As the Official Converged Network Equipment Supplier, Avaya is providing state-of-the-art communications technology to enhance the overall communications experience in Vancouver for 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Avaya Connect is Avaya's innovative new Partner program, puts you at the heart of our business. Learn more about the program, requirements and benefits to help you attract and serve customers better.

Partners will be allocated a new Partner Level under the Avaya Connect program by 1st March 2010 based on: revenue – rolling 12-months shipped net revenue from 1st February 2009 to 31st January 2010; and competency – No. of ACS-T achieved as of 31st January 2010 under the old Professional Certification program. Email notification of your new partner level will be sent to your identified Primary Contact once the update is complete in PRM Partner View.

All partners should plan to meet the Sales Authorization requirements by 30th April 2010. With effect from 1st May 2010, only Sales Authorized partners will be allowed to place orders on relevant solutions from Distributors and/or Avaya.

A campaign with an Amnesty period is now open to Partners to sign up Extended Support for Communication Manager 1.x, 2.x, 3.x, and its connected adjuncts between 1st Feb and 30th Apr 2010. Bulk based discounts are offered during this promotional period.

Avaya Connect was officially launched 1 February 2010 and has already started offering enhanced technical and marketing benefits to enable you to attract and serve your customers better. Take a look at the new Avaya Credential Program available on the Avaya University Website. Also, starting on 1 April 2010, qualifying Avaya Connect Partners in APAC will also benefit from the new Business Development Fund (BDF), an accrual based fund that can be used to drive both marketing and business development activities.

Given the availability of CMS R16 as of 11/09/2009, and the improved capacity and feature set of the newer and robust release, CMS R15 will reach End of Sale on June 14, 2010. Capacity expansion to existing R15 systems (such as additional CMS Supervisor licenses, additional agents, and features) will still be supported. Customers wishing to purchase new CMS systems beyond June 14, 2010 are encouraged to buy CMS R16 which was released on November 9, 2009.