NetApp & IBM agreements

We get a lot of calls from customers who are trying to figure out how to get the best deal on NetApp equipment and we advise them to shop around. The agreement between NetApp and IBM provides a way to negotiate a better deal on your new NetApp equipment’s because now you have two competing manufacturer sales forces offering identical equipment. Since both sales forces have to meet their quotas a savvy customer can play them against each other.
Additionally each company has a reseller channel which can also be contacted to get quotes from.

Since both NetApp and IBM are offering NetApp software and support services, there is no differentiation in product or service other than price. It is very similar to going between different car dealers and negotiating.

I recommend some caution in purchasing the IBM branded equipment because NetApp in the past had a similar OEM agreement with Dell. But when it fell apart the Dell customers were left without support. As the article shows IBM just discontinued its last NAS head, how long will it be before they discontinue support for the NetApp brand?