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REFILE-UPDATE 1-Polycom, SEN in tie-up as competition heats up
(Refiles to correct day to Wednesday)
* Polycom seeks partnerships to fight Cisco-Tandberg
* SEN says deal helps it become more "comprehensive"
NEW YORK, Jan 20 (Reuters) - U.S. videoconference company Polycom Inc (PLCM.O) has agreed to a global resale partnership with Siemens Enterprise Communications (SEN), aiming to broaden its sales reach and fight off competition from Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O), executives from the companies said on Wednesday.
The move comes as Polycom tries to step up resale agreements with large technology vendors like Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ.N), International Business Machines Corp (IBM.N) and Juniper Networks Inc (JNPR.N), following Cisco's deal to buy Norway's videoconferencing leader Tandberg (TAA.OL).
Resale partnerships help large companies offer more comprehensive product lines to customers seeking one-stop-shopping, while smaller manufacturers can broaden sales channels.
SEN, a joint venture between German industrial conglomerate Siemens (SIEGn.DE) and U.S. financial investor The Gores Group, said the deal would help it offer more choice to customers. It already has a partnership with Tandberg.
"This is really a major step on the way to become a comprehensive service provider to manage voice, data, and video for our customers," Gerald Kromer, SEN's executive vice president for services and solutions, told Reuters.
He also said SEN, despite its rivalry with Cisco, would not drop the Tandberg partnership. He declined to comment on whether SEN could acquire Polycom, but said that the ability to offer more choice was a benefit of partnering.
"I can serve those customers who want Polycom, and serve customers who want Tandberg," he said.
The companies did not reveal financial terms of the deal.
Following Cisco's deal for Tandberg, Swiss computer mouse maker Logitech International SA (LOGN.VX) has announced plans to buy video conferencing company LifeSize Communications [ID:nLB95535]. (Reporting by Ritsuko Ando; editing by Carol Bishopric)
