Telecom Reseller / Technology Reseller News

Channel Partners 2025 Podcast | Technology Reseller News

"Strategy will always be more successful than spray-and-pray." Charlene Ignacio, CEO of Fornix Marketing, joins Doug Green of Technology Reseller News for a frank and lively conversation about what not to do at your next trade show. From booth blunders to dress code disasters, Ignacio shares practical, no-nonsense advice gathered from decades of real-world event experience.

Charlene and Doug break down the biggest mistakes companies make—from distracted booth staff glued to their phones, to confusing messaging and undertrained teams. She emphasizes the importance of thoughtful pre-show planning, understanding your ideal customer profile (ICP), and staffing your booth with purpose and intention. “This is a stage,” she says. “When you're representing your company, you should look, act, and speak the part.”

Ignacio also introduces best practices for managing booth traffic, developing a lead follow-up strategy, and ensuring your investment in event marketing translates to real business value. Fornix Marketing, with its deep roots in marketing strategy, channel development, and go-to-market execution, offers tailored support for MSPs, vendors, and global brands entering the U.S. market.

Whether you’re a seasoned exhibitor or new to the show floor, this podcast is a must-listen for teams looking to maximize ROI and avoid common pitfalls at major industry events.confere

The Platform That Isn’t Just a Platform: Intermedia’s 360° Formula for Service Provider Growth, AI is setting new standards for CX, and Microsoft Teams is everywhere—but few SPs are monetizing it effectively

“You don’t need to rip and replace. You don’t need to lock in. You just need a partner who’s truly in it with you,” says Patrick Sheehan, Vice President of Channel Development, Intermedia. As the channel moves into the heart of 2025, service providers are at a crossroads. Legacy platforms are draining resources, AI is setting new standards for CX, and Microsoft Teams is everywhere—but few SPs are monetizing it effectively. In a recent Technology Reseller News podcast, we sat down with Patrick Sheehan of Intermedia to learn how the company’s 360-degree approach is helping partners solve those challenges without heavy upfront investments, long-term contracts, or technical headaches.

“You don’t need to rip and replace. You don’t need to lock in. You just need a partner who’s truly in it with you.” — Patrick Sheehan, Vice President of Channel Development, Intermedia

What’s Holding Service Providers Back?

Sheehan doesn’t mince words: today’s service providers are seeing churn rise, ARPU fall, and win rates slide. It’s not just voice—customers want integrated, AI-enhanced UCaaS and CCaaS, not siloed tools. Add in the need to market more effectively in a crowded space and support aging platforms, and many providers are facing a serious growth headwind. “If your platform isn’t innovating fast enough to meet customer expectations—especially with AI and Teams—you’re going to feel it in churn and margins,” said Sheehan.

Intermedia: A Partner-First Playbook

Intermedia has built its model around partner success—not vendor lock-in. That starts with a month-to-month, no-minimum-commitment agreement, enabling providers to enter the UCaaS and CCaaS space without sacrificing their brand, their network, or their business model. “Almost 95% of our business goes through partners. We’re not here to compete—we’re here to help them win,” adds  Sheehan. Service providers can white label Intermedia’s platform, maintain their own PSTN footprint, or leverage Intermedia’s national network. The tech stack—including UCaaS, CCaaS, a new Teams integration, and an AI-ready data lake—is 100% owned and operated by Intermedia. That translates into true speed-to-market and scalability.

Fast Start, Full Support

Launching with Intermedia doesn’t take a year—or even months. With dedicated onboarding teams, SPs can be deploying customers within weeks. Intermedia supplies pre-configured plug-and-play phones, operational support, and guided productization.

The result? Minimal friction, maximum velocity.

The Industry’s First Teams Integration—Built for SPs

One standout development is Intermedia’s embedded Microsoft Teams integration, which lets SPs offer a fully monetizable, branded Teams experience—a key differentiator in the increasingly Teams-centric workplace.

“It’s more profitable and more compelling than other options. And if you want, you can even source Microsoft licenses directly through us,” Sheehan explained.

