The content team at Channel Partners tracks stories of interest to the technology advisor and wider channel communities. Anyone selling communication and connectivity solutions will want to stay abreast of these developing stories or catch up on ones they have missed. All links are valid as of June 24.
Six Roles That Will Define Channel Partner Value
For years, the channel has talked about strategic selling, managed services, specialization, and ecosystems. AI is turning those ideas into the foundations of future partner success. Following interactions with hundreds of vendors and solution providers, Channelnomics identified six roles that will define successful channel partners over the next five years. Read the Channelnomics story.
Meet Ericsson's New Boss – Same(ish) as the Old Boss
Per Narvinger, who will succeed Börje Ekholm as Ericsson CEO later this year, is what people might call an Ericsson "lifer," having joined the Swedish company as a research engineer in 1998, when the fetus of 3G was forming. His LinkedIn profile shows he studied electrical engineering at California's Stanford University and Sweden's KTH Royal Institute of Technology. Light Reading introduces the new Ericsson leader.
Ciena’s Gary Smith: Telecom Underestimates AI’s Network Demands
Ciena CEO Gary Smith said AI-driven traffic demand has been “grossly underestimated” across the industry, the shift from telecom carriers to hyperscalers is reshaping network investment and ownership and 5G was “a bust” from a carrier economics perspective. See the Fierce Network story.
SpaceX Raises $25B in Debt Sale After IPO
Less than two weeks after its record IPO, SpaceX has raised $25 billion in a debt sale. SpaceX on Monday announced a senior unsecured notes offering, with sources telling CNBC that the company was looking to raise $20 billion. The company said on Tuesday that number increased to $25 billion. SpaceX received nearly $90 billion worth of orders, according to people familiar with the fundraising who asked not to be named because the details are private. Read the CNBC story.
Cloudflare’s New Partner Designation is ‘Deepest Channel Co-Investment Yet’
A little more than a month since announcing a 20% workforce cut, Cloudflare is banking on partners to fill gaps in sales and customer support. Cloudflare and many of its peers are increasingly backing out of consulting and professional contracts and tossing those deals to partners. They say it’s what their customers prefer. Read the Channel Dive story.
Most Americans Fear AI, but Hope is Splitting the Country
Almost every public measure of how Americans feel about AI asks one question: Are you more concerned or more excited? Pew puts concern ahead of excitement 50% to 10%. Ipsos finds that two-thirds of the country is nervous. Read together, they look like a nation souring on the technology, but the question is the problem. Read the Light Reading story.
Nokia, Google Cloud Unleash AI Agents to Fix Telco Network Headaches
Nokia and Google Cloud are turning Gemini-powered AI agents loose on telco network troubleshooting. The first agents target alarms, KPIs, anomaly detection and remediation, with more on the way. Nokia says the agents could speed up network fixes and lower costs, but that doesn’t mean opex is disappearing entirely. See the Fierce Network story.
Arrow Electronics Opens Channel-Focused AI Enablement Hubs
Arrow Electronics launched a network of experience centers for its partners to try-before-buy AI architectures, the tech distributor said. Hubs in Alpharetta, Georgia and Stockholm give channel firms access to hybrid cloud, cybersecurity and services and consulting tools. The centers were developed in response to problems expressed by Arrow’s channel partners, according to John Hourigan, Arrow VP of public affairs and corporate marketing. Read the Channel Dive story.
Five Eyes Issues Urgent Warning Over AI Cyber Threats
The Five Eyes group comprised of intelligence agencies from the United States, U.K., Australia, Canada, and New Zealand said cyber risks can no longer be treated as a purely technical issue – they should now be considered core business risks and a leadership responsibility. Read the Telecoms story.
Oracle Cuts 21,000 Jobs in a Year as it Pivots Toward AI
Oracle’s workforce has reportedly declined by roughly 21,000 employees in fiscal 2026, as the technology giant continues to restructure its business. The company had a total workforce of 141,000 at the end of May 2026, compared with around 162,000 at the same period last year, according to its annual report. Oracle attributes its restructuring activities in part to AI adoption across its business. Read the Capacity Global story.
HPE Doubles Partner Channel Pricing Validity to the Delight – and Surprise – of Partners
HPE announced a plethora of partner program updates and services at its Discover 2026 event, but the one that garnered the biggest audible response from a partisan crowd in attendance was a surprise doubling on pricing quote validity from 15 days to 30 days. Neil MacDonald, EVP, president, and GM of HPE’s Server business, made that announcement during a keynote at HPE’s Partner Growth Summit, explaining that the pricing HPE’s go-to-market partners provided to their end users would now be valid for 30 days, instead of the 15-day period they had been operating under. Read the SDxCentral story.