What a shocking display of ignorance of the market by DMSL.

There is no such market as they believe. I've been there to know. Then to compound the error by introducing franchising?

Consumers regard their beige box as just another home appliance. If it breaks, they shove it in a corner until they're ready to buy a new one.

Are there electrical repair shops on the high street anymore? No.

Is PC World's repair dept. surrounded by a crowd of customers? No.

Are the papers full of ads from local I.T outfits making a nice living and driving Beemers? No.

Even SMB's avoid I.T. services whenever possible. What with cowboy operators and vague costing they muddle on through as best they can or buy new kit to avoid the problem.

These days most people know a geek who is good enough to help either by friends, family or work colleagues.

The indie sector is currently busier than it ever has been. The market is shifting and changing, the internet is adjusting the current models and everyone is working harder than usual.

Cowboys exist in every industry and at every level, the IT industry is no exception. Organisations like the PCA, ITACS, Brigantia and NASCR have never been more important than they are now. The groups gaining members are the ones that are changing. Businesses that are members of these organisations are far less likely to go bankrupt and most are not cowboys - the cowboys wouldn't dare join!

John Carter decided to ditch power point and ad-libbed most of the time. He was then fielded by a ton of questions - many of which were difficult and without an answer. The whole thing turned into a passionate debate with people from both sides passing comment. The PCA has never been this interesting, ever.

We also had someone from BERR (the department formerly known as the DTI) who was able to answer some difficult questions about WEEE.

Both presenters left people wanting more and that is the way things should be.

If anyone thinks the indies are dead they should think again, They are alive and kicking - just ask John if you don't believe me.

The indies are here to stay and are fighting back. If you want another opinion, ask DSG - who wanted to sell nothing but Vista and their portables and desktops were unsold whilst the indies were selling XP portables and desktops by the lorry load.

Are you kidding. My business is domestic computer support. 40% of households have one or more computers. These need looking after and I am after that business. I don't think the big boys will get this business. Just try calling one on 0870 hell (Option 1 2 or 3). ISP's are a nightmare to call so are most of the warranty support lines. If only 10% of domestic PC users need help. Hell that is big business.

Independents are definitely not dead but they do have to be very careful about the large brand players entering the market as they're after the Independent's core business - onsite support.

The home and small business support market is changing quickly and we're at the beginning of a new and exciting evolution. The question for an Independent is not that the market exists but how to best position themselves so that they can offer the services that customers are looking for today while protecting themselves and capturing ongoing revenue streams.

On the one hand, this market is not keen on spending £150 to fix a problem on a regular basis when a new computer costs £300, on the other hand they can't live without their IT, need things fixed immediately (particularly minor issues), hate being on the phone for hours, are worried about security and are increasingly networking all their IT together.

So what do services customers need and want? At zuuMedia we believe that to be affordable services which include:

- Local Technicians with local pricing. The idea of having the same hourly rate across the country does not work. A Technician in London should be charging far more than a Technicain in Hull.

- 24/7 Remote Support for those little problems.

- Proactive ongoing security checks.

- Automated Offsite Data Backup (stored in the UK).

IMHO, this is the new market and Independents can have a prosperous future as long as they offer the services that customers require. In order to do this however, Independents will need to join a network such as zuuMedia.

My company has been doing this for 10 years and we welcome competition. I've taken dozens of customers off 'cowboys' in the industry - and watched dozens of cowboys die by the wayside. I'm not scared by BT or PC World trying to take customers away from me because they can't compete with the personal service and level of expertise my team offers. We don't do home users unless they are directors of customers. We also aren't spotty teenagers.

The whole 'franchise' operation is only as good as it's weakest link, and with no formal qualification to join up (we're ISO:9000 accredited for instance) how can you control quality? What liability is there when a muppet wanders onsite, reformats your harddrive, loses your precious family photographs and charges £49.99 (plus VAT) for the privilege? If they are acting under the 'FixITLocal' banner and hit the press, the damage control required is considerable, and affects *everyone* under that banner, locally or otherwise.

As for people who 'have a mate/relative/man-down-the-pub that knows a bit about computers and muddle through' - would you let your mate who 'knows a bit about maths' do your accounting, or your other mate who 'knows about about rules and stuff' handle your legal contracts? Don't think so. So why trust one of the corner stones of your business to someone who may not have the experience, and certainly not the liability insurance should it all go pear-shaped.

I've done IT audits on customers that let the directors geeky nephew setup the network. It took me 3 minutes, 24 seconds to get admin access onto their domain controller whilst still parked in the car park, their backup specifically excluded every single person's 'My Documents' folder and email (which nearly caused an eruption in the board room), and half the PC's examined were riddled with spyware.