Ingram Micro has inked a global distribution deal with Australian IoT device vendor, Buddy Platform (ASX:BUD), a move that will see the Adelaide-based company tap into over 200,000 resellers around the world.
Publicly-listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), Buddy Platform’s Ohm offering aims to be a complete resource monitoring solution for commercial, industrial and multi-family residential buildings.
The company’s system is made up of IoT-class hardware, the Buddy Cloud, which is supported by a proprietary software suite.
Buddy told shareholders on 30 January that the new distribution agreement with Ingram Micro takes effect immediately, and represents the “largest possible geographic resale opportunity for Buddy Ohm”.
It should be noted that, while the deal sees Ingram Micro become the company’s preferred distributor for most markets world-wide, Australia and the Caribbean – both regions where the company already has distribution partnership agreements in place – are excluded from the agreement.
In addition to distributing the Buddy Ohm product to resellers globally, Ingram Micro will also work with the vendor to develop training programs for sales staff and installation staff; the training programs will themselves be offered as revenue-generating products.
The latest agreement builds upon previously announced nationwide distribution deals with Ingram Micro for Buddy Ohm in both the United States and Canada.
Buddy said that, although the two companies are not putting in place an exclusive arrangement, Ingram Micro will become Buddy’s primary global distribution channel for Buddy Ohm, and the preferred channel through which new markets and territories will be opened.
“Building off our recent capital raise of over A$20 million, and the exciting commercial opportunities afforded by our distribution agreements with Ingram Micro’s Canadian and USA subsidiaries, we can now rapidly and efficiently take Buddy Ohm to more of the 160 countries worldwide Ingram Micro serves," Buddy Platform CEO, David McLauchlan, said.
Buddy Platform also inked a distribution deal in Australia with Dicker Data last year, in a move aimed at boosting the vendor’s presence domestically.
The year of 2017 also saw the company sign an agreement with the Digicel Group for access to the Caribbean market.
