Recent News & Press Coverage

Bethesda, Maryland – May 20, 2020 – The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, MSSPs and Solution Providers, is pleased to announce the official launch of its updated member community platform ASCII-Link. The new platform provides increased engagement and opportunities for ASCII members to directly connect.

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Since its inception in 2008, ASCII-Link has been a top exclusive benefit with ASCII members. ASCII built one of the largest IT community forums, where members communicate freely with fellow IT business owners to jointly solve technical issues, provide vendor recommendations, give input on revenue opportunities and more. Vendors are not provided access to ASCII-Link and ASCII does not moderate posts.

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With messages exceeding over 3,000 posts per month, the IT community looked beyond its traditional list-serv for a modern, best-in-class tool. Today ASCII’s platform provides users with a more enhanced experience that includes a member directory, custom profiles, sub-groups and further personalization of the community.

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“The new platform will help foster more partnerships and sharing of best practices within the ASCII MSP community. ASCII continually looks at ways to help MSPs increase their ability to work together, and this is another step in raising the bar in driving more interaction amongst our members across North America,” said Jerry Koutavas, President, The ASCII Group.

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“ASCII is continually expanding on ways to help my business form partnerships and build upon opportunities with other like-minded MSPs in the group. The new enhancements to ASCII-Link provide another way to connect and engage with other MSP members in the community,” said Stephen Monk, Noverus Innovations, and member of The ASCII Group.

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With the addition of the new system, ASCII users can share and work collaboratively on projects with others, regardless of where members are located. The group also has a community mobile app for easy access.

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About The ASCII Group, Inc:

The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, MSSPs and solution providers. The Group has over 1,300 members located throughout the U.S. and Canada, and membership encompasses everyone from credentialed MSPs serving the SMB community to multi-location solution providers with a national and international reach. Founded in 1984, ASCII provides services to members including leveraged purchasing programs, education and training, marketing assistance, extensive peer interaction and more.  ASCII works with a vibrant ecosystem of leading and major technology vendors that complement the ASCII community and support the mission of helping MSPs and VARs to grow their businesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.

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Press Contact

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Alysia Vetter
Vice President of Marketing
Tel: 800-394-2724 x 131
Email: alysia@ascii.com
Web: www.ascii.com

Bethesda, Maryland – November 13, 2019 – The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers, is pleased to announce the featured speakers for its 2020 North American ASCII IT Success Summits. The agenda for the Summits reflects a heightened focus on education, providing attendees with strategies and best practices on how to grow their IT companies while best servicing their customer base. The 2020 events will have more emphasis on MSP-driven education sessions (featuring ASCII members) and our most popular Keynote speaker returns for a special security discussion.

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Keynote Speaker – Frank Abagnale, Security Briefing: The Art of the Steal

In this unique session, con man turned crime stopper Frank Abagnale provides the latest information to protect institutions, associations and corporations from embezzlement, forgery, counterfeit currency, check fraud, identity theft, and Internet fraud. He describes white collar crime techniques, liability concerns under the new Uniform Commercial Code, and demonstrates the latest document features and equipment. Abagnale combines his expertise with anecdotes from his time as one of the world's most successful con men for a timely, insightful and informative presentation.

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Additional MSP peer education and industry speakers include:

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Bob Coppedge, Simplex-IT – The MSP Survival Guide to Co-Managed IT Services

Can Managed Service Providers(MSPs) work harmoniously with internal IT departments? Historically the answer has been “no way”. In this session, you will see that it can be done without having to recreate your traditional MSP offerings. In fact, MSPs can directly market to organizations who have internal IT departments and create a unique selling proposition. By crafting a mutually supportive relationship between internal IT employees and your MSP organization, both parties reap the benefits and can build a strong, long-term relationship. This session will show you how to do this without reinventing your existing MSP practice.

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Corey Kirkendoll, 5K Technical Services – The UltimateMSP Check List for Bulletproof Internal Security

Over the past year, “security” has been one of the most highly talked about subjects in our industry. However, there is one element vital to the success of MSPs that hasn’t been broadly discussed –internal security measures. Corey Kirkendoll, CEO of 5K Technical Services, has been aggregating best practices from within the ASCII and vendor community into a definitive guide to help MSPs lock down their environments from future attacks. Corey will present this information, highlighting the top things most MSPs are not doing that leave them vulnerable to being breached. The content created for this session has been a collaborative effort for our industry and the findings are vital for any MSP to hear.

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DawnSizer, 3^rd Element Consulting – Going Vertical in Municipal Government and Law Enforcement is Not a Bidding War

Building trust and delivery of IT services for first responders is no small task and leading the charge in this sector of the market is Dawn Sizer, CEO of 3rd Element Consulting. Dawn has focused almost exclusively on this vertical as well as local municipalities. With over 12 years in delivering IT services, Dawn has stood out because of solid processes and knowing the nuances of this market and what it takes to be successful. With 0% client loss, 3rd Element Consulting provides24/7 support which extends to the office, outside of cars in the field, to the station, and into the cloud. Plenty of people say it’s too hard to get into this vertical, but it’s knowing how, and the right staff will qualify you, or disqualify you.

