eChannelLine Daily News 25-January-2007 Reflexion Networks launches new partner program by Vanessa Ho In order to help Reflexion Networks' partners better deploy its Total Control e-mail threat protection product, the security company has announced the launch of a new channel program. Called Confidence in E-mail Partner Program, it is a program that makes it easier for Reflexion's 140 solution providers and value-added resellers to configure and administer customers themselves. In the past, Reflexion's solution providers would always have to go the company whenever they had a new customer to get the company to configure and administer them with Reflexion Total Control, its e-mail threat protection product. "We didn't have a lot of that self-serve capability," said Scott Barlow, vice president of sales and marketing with Reflexion Networks. "We were really focusing on providing additional features and functionality for the core e- mail threat protection product and then as we grew with our reseller base a lot of the feedback came in from solution providers and VARs on how to really make the product cater to their specific needs and the needs of their customer base," he added. The company added the self-serve option to its Total Control product last May and formalized the Confidence in E-mail Partner Program around that product to help its partners co-configure and co-administer it through a Web-based user interface without interaction from Reflexion. Total Control is a managed e-mail threat protection service targeted to small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) where Reflexion hosts the solution on its infrastructure and the solution provider can reroute inbound/ outbound e-mail through its servers. Security is applied to protect customers from volume-based attacks and also anti-virus, anti-spam and anti-phishing protection is applied. As well, the product offers granular control to meet the different needs of customers. "The way we positioned Reflexion Total Control is it restores confidence in e- mail so our partners are helping their own domain as well as their customers regain the confidence they once had in e-mail before the spam and virus proliferation," said Barlow. Prior to the development of the program, Barlow said that the company's partner program mostly consisted of solution providers receiving margins based on suggested retail price. In addition to making it easier for its partners to configure and administer the production, the new program gives partners free internal use of the product and they will also receive sale leads from Reflexion. Another benefit of the Confidence in E-mail Partner Program is the ability for solution providers to co-brand, something that Barlow said partners have really embraced. "[Branding] was something we had in the product but it was complicated to do; now it is a lot less complicated. Our new partner program enables the solution provider to offer the managed services that they are currently offering but to add Reflexion to the laundry list of features and benefits for their customers. It is something that our solution providers are really excited about, the capability to enhance their brand with their customers," he added. Barlow said that because the company sells exclusively through the channel, the Confidence in E-mail Partner Program reinforces Reflexion's commitment to reselling through indirect channels to reach its SMB customers. "Overall, the solution provider is our key to success," he added.