Marketing, Migration & Margin

Intermedia supports partners with:

Channel marketing experts who build and execute campaigns

Sales engineers who assist in complex deal cycles

Migration support to minimize churn and retire legacy platforms

5x9s SLAs and J.D. Power-certified technical support

It’s all part of what Sheehan calls the “360-degree approach to service provider success.” No single vendor in the UCaaS/CCaaS space offers this combination of product flexibility, technical enablement, and go-to-market support—all aligned around one goal: partner revenue growth.

Ready to Kick the Tires?

For SPs exploring new growth paths, Sheehan has a simple message:

“You don’t need to spend a year and a million dollars to launch something new. You can get started today.

“We’re bringing a powerful new revenue stream to MSPs—combining device sales with recurring 5G data services,” says Adam Crockett, Senior Director at D&H Distributing. Speaking with Technology Reseller News at the 2025 Channel Partners Conference, Crockett unveiled D&H’s new 5G initiative, powered by Cellhub, marking a major expansion in the distributor’s service capabilities and a significant opportunity for managed service providers.

D&H, the third-largest broadline IT distributor in the U.S., has long been known for its dependable hardware fulfillment. But as Crockett explains, the company has steadily evolved to support its partners in new ways—offering pre- and post-deployment services, ongoing support, and now 5G connectivity. In a bold move, D&H has entered the mobile data space through a strategic partnership with Cellhub, T-Mobile’s premier primary agent. This collaboration allows D&H to offer activated 5G devices bundled with data plans—an area previously off-limits to the distributor.

Crockett emphasizes that this expansion is more than just another offering: it’s a key to long-term, recurring revenue. “MSPs can now earn both upfront commissions and ongoing residuals through 5G service activations,” he explains. The program covers a range of connected hardware—from Dell and HP laptops with built-in 5G to enterprise routers and wireless networking gear—positioning partners to deliver secure, always-connected solutions in today’s hybrid work environment.

A timely PC refresh cycle and growing demand for mobile-first operations make 2025 the ideal launch window. The program also includes subsidy options through T-Mobile, potentially offsetting hardware costs and making premium devices accessible even for budget-conscious clients. “This lets our partners sell a complete solution—hardware, connectivity, and services—at a compelling price point,” says Crockett.

MSPs interested in tapping into this opportunity can contact the team directly at [email protected]. No prior D&H relationship is required to get started.

For more on the program and partnership, visit www.dandh.com and www.cellhub.com.

“For every dollar an enterprise spends on telecom services, they spend four to five dollars on IT. Helping partners capture that revenue starts with a conversation,” says Rick Mancinelli, CEO of C3 Complete.

In this Channel Partners 2025 podcast, Technology Reseller News publisher Doug Green sits down with Mancinelli to explore how C3 Complete is uniquely positioned at the crossroads of two converging worlds: managed services and telecom. As both an MSP and a service provider to MSPs, C3 Complete offers a rare dual perspective—helping technology providers expand into telecom, and vice versa.

Mancinelli shares how the industry has evolved from traditional break-fix IT and telco reselling models into a new era where MSPs are increasingly adding voice and connectivity to their offerings. At the same time, more traditional telecom partners are exploring managed services, seeking ways to offer a broader solution stack without taking on undue risk or complexity.

C3 Complete helps partners navigate this transformation by providing a full suite of voice, connectivity, cloud, and managed IT services—without competing with the partner. This approach enables channel partners to expand revenue, increase customer retention, and become more deeply embedded in their clients’ businesses. “Whether you’re an MSP looking to add voice or a telco partner seeking to enter IT services,” says Mancinelli, “we’re here to help you make that journey successfully.”

About C3 Complete

C3 Complete is a hybrid service provider and consultancy that delivers managed IT, cloud, voice, and connectivity services to businesses and MSPs across the U.S. By combining deep technical expertise with a partner-centric delivery model, C3 Complete enables resellers, MSPs, and telecom agents to expand their portfolios and grow recurring revenue streams. Learn more at www.c3-complete.com.

Live from MSP Summit at Channel Partners Conference & Expo 2025 – Las Vegas

In a podcast recorded live at the MSP Summit, part of the Channel Partners 2025 event in Las Vegas, Doug Green of Technology Reseller News sat down with Charlene Ignacio, founder of Fornix Marketing, to unpack a bold message: “Stop doing events.”

