Updated January 14, 6:08 a.m. PST, to reflect Google's official announcement.
Google on Wednesday launched a new authorized reseller program for Google Apps. It will let partnered businesses wrap up Google Apps with their own services in special bundles that can be resold. This includes things like localized customer service, hardware installation, file migration, and special hosting for things that fall outside of Google's built-in Sites service.
Google has been pilot-testing the reseller program with 50 companies since last summer. Now it's open to anyone, and will be available everywhere in the world. As a bonus, resellers in the U.S. get a 20 percent discount on the $50 per user, per year price tag.
As part of the deal, resellers get full control over things like customer billing and account management. Google is expecting this to be a big help in moving medium- to large-size companies over to Google Apps platform. Rishi Chandra, senior product manager for Google Apps, told CNET News that "there's great opportunity to take something like (Google Apps) and roll it out with support. We're never going to roll out a big services group." With the reseller program, Google expects partners to deliver that while being able to customize the platform for each customer's needs.
Paul Slakey, Google's director of enterprise channels, hopes the new program will widen the reach of Google Apps. "It's a good fit with service providers. For Web-hosting presence it's a natural extension. For things like business productivity software, dial tone or broadband access, it's going to be a managed service to provide to their customers."
A small and unfortunate side effect of this new program is that Google will be placing a cap on the maximum users one can have in the Standard edition of Google apps. That means new users will be capped at 50 sub-user accounts and will have to pay to step up to the Premiere level of service if they want to go over that. Existing users of the Standard edition will simply be "grandfathered" past this restriction, similar to what happened to existing users when the company launched the paid Premiere service back in early 2007.
Tech recycling services traditionally are either free or charge you a fee for trying to keep old gear out of landfills. But as long as you're cleaning out closets to make room for another season of gifts, you could finance some of your holiday shopping by sending tired tech toys to a service that will pay for them.
The new BuyMyTronics, (via EcoGeek) from the same people behind BuyMyBrokeniPod, will accept game consoles from a GameBoy to an Xbox, as well as iPods and iPhones. According to the site's online estimate, a dead Wii in the original box would fetch $62.25, sent via PayPal or check. If you like the deal, just sign up and ship out the goods.
SecondRotation also pays for gaming consoles, PDAs, phones, camcorders, GPS devices, and digital cameras. But its estimate rated the value of the same broken Wii as a gaping zero.
Too bad I can't find a site that wants my TI 99/4-A, circa 1981. I guess that's better fit for a vintage computer sale, Craigslist, FreeCycle, or eBay.
At least someone will give me a kickback for mailing in an old Motorola RAZR V3. CellforCash would pay $13, SimplySellular would fork over $23, and SellYourCell would offer $20. SecondRotation beat them all with its $30 trade-in estimate. BuyMyTronics is working to add trade-in options for cell phones, laptops, digital cameras, and camcorders.
Of course, you can also recycle a wireless phone without getting paid, or pay a small fee to GreenCitizen if you find walking into their San Francisco or Silicon Valley trade-in shop convenient. Trade-in services, including curbside pickup, from HP and Dell have good reputations.
Services such as these either refurbish and resell used gear, donate the old tech to schools or needy nonprofit groups, or send the stuff straight into something like a meat grinder for hardware, later reclaiming valuable metals to sell. SecondRotation resells the items on eBay, as does BuyMyTronics, which also donates castoff parts to artists. The staff of BuyMyTronics also aims to be "green" by reusing packaging materials and walking most of the hundreds of goods it deals with each month over to the post office.
However, many other recycling services make it a practice to ship used electronics overseas, where it's likely to poison the health of people and ecosystems. The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition lists recyclers services that recycle responsibly.
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