A statement from Motorola Solutions says that “Rebranding the entry-tier products will enable Motorola Solutions and our resellers to provide a complete offering under the Motorola Solutions brand and to compete more effectively in the entry-level market for digital and analogue products.
“In addition, this change will help to drive increased revenue in the entry-tier market, consolidate our marketing and sales investments on a single brand, and simplify business with a united team and a common set of business tools, systems and processes.
“One of the driving forces behind this single brand strategy was feedback from partners, who told us that the Motorola Solutions brand is key to winning more business in the price-sensitive entry-tier market, where competition has become more intense.”
The statement goes onto to say that that this decision does not mean that Motorola Solutions intends to exit the entry-tier market. “We are already enjoying great success in the unlicensed PMR446 market, and this change enables us to create an even greater presence in the entry-tier market by consolidating our products under the Motorola Solutions brand.”
While Vertex Standard’s entry-tier products will be branded on 1 January 2018, they will retain their current model names (VZ-, VX- and EVX-).
These models are:
VZ-30, VX-260 Series, VX-450 Series and VX-21/2200 (analogue products)
EVX-261 and EVX-S24 (digital products)
While a cancellation notice will be issued in Q4 for these products, this is only for the Vertex Standard branded versions and the Motorola Solutions branded versions will made available in early Q1 2018.
Motorola Solutions began issuing product cancellations for the following Vertex Standard mid- and high-tier products earlier in the year:
Phase 1 (Q1 2017): VX-920 Series, VX-1400, VXR-7000
Phase 2 (Q2 2017): VX-6000, VX-5500
In addition, the following models will be cancelled in Q4 2017: VX-241, VX-820 Series, VX-45/4600, VXR-9000, EVX-530 Series, EVX-53/5400, EVX-R70 and EVX-Link.
Motorola Solutions states that it will “continue to sell a limited number of niche products under the Vertex Standard brand to legacy customers.” For example, “The VX-1700 High Frequency (30kHz – 30MHz) and VX-924 Midband (66-88Mhz) models will continue to be available to address the needs of legacy customers who require analogue radios in these specific frequency bands.”
It adds that such products will not be actively marketed and Motorola Solutions will not make any additional investments in the Vertex Standard brand moving forward. It will “evolve” all existing marketing materials, including the Vertex Standard web site, to align with the Motorola Solutions brand.
The new single brand strategy is a global initiative, but the details may vary from region to region. The details given above and in the FAQ are for the EMEA region only.
A Motorola Solutions spokesperson said: “Motorola Solutions will combine the best of Vertex Standard's portfolio with our industry-leading two-way radio lineup in January, and those products will carry the Motorola Solutions brand. This alignment maximizes the strengths of both names to best serve the marketplace.”
