Microsoft partners still can’t sell the vendor’s Surface RT or Surface Pro tablets. But if they’re attending the Worldwide Partner Conference, they can buy them at a steep discount.
In a blog post on Thursday, Microsoft worldwide channel chief Jon Roskill announced that, during WPC (July 7 – 11), partners will be able to buy the Surface RT 64GB with touch cover for US$99, and the Surface Pro 128GB standalone for US$399. The current prices at Best Buy are US$599 for the RT (without the cover) and US$999 for the Pro.
“We want to make the Surface easily available to our WPC partners, who tend to be some of the most invested and innovative partners Microsoft has the pleasure of working with,” said Roskill. “In deep appreciation of our WPC partners and with much excitement for the opportunities we share in devices and services, we are excited to announce a special offer for WPC partner participants.”
Of course, Microsoft partners can’t actually sell the Surface tablet to their clients yet; it’s only available from Microsoft directly online or at its retail stores, or through select retailers such as Future Shop, Best Buy and Staples.
Could the WPC discount be a prelude to an announcement of the Surface’s availability through the reseller channel being made at WPC? We’ll find out in a few weeks.