Before people start flaming each other, this post is in no way against anyone. So for once maybe increase the peace and keep it flame free.

Anyway if it gets out of hand Ill have it closed. But in your view define reselling. If you think about it unless you are a carrier who happens to do hosting Like UUnet, CW and so on you are reselling something.

So my question is define a reseller.

Joe

If this gets out of hand go here,
http://www.hostingchat.net/viewtopic.php?p=6774#6774

I made some posts in this thread (http://webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=68274) that could be relevant to this thread. To be honest, I really don't know 100% what constitutes a "reseller". Depends how you define "reseller" really. :eek: :confused:

Reseller-
A Person or Persons selling another persons services for a profit.

How's that to get the ball rolling?


But I also think there needs to be an industry standard to constitute a "Reseller" and until that happens I think anyone or anything can be a reseller... Even If I was renting a Rack and reselling space in it... that could still be a reseller....

-Chris

Hopefully we can get to some form of a media on what this truly means.

I have read many posts that state are you resellin xyz or are you doing this.

So lets see where this goes

Originally posted by JBIZ718
Hopefully we can get to some form of a media on what this truly means.

I have read many posts that state are you resellin xyz or are you doing this.

So lets see where this goes
I don't think we'll arrive at some consensus about the meaning of the word and the application of the word, "reseller". But it'll make for some good and interesting discussion. :D

reselling =
re - to do again; do over
sell - to make something available for purchase
ing - the act of
(from chrisb-webster)

Well wouldnt you agree that in someway everyone is a reseller except maybe for UUnet or CW, SPRint or a tier 1

Not really. Take VO for instance. They resell bandwidth, but that's all. They have their own servers, own datacenter, own staff/tech, and custom-build their servers, etc. So I don't think that just reselling bandwidth classified them as a reseller since they are not RE-selling hosting. They put the hosting together themselves.

Reselling is ultimately defined as purchasing and re-selling it. So basically we are all resellers. It doesn't really matter how you look at it. If you provide a service, you are reselling something, be it bandwidth, rackspace, dedicated servers, etc.

In the context of Web Hosting i would define a reseller as someone who does not own/lease the servers and rackspace directly but through a middleman.

I think to add to what someone was saying in the other thread posted above, Ford are not resellers just because they use steel in their cars made by a separate steel company. They are not selling steel, they are selling cars.

Take VO for example. They may be buying bandwidth, but they are not re-selling the bandwidth. They are selling web hosting.

Therefore, they are not resellers.

You are really only a reseller if you are on-selling whatever it is that you are buying in basically the same state you bought it in (i.e. REselling it). So if I go along to MCHost and buy a chunk of web space and then I sell that web space, I'm REselling it.

Is a phone company a reseller because it uses the line company's lines? I don't think so. It isn't selling you the lines, it's selling you access to the lines etc

But of course that's just my personal opinion, I know others have different ideas *Bob* :D

I think a reseller in the hosting context, reffers to reselleing hosting accounts. It is is a person who takes an hosting account and sales it for more expensive. Otherwise you are not a reseller

Originally posted by HostIt
But of course that's just my personal opinion, I know others have different ideas *Bob* :D
:D God forbid you have the audacity to have a personal opinion. :stickout

I don't know about the "unless you're Tier 1, you're a reseller" concept.

Assuming that's the case, then most businesses are resellers. A farmer resells corn (he buys corn seed), a restaurant is a reseller (they buy provisions), a mechanic is a reseller (he buys auto parts), a private surgeon is a reseller (he buys time at a surgicenter), a porn site is a reseller (they buy content).

I don't think of farmers, restauranteurs, mechanics, surgeons or porn sites as being resellers, and I don't think most other folks do. Every business gets supplies, but most of them sell a finished product or service after investing their time and skill preparing the product or service for the end-user.

Hosting service providers are /service/providers/, and in that sense, when a retail client comes to us, we provide them with services that include time, space, bandwidth and /customer/service/. If someone comes to us to be a reseller, then we do not provide /customer/service/ to their clients, but we will provide them with access to our inventory of server space, bandwidth, power, etc. Should one of their clients call us and ask us for help, we will probably direct them to their reseller contact, as we are not the caller's service provider, nor are they paying us to act in that capacity.

If you buy bottled water, do you complain to the bottled water's source if it tastes funny? :D

George