MandAmp;A: Tale In Two Parts

What was inspiring about both the CDW-Berbee Information Networks combination and the Motorola-Symbol Technologies marriage is that I feel both were made more in the spirit of investment rather than in cost-rationalizing a shrinking market for the products or services involved.

First and foremost, CDW's move to pay an eye-opening $175 million for a highly respected infrastructure solution player—one with strong disciplines in VoIP, storage and security, to name just a few, and extremely close ties with Cisco, IBM and Microsoft—validates the evolution of service-minded VARs into IT solution providers and business advisers.

We hear that Berbee, which has appeared multiple times on CRN's Fast Growth ranking and last year posted $390 million in revenue, had been in play for some time. In speaking with CRN last week about the deal, Berbee CEO Paul Shain, who will stay on running the combined services organization, said his ability to add more solution reach would be served more quickly through the CDW merger than by a proposed initial public offering. His access to products changes overnight. And to hear Shain and CDW Chairman and CEO John Edwardson talk about it, Shain essentially has been given a blank check to fund more services investments.

Over in mobility land, the proposed $3.9 billion tender offer by Motorola for Symbol is being trumpeted by some as a brilliant move in RFID. But considering Symbol's arsenal of wireless client, networking and middleware technology, that's just one tiny piece of it.

Before Ed Zander joined the company as CEO several years ago, Motorola couldn't properly productize its formidable technology assets into a marketable form. (Sound familiar?) Now, Motorola handsets are literally a fashion statement and its Canopy wireless broadband is kicking butt and taking names.

Here's hoping Zander's team can help Symbol unlock the same kind of value for its extraordinary mobile assets and that its loyal VARs will be able to reap the rewards.

What merger tales can you tell? HEATHER CLANCY, Editor at CRN, welcome letters and comments at hclancy@cmp.com.