enterprise’s Channel Marketing Manager, on the Official Google Blog.  Yet, after an announcement last week that Dell would become responsible for manufacturing the Google Search Appliance, it kind of seems like Google is having everyone else do the stretching.

Ah, well.  Famous figures ranging from Andrew Carnegie to George Patton have liked the idea of delegation, so I suppose I shouldn’t whine too much.  In fact, this is probably a good move.  Ingram Micro “is the world’s largest global IT distributor and because it has enjoyed success in targeting both medium-size and small businesses as well as local government and education customers,” according to The Channel Insider’s Jessica Davis.

Moreover, the company’s own website proclaims that it was ranked number one in its industry by Fortune magazine.

It’s worth noting that the Google-Ingram Micro relationship isn’t just any old arrangement; in an interview with the relevant marketing manager, Davis discovered, “While not an exclusive deal, Vaca characterized the Ingram Micro agreement as the largest deal of its kind for the Google.”

As for what’s next, Vaca told Davis, “We are not expecting to sign a similar deal in the near future.”

Also, while talking to InformationWeek’s Thomas Claburn, the marketing manager added, “We’re also engaging them in other ways, such as reseller recruitment, reseller marketing, and reseller enablement, to make sure that the channel is ready to sell our products.”

Vaca appears to be a very busy man, doing one blog entry and two interviews among who knows what else, but more importantly, it looks like Ingram Micro has gotten its proverbial foot in Google’s door.  And though I’m not especially familiar with the IT distribution industry, that analogy may work the other way around, as well.

Oh, and in the event that you were worried – this deal should not have any effect on the Google Search Appliance’s bright yellow paint scheme.