But Ignacio isn’t anti-events — she’s calling out the three costly mistakes vendors make when they show up at trade shows unprepared and hope for leads without a plan.

“You’re spending $20K, $40K, sometimes more for a booth, travel, and team… and you haven’t even gotten a single lead yet,” said Ignacio.

Here are the three areas where vendors go wrong — and how to fix them:

Unclear Lead Strategy

Not everyone walking by your booth is a lead. Ignacio urges vendors to define what qualifies as a lead before the show and to research whether the event’s audience actually matches your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile).

Untrained Sales Teams

“Events are a different kind of sales,” said Ignacio. Booth staff need event-specific training — knowing how to engage quickly, qualify fast, and handle the booth with energy and clarity.

No Follow-Up Plan

Too often, leads collected on badge scanners or apps go nowhere. “You’re back at work the next day, and you forget all the names you collected,” said Ignacio. Build your post-event follow-up strategy before the show begins.

For MSPs, she also recommends starting small — hyper-targeted events like lunch-and-learns or local chambers of commerce may outperform big expos if the audience is right.

Want to level up your events? Connect with Charlene at fornixmarketing.com or find her on LinkedIn.

Listen to the full podcast at telecomreseller.com or on your favorite podcast platform.

“We’re democratizing AI for SMBs while simplifying support for the enterprise,” says Joseph George, General Manager of LogMeIn at GoTo. In a wide-ranging conversation with Technology Reseller News, George discussed how GoTo is reimagining the LogMeIn portfolio to meet the fast-changing needs of both large enterprises and managed service providers. With a sharp focus on automation, AI, cybersecurity, and multilingual support, GoTo’s LogMeIn Rescue and LogMeIn Resolve platforms are built to streamline operations, improve first-call resolution, and strengthen the security of remote support interactions.

AI That Works Behind the Scenes

GoTo has introduced a suite of new AI-driven features to LogMeIn Rescue, its enterprise-grade remote support solution. The platform now automates session notes, performs device diagnostics in real time, and delivers guided responses to agents based on screen content—even across languages. These capabilities help reduce average handling time and enable less experienced support staff to deliver faster, more effective assistance.

LogMeIn Resolve: IT in a Box for MSPs and SMBs

Targeting small to mid-sized businesses and the MSPs that support them, LogMeIn Resolve combines remote monitoring and management (RMM), mobile device management (MDM), patching, access, and support—all within a single, easy-to-use platform. With white-labeling capabilities and robust integrations, Resolve enables partners to offer a complete IT solution under their own brand, while leveraging GoTo’s powerful AI automation tools.

Security at the Core

Both Rescue and Resolve now feature enhanced cybersecurity measures, including PIN code validation, IP-based access restrictions, and device-level authorization. These features ensure secure connections without disrupting workflows, delivering compliance-ready protection against phishing and unauthorized access.

Global Reach with Real-Time Translation

With built-in translation tools for chat and screen content, LogMeIn Rescue is removing language barriers in real time. Support agents can now assist users across different geographies and languages with greater ease and accuracy, further extending the value of remote support in a globalized business environment.

As George explains, “Our commitment is to practical AI—solving real-world problems in ways that are usable, scalable, and secure.”

To learn more, visit www.logmein.com or www.goto.com.

At Enterprise Connect 2025, Microsoft’s announcement of Microsoft Teams Phone Extensibility marked a significant leap in the evolution of Teams-integrated communications. Among the first to harness this new capability is Luware, whose Teams-native contact center solution, Luware Nimbus Power, was front and center at the event. In a podcast recorded live from the show, John Wright of Luware joined Technology Reseller News publisher Doug Green to discuss the implications of this breakthrough.

“Luware Nimbus Power leverages Microsoft’s Azure Communication Services (ACS) to enable what we call ‘dual persona’ functionality,” Wright explained. “This means agents can manage and receive audio calls through either the contact center console or the Microsoft Teams client—seamlessly.”

