CompTIA Blog

Congress continues to look at the complications of collecting sales taxes for interstate transactions completed via the Internet.  Earlier we discussed the Main Street Fairness Act, which would require interstate sellers to collect and remit sales taxes to the states into which sales are made.  Our concern with that legislation was that it failed to define a “small seller exception.”  Although the Main Street Fairness Act would require certain small sellers be exempted, this legislation would gi ...

One of the qualities that make the American political system unique is the access citizens have to their elected officials. James Madison himself set out the right to petition our government within the first amendment to our Constitution.  From town hall meetings to office visits, Americans have long seized the opportunity to speak their minds to those they elect to office. While the current political climate sometimes brings into question the value of one person’s voice, we at CompTIA believe t ...

The Deficit Reduction Super Committee and looming re-election campaigns have taken all the air of out of the room. It seems that despite best efforts by Congress to focus on reforming cybersecurity laws and regulations, the environment looks challenging for current proposals to pass during this legislative session. The Republican Cybersecurity Task Force, chaired by Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-TX), recently issued its report with a list of recommendations for reforming the nation’s cybersecuri ...

A look at the week of October 17 in public advocacy for the IT channel: This week, the SEC updated a disclosure requirement to press companies to report data breaches and cyber attacks.  Agencies also are updating policies due to data breaches, requiring that contractors that handle personally identifiable information complete privacy training.  As politicians tout small businesses as the engines of job creation, the Small Business Administration looks into the facts and figures of these claims. ...

Earlier this week the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade held a hearing entitled “Understanding Consumer Attitudes About Privacy.”  Subcommittee Chairman Bono Mack stated that “despite everything that I have heard in our previous hearings, I still remain somewhat skeptical right now of both industry and government. Frankly, I don’t believe industry has proven that it’s doing enough to protect American consumers, while government.  Unfortunately, tends to overreach whenever it com ...

While the old adage claiming that people use only about 10 percent of their brain has been disputed by a number of neurologists, most of them admit that man still uses just a fraction of its true capacity. Few really tap into the potential intellectual power they have available.You don’t have to be the next Einstein or Da Vinci to see the parallel to managed services tools. A couple of the keynotes from this week’s Tigerpaw User Conference emphasized the need for solution providers to create gre ...

As small businesses across the country continue to search for reliable sources of capital, Congress has fallen short of providing real solutions.  While there is no magic bullet that will free up much needed capital, there are some small steps that can be taken immediately to aid in capital formation for some small businesses.  H.R. 1070/S. 1544, the “Small Company Capital Formation Act of 2011” would reduce the filing and compliance burdens for certain small businesses that seek to raise capita ...

I just returned from a two-week trip to Asia, stopping in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Toyko, Beijing, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Frankfurt and then back to Chicago. Along the way I ran speed tests on Internet access speeds at each hotel where we stayed. The results verified a lot of what I’d noticed anecdotally on prior trips to the region. They also demonstrate, that regardless of what you read and hear, the U.S. has the absolute best, most affordable and widely available Inte ...

Privacy and security issues are said to be among the chief concerns for healthcare administrators facing new HIPPA regulations and a ramped-up electronic health record (EHR) incentive program. A new study, however, indicates that many of those executives are failing to “walk the walk.” In a report by consulting firm CSC, a HIMSS shows that fewer than half of large healthcare organizations - 47 percent - in the U.S. conduct annual security risk assessments and nearly six in ten didn’t dedicate ...

Take-away of the week is a weather report: More clouds are forming on the horizon in the world of IT services. Organizations big and small are having to adapt as will the technicians of today and tomorrow. Survey: IT as a Service Gaining Headwind Based on findings of a recent survey by F5 Networks, the enterprise trend toward IT services on demand, in the cloud, ITaaS or catchy name of your choosing, will continue to get a stranglehold on the industry in the next few years. Nearly 75 percent ...

With the current buzz surrounding cloud, mobility computing and other transformative technologies, a key group of players within the IT channel seems to be taking a back seat. Despite the shift in technology business models and continued infringement from consumer electronics, distribution is still a crucial element of most solution providers’ businesses. And it will likely remain that way for quite some time, but its role is in a state of transition. Another sign of that transformation could be ...

The President’s $447 Billion jobs bill, S. 1660, the “American Jobs Act of 2011,” failed to garner the votes needed to move forward.  By a margin of 50-49, the Senate vote fell short of the 60 votes needed to avoid a filibuster.This jobs bill was made particularly unpopular to most Republicans after Senate leadership changed the funding mechanism to a “millionaire surtax.”  Basically, this millionaire surtax would have required individuals to pay an additional 5.6-percent surtax on incomes in ex ...

Each time I meet with a new service provider, we discuss whether or not they should focus on a specific vertical based upon their previous success in that area. Without a doubt, going vertical can help your organization focus its attention, which begins with developing a plan for the new line of business (such as healthcare).  The key to success will be in how well aligned your resources are for that market. Let’s take a quick look at the needs of the healthcare market and see if yo ...

A look at the week of October 9 in public advocacy for the IT channel: This week, the White House ordered a review of policies regarding classified information.  A Republican task force has developed cybersecurity recommendations that could be acted on in the upcoming year.  The House Homeland Security subcommittee held a hearing to examine the security implications of cloud computing.White House Orders New Computer Security Rules — The White House issued an executive order to replace a flawed p ...

CompTIA member Frank Raimondi recently was named World Wide Channel Alliance Manager for Intel, returning after several years of innovation with other channel organizations. His resume is long on experience, including his previous roles at Intel and serving as a vice president with SYNNEX, as well as CEO of NASBA (The Association of Channel Resellers).Raimondi also has been an active member in CompTIA during that time, helping forge a number of initiatives with the IT Services and Support Commun ...