Print.IT Reseller - issue 77

01732 759725 12 BULLETIN GPMA calls on government The Graphics and Print Media Alliance (GPMA) has written to Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Alok Sharma, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, calling for a means-tested disaster relief grant fund for the UK print industry. The statement has been backed unanimously by all 15 members of the GPMA and calls on the government to provide sector-specific support for print as the COVID crisis continues. The GPMA, a body of trade associations supporting commercial print, warned Ministers that more than 3,000 businesses will go into insolvency by Christmas if the sector does not receive a specific support package, with a further 3,000 under threat in the next six months. IPIA Chairman Graeme Smith, BPIF CEO Charles Jarrold, PICON CEO Bettine Pellant and BAPC Chairman Brendan Perring, said in a joint statement: “The UK graphics and print media industry is facing its greatest challenge. In particular, the commercial and retail print sectors are facing a breakdown of supply chain integrity and the loss of thousands of businesses if they do not receive targeted assistance. “We are supportive of, and grateful for, all the work HM Treasury and BEIS have done over the last six months to protect livelihoods and jobs in our industry. Our focus now is to secure a means- tested disaster relief fund for the sector, so all that good work is not undone. “We are working closely with BEIS to provide its print industry support team with the data and analysis needed to assist policy development and we are hopeful that this support will be forthcoming.” www.gpma.org.uk BOSS Future Focus The BOSS Federation has said its Future Focus conference which was held virtually on September 16 in conjunction with the BPIF and VMC, was one of the most flexible and wide-ranging events that the Federation has held. A day of wide-ranging input from an array of speakers was kicked off by Jonathan Geldart, the Director of the Institute of Directors, who used his personal experience of walking to the North Pole to both challenge and assure. Explaining that “people are at their best when their backs are to the wall”, Geldart noted that the response that was needed right now from UK business leaders was: leadership, communication, responsibility and agility. Other keynote speeches were delivered by: Felicity Burch, Director Innovation and Digital, CBI – COVID-19’s impact on the acceleration of technology adoption; James Sommerville, Founder, Known Unknown (former VP Global Design The Coca-Cola Company) – How brands and companies can differentiate themselves in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic; and Adrian Odds, Director of Strategy & Market Propositions, Communisis – How to use Artificial Intelligence to cut through the noise. Amy Hutchinson, BOSS CEO, said: “The last six months have been challenging for many businesses. We wanted to provide a day of insight and look ahead to the future with leading figures in and outside of our sector.” www.bossfederation.com WatchGuard enables partners to expand WatchGuard has added endpoint security specialisation option to its channel programme, and made combined product portfolio available to partners just four months after its acquisition of Panda Security. Panda products are now available individually and through Passport, WatchGuard’s bundle of user-centric security services. Combining WatchGuard’s Total Security Suite and Passport bundle allows partners to provide complete security from network to endpoint for their customers. www.watchguard.com Panasonic appoints Talex Panasonic has appointed Talex, IT specialist based in Poland, as its technological partner for its Eastern European telecommunications business. Talex will support the existing Panasonic Communication Solutions channel partners in the region with expert technical support, IT technical training, solutions integration and logistics. Talex will complement the existing channel network with IT consulting and support in the areas of cyber security, data centre infrastructure support, IT systems administration, service monitoring and user support; cloud services and software development. https://business.panasonic.co.uk/communication-solutions Digital security and data protection SYNAXON has formed a new partnership with Layer 8, the specialist practitioner in security behaviour change. The agreement gives SYNAXON UK members access to a specialist set of services that will enable them to deepen and enhance knowledge and awareness of the issues around digital security and data protection, and encourage best practice – amongst their own staff and their customers. Managing Director Mike Barron, said that the partnership is part of a longer-term plan to equip members with the capabilities they need to give the best advice to customers and set themselves apart in a busy market. The Layer 8 Toolkit, available as an app on Android and iOS, or via the web, provides information in the way most people consume it today, in small, bite-sized chunks. It enables people to understand all aspects of secure behaviour, from compliance, to ransomware, social engineering and more. To get them started, Layer 8 is offering to provide SYNAXON UK members with ten licences for its toolkit, free of charge, for 60 days. This will enable them to trial the product themselves and with their prospects. www.synaxon.co.uk Mike Barron 11 February 2021 www.printitawards.co.uk