Wright emphasized that while many competitors took the fastest route to market by simply connecting existing solutions to Teams, Luware made a bold move: they rebuilt their contact center platform natively within the Teams environment using the Extend model. Now, with Power certification, Luware adds advanced capabilities that integrate fully with Microsoft 365 tools like Power Automate, SharePoint, and Dynamics, and allow real-time AI enhancements via Microsoft Copilot Studio.

This cloud-native, Teams-embedded architecture not only enables secure handling of calls without rerouting media through third-party infrastructure but also offers deep flexibility for integrations with CRMs, ticketing systems, and third-party platforms. “The call stays within the Teams tenant,” Wright noted. “That’s a major advantage for organizations with strict compliance and security requirements.”

For multi-vendor enterprise environments or long-standing organizations with diverse tech stacks, Wright sees the Luware approach as a powerful unifier: “You might have different departments working with different systems—Salesforce, Freshdesk, you name it. Luware can centralize communications across those platforms while keeping the user experience rooted in Teams.”

Luware’s robust partner program also makes this a compelling opportunity for MSPs and MSSPs. “We built a rewarding, intuitive partner program around Nimbus,” Wright said. “You can deploy a full-featured, omni-channel, AI-powered contact center in under 40 minutes.”

Luware’s commitment to native Teams integration and close collaboration with Microsoft positions it as a top-tier option for modern, scalable, secure contact center deployments.

Learn more at www.luware.com

"We used to care about the conversation only from the moment it started until it ended. Now we care about what happens after."

That key quote from Jeff Pulver, telecom pioneer and the driving force behind the Pulver Order that helped make VoIP a legitimate telecom service, sums up a new era in enterprise communications. Speaking alongside leading industry analyst Jon Arnold, Pulver and Arnold joined Doug Green, Publisher of Technology Reseller News, for a wide-ranging closing podcast at Enterprise Connect 2025.

Looking back over 25+ years of Enterprise Connect—from the PBX shows in Washington, D.C., to the Swan and Dolphin, and now the Gaylord and Las Vegas—the two industry veterans observed how much has changed. From Nortel to Microsoft, from hardware to the cloud, and now into the AI era, the show and the industry have constantly evolved.

Arnold noted the shift in enterprise communications from dedicated telecom departments to outsourced IT and cloud-first strategies. Pulver recalled the days when maintaining uptime on voice trading systems was a mission-critical function for financial firms. Today, the challenge is managing and extracting value from the metadata of conversations.

Pulver introduced listeners to the vCon, a new standard that captures the essence of a conversation—voice, text, and data—for post-call analytics, memory, and trust-building. "Living in a world where you can now leverage the metadata associated with the conversation and monetize that... that's the future," he said. Learn more about the Pulver Order and Jeff's legacy in VoIP here: Celebrating 20 Years of Innovation.

AI, metadata, and automation were key themes. Arnold explained that while UCaaS providers have solved voice and video delivery, the next frontier is capturing insights from those communications to improve workflows and build knowledge across the organization. Pulver added that many chatbots today suffer from "amnesia" – they can't remember previous interactions. The vCon standard aims to solve that, along with related standards like SKIT, which help verify the authenticity of data.

Trust and memory, said Pulver, are the building blocks of AI in communications. And while these technologies are just gaining traction, he predicted that by 2027-2030, they will redefine how businesses communicate, collaborate, and operate.

Pulver emphasized the importance of building opt-in consent and compliance into communications. Recording calls without proper consent, especially in California or the EU, could pose legal risks, and new protocols are being designed to address that.

Looking ahead, Arnold cautioned that companies that fail to invest in R&D during this critical AI transition risk falling behind. While current products are still maturing, the groundwork for the next generation of communications is being laid today.

Enterprise Connect 2025 may have wrapped, but the conversation is far from over. As Pulver put it, "This is where the future happens."

Stay tuned for more updates from Enterprise Connect 2025 at Technology Reseller News.

"You don’t have to go from A to Z in one move with AI." — Jon Arnold, industry analyst

As Enterprise Connect 2025 edged toward its conclusion, Jon Arnold joined Doug Green, Publisher of Technology Reseller News, for a candid conversation about what’s changing—and what’s not—in the world of enterprise communications.

