A record-breaking 4,100 people attended VMware Partner Exchange 2013, Feb. 23-25 in Las Vegas. The buzz and excitement fromVMware partners was palpable as VMware executives highlighted the company’s three strategic initiatives: the Software Defined Data Center, Hybrid Cloud and End User Computing. In particular, one key initiative created excitement across all of our partner communities: the VMware Cloud Credit Purchasing Program, which brings together all VMware partners for one mission—to deliver the hybrid cloud to end users.

VMware’s Cloud Credit Purchasing Program helps solve some of today’s challenges for IT:

VMware’s Cloud Credit Purchasing Program solves all these end user problems.

The program creates pre-paid credits in a cloud credit fund for end users, which are redeemed through a select group of VMware vCloud service providers from a single pane of glass utilizing the My VMware licensing portal. With the VMware Cloud Credit Purchasing Program, end users can manage their VMware-based private cloud and public cloud.

Cloud Credits can be purchased through VMware’s distributors and resold to end users via VMware-authorized solution providers, corporate resellers and OEM reseller partners. Cloud Credits are available in all VMware price lists across the globe in the five supported currencies. Selling the Cloud Credit SKUs allows our authorized solution providers up front revenue opportunity associated with the public cloud, allowing them to expand their VMware-based cloud portfolio to include VMware public cloud solutions on top of their private cloud solutions.

Finally, through new training and sales tools from VMware, solution providers will enhance their “trusted adviser” status by helping with opportunity and budget assessments along with consulting engagements around cloud workload readiness and follow-on professional services.
 
From our ecosystem of more than 10,000 service providers in from 157 countries worldwide, we have specific requirements for the service providers to be listed in My VMware’s license portal and able to redeem the cloud credits:

1. The service provider must be a vCloud Service Provider—They must offer a predictable service offering based on vSphere, vCloud Director, vCloud APIs, and allow for import/export in OVF.

2.  The service providers must be at the Premier level of the VSPP program, having the all the technical training certifications and ability to scale their service.

3. The Service Provider must have a solution provider-friendly program for long-term channel partnerships. 

When we go live on March 11, we will have 12 service providers able to redeem the cloud credits: Attenda, Bluelock, Colt, Datacom, EarthLink, iLand, NTT America, OVH.com, PeakColo, Rackforce, Savvis and Wusys. We expect to end the year with 40 to 50 qualified service providers in the program.
 
During the Partner Exchange, I overheard zealous partners describe it in several different ways ranging from “A public cloud apps store,” to “The Starbucks gift card for the cloud,” and “The iTunes of public cloud,” but ultimately it is a program that brings together our ecosystems of partners to deliver VMware’s world-class Hybrid Cloud solution to end users. This innovative channel model is a breakthrough for channel partners, allowing solution providers to sell and advise on VMware’s public cloud solutions while enabling VMware service providers to redeem and grow their VMware-based cloud services.
 
We will continue to work hard and invest in cloud channel programs to deliver meaningful hybrid cloud solutions to our customers, and we are confident the applause will continue.

Geoff Waters is Senior Director, Cloud Service Provider Programs at VMware. Monthly guest blogs such as this one are part of Talkin’ Cloud’s annual platinum sponsorship.