[May 14, 2007]

United Network Equipment Dealer Association to Hold Second Annual Meeting in Las Vegas to Address Best Practices for Providers of Secondary Network Equipment

LAS VEGAS --(Business Wire)-- The United Network Equipment Dealer Association (UNEDA), an alliance of more than 300 of the top pre-owned network equipment dealers worldwide, has announced it will be holding its second annual meeting in Las Vegas on May 19th and 20th, to be held in conjunction with the Interop IT conference and exposition.

The gathering will give UNEDA members an opportunity to participate in a series of meetings as well as special breakout sessions to discuss the continuing implementation of industry best business practices. Additionally, attendees will review the association's progress in addressing global initiatives such as working with OEMs to assess cost-prohibitive recertification policies along with the eradication of counterfeit and fraudulent equipment in the secondary network market.

According to Mike Sheldon, president of the board of UNEDA and CEO of Santa Barbara, Calif. Network Hardware Resale, one of the founding members of the association, this second annual meeting will provide valuable insight into ongoing efforts to increase industry awareness. "Over the past year, we have made significant strides in reinforcing the viability of the secondary network equipment market," he says. "More and more companies are working with UNEDA members as trusted, alternate sources for affordable, highly available, best-of-class network switches and routers. UNEDA has elevated the standard for industry business practices by demanding adherence to strict guidelines for ensuring the authenticity and quality of all secondary network equipment."

As part of the two-day annual gathering, UNEDA members will have an opportunity to hear about the latest developments in the areas of ethics and standards and cooperative sourcing strategies as well as the latest tips for identifying fake gear. Additionally, preliminary plans will be shared for UNEDA's counterfeit task force, which is expected to be launched later this summer. Last month, UNEDA issued an open invitation to Cisco to join this initiative and support an overarching goal to halt the flow of counterfeit equipment throughout the networking industry. "With unmatched experience in current and past-generation equipment, secondary equipment providers are on the frontlines in protecting buyers from counterfeit, theft and fraud," explains Rick Louden, UNEDA's chair of the counterfeit task force and CEO of TekSavers. "Offshore manufacturing of OEM equipment has created a wave of hard-to-detect counterfeit equipment, so UNEDA is developing strenuous guidelines to aid in the detection of fraud as well as tips for working with law enforcement to identify and prosecute offenders."

In the interest of better serving UNEDA's Cisco customers, the association also is eager to address cost-prohibitive fees charged by OEMs for inspecting and re-registering secondary market equipment for their maintenance programs. However, this practice hasn't stopped end-users from relying on UNEDA members for a wide range of requirements, such as complete network fulfillment, disaster recovery, asset recovery, testing and spares.

"UNEDA members represent more than $1 billion in network equipment buying clout," says John Stafford, vice president of the UNEDA board, chairman of its membership committee and COO at Network Liquidators, a founding UNEDA member. "Our members represent the entire spectrum of the secondary network market and all abide by a strict code of ethics. UNEDA's focus on best practices is helping correct misconceptions about our industry while driving awareness that the secondary network equipment market is a legitimate, economical source of top-notch gear."

UNEDA members also will be holding board elections to fill the six board positions with one-year terms completing its 12-person board.

About UNEDA

The United Network Equipment Dealer Association (UNEDA) is a worldwide alliance of more than 300 of the leading marketers of pre-owned networking equipment. Members represent the entire spectrum of the secondary market, from companies with hundreds of employees and millions of dollars in inventory to small, entrepreneurial organizations. Together their combined yearly buying clout exceeds $1 billion, representing the sale of millions of pieces of equipment to tens of thousands of customers. UNEDA members must adhere to a strict code of ethics that includes a firm policy against selling any equipment that is not legitimate. For more information, visit www.uneda.com.

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