Having attended many iterations of the show over the years, Arnold noted how Enterprise Connect continues to evolve with the industry itself. While its roots are deeply embedded in enterprise telephony, today’s EC is heavily influenced by customer experience (CX) and contact center technologies. The growth in these segments has inevitably shifted the show’s focus. “They're having to pivot to where the market is going,” Arnold observed, highlighting the challenge of balancing legacy technologies with emerging opportunities.

That evolution is reflected on the expo floor as well. Arnold remarked on a shift in booth design and engagement: “It’s very conversational now… you see more quiet zones, lounges, and space for meetings. The nature of expositions is changing.” Compared to the hardware-heavy showcases of years past, today's cloud-first and AI-powered solutions often exist more in software than in physical gear.

As always, the topic of AI dominated the discussion. Arnold identified agentic AI—autonomous agents capable of executing end-to-end tasks—as a central trend this year. But he cautioned against rushing in: “You don’t need to adopt everything all at once. Start with small pilot projects that carry minimal risk and disruption.” He encouraged a thoughtful approach grounded in responsible AI, urging enterprise leaders to set internal guardrails around access, data privacy, and governance.

Arnold’s international perspective added further insight. Fresh off a vendor event in Europe, he contrasted the more regulatory-driven, cautious approach to AI overseas with the freer, more experimental landscape in North America. While the U.S. may move faster, it’s crucial that organizations take ownership of ethical deployment and compliance.

Looking ahead, Arnold commented on the show's upcoming move to Las Vegas in 2026, after a decade in Orlando. “We’ll see if it brings more customers or changes the dynamic. It’s part of the evolution of the event.”

As for what’s next beyond AI? Arnold left the door open: “Next year, it’s possible a new dominant technology could emerge—maybe immersive, 3D, or something entirely new.” For now, however, AI remains the engine driving transformation across workplace productivity, contact center innovation, and enterprise IT strategy.

Learn more

To follow Jon Arnold’s insights and industry analysis, visit Jon Arnold’s LinkedIn or check out his contributions to various technology publications.

Stay tuned to Technology Reseller News for more coverage from Enterprise Connect 2025.

Enterprise Connect 2025 Podcast | Technology Reseller News

“If your call can be faked, your business can be broken,” warns the team from TC&C, introducing their breakthrough product, DeepFakeGuard, live at Enterprise Connect 2025. Finalists in two categories—Best of Enterprise Connect and Best Innovation in AI—TC&C’s AI-powered solution delivers real-time defense against impersonation attacks and AI-generated deception across voice, video, and text communication channels.

DeepFakeGuard, developed by the TC&C team including Dr. Csaba Juhasz, Tamas Lukacs (Lead AI Developer), and Adam Bobok (Consultant, U.S. Operations), targets a fast-growing concern. Industry forecasts estimate over $40 billion in deepfake-related losses by 2027, and TC&C aims to address this with a multi-layered, platform-agnostic solution that integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Teams, Webex, SIP-based platforms, and more.

“Our solution analyzes communications in real time,” said Lukacs. “It detects AI-generated audio, manipulated video, or altered text before a fraud can be carried out.” Beyond detection, DeepFakeGuard alerts stakeholders, helping organizations shut down attacks before damage occurs.

Use cases range from financial institutions and healthcare providers to education and government, where secure, identity-verified communication is critical. "We’re hearing a lot about fake purchase orders, fraudulent client impersonations, and misuse of voice changers," Bobok noted. “Whether it’s exam cheating or large-scale fraud, DeepFakeGuard is designed to prevent it all.”

The team reported enthusiastic response from the Enterprise Connect floor. “Everyone agrees the threat is real, and no one wants to wait until an incident happens to act,” said Juhasz.

TC&C is actively seeking partners and resellers interested in embedding DeepFakeGuard into their offerings to enhance client security portfolios. With its unique ability to operate across communication platforms and deliver live alerts, DeepFakeGuard positions TC&C at the forefront of AI-powered security innovation.

Learn more at deepfakeguard.ai or visit TC&C’s main site at tcandc.com.