Acer flogs PCs cheap on dealer site

What do you do if you're a big time PC manufacturer who wants to use the Net to flog more kit at discount prices but you don't want to be seen to be screwing over your resellers? Simple, you follow Acer's example and get someone else to do it for you. The Taiwanese PC giant has got together with MPC International – a UK-based VAR – to sell cut-price kit over the Net. Of course, MPC's isn't the only Web site selling Acer kit at lower-than-list-price prices. A quick visit to the Acer UK site throws up a list of other Acer resellers with Web sites. What makes MPC different is that its site is an Acer-only area. So, Acer gets its brand sold over Web and can keep its channel clean. Acer UK's sales director, Scott Dodds, said: "MPC has shown great initiative with us in creating the Acer-only site. The Acer 'Smart Channel' philosophy is all about demonstrating that the future of e-business is about making partnerships more efficient for customers, not about selling direct from one company." Mehool Sanghrajka, managing director of MPC, said: "MPC is not a gimmicky, all bells-and-whistles e-commerce site. We aim to offer the public an on-going competitively-priced range of quality products from a secure e-tailing source. With free delivery - worth over 40 - it's definitely worth checking us out if you're buying a new computer or laptop."