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Shannon Mayer, The ASCII Group - How MSPs Can Drive New Business through Live Events

Events are a proven way to generate business and heighten your company brand. Building an event takes more than just figuring out the logistics aspect though – it requires an understanding of marketing and repeatable strategies for success.  Shannon Mayer, ASCII’s VP of Channel Development, has produced over 150 events, and in this session Shannon will go beyond the basics and help you determine the best approach and strategy to help you produce your own local, live event to drive new business and retain customers.

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Jerry Koutavas, The ASCII Group: MSP-Client Retention Strategy Study

With its most recent industry study, ASCII breaks down the data exposing specific strategies that leading MSPs are using to increase customer retention. As MSPs continue to drive recurring revenue and automate processes that would lessen the need to have a physical presence at their client sites, it is vital to have a strategy to increase touch and awareness with your customers. 

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Jerry Koutavas, President of The ASCII Group, digs into the specifics as we help you compare your current business strategy to your peers as we discuss the most recent data on which approaches outperform others to maintain customer revenue.

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For over 20 years, the Success Summits have been the leading conference in the channel and bring together over 1,500 IT solution providers, cutting edge technology vendors and key industry thought leaders in a two-day format.  ASCII hosts events in nine major cities across North America and the series focuses on areas to help MSPs advance and move their businesses forward through the power of community and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing.

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“Our goal has never changed, provide the ASCIIMSP community with an event unlike any other, with actionable business content, a nationally recognized keynote and the showcasing of top technology that is helping MSPs drive new revenue,” said Jerry Koutavas, President, The ASCII Group.  “Attendees leave the events with business intelligence they can use and new partnerships they can leverage to further build recurring revenue for their business.”

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The Summit series is designed for qualified Managed Service Providers and is targeted towards those looking to increase revenue and enhance their current business model.

The locations and dates for the 2020 ASCII IT Success Summits:

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• Long Beach, CA - February 26 – 27
• Houston, TX - March 25 – 26
• Washington, D.C. - April 22 – 23
• Chicago, IL - May 27 – 28
• Cincinnati, OH - June 24 – 25
• Toronto, Canada - July 29 – 30
• Atlantic City, NJ - August 26 – 27
• Boston, MA - September 24 – 25
• Orlando, FL - October 21 – 22

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MSPs and solution providers interested in attending the Summits can visit www.asciievents.com. For more information, follow ASCII on Twitter @asciigroup and #ASCIISUCCESS.

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About The ASCII Group, Inc:

The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers. The Group has over 1,300 members located throughout the U.S. and Canada, and membership encompasses everyone from credentialed MSPs serving the SMB community to multi-location solution providers with a national and international reach. Founded in 1984, ASCII provides services to members including leveraged purchasing programs, education and training, marketing assistance, extensive peer interaction and more.  ASCII works with a vibrant ecosystem of leading and major technology vendors that complement the ASCII community and support the mission of helping MSPs and VARs to grow their businesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.

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Press Contact
Alysia Vetter
Vice President of Marketing
Tel: 800-394-2724 x 131
Email: alysia@ascii.com
Web:  www.ascii.com

The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers, is pleased to announce the winners of its annual ASCII Cup, with awards given to the ASCII Cup winner, Top 10 Vendors, and SMB IT Success Summit Top Distributor of the Year.

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The awards are presented each October to technology companies that have showcased channel goodwill and a commitment to helping ASCII members grow their IT businesses. Winners are voted upon by attendees at regional events, and the Cup and awards were presented at the ASCII Success Summit on October 25, in Boston, MA.

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At each regional event, ASCII Success Summit attendees vote for the vendors in 12 different categories:

Best Education;

Best Partner Incentives;

Best Overall Presentation;

Best Rapid Pitch;

Best Keynote Presentation;

Most Innovative Solution;

Best Market Opportunity;

Best Partner Support;

Best Channel Program;

Best Revenue Generator;

Top Distributor; and

Best Partner Involvement.

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The winners at each Summit are selected based on the total number of votes by the MSPs, VARs and solution providers in attendance; at the end of the year, the winner of The ASCII Cup is determined by tabulating the results of all submitted ballots.

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The 2019 winners of The ASCII Cup, Top 10 Vendors and SMB IT Success Summit Top Distributor of the Year were announced at a private industry gathering.

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The 2019 ASCII Cup Vendor of the Year – Pax8

The ASCII Group is pleased to honor the award recipients of this year's ASCII Cup:

First Runner-Up – Datto

3^rd Place – Solutions Granted

4^th Place – ID Agent

5^th Place – Vertical Axion

6^th Place – Mailprotector

7^th Place – RocketCyber

8^th Place – SolarWindsPassportal

9^th Place – ConnectMeVoice

10^th Place –GreenLink Networks

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ASCII SMB IT SuccessSummit Top Distributor of the Year – Pax8

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“On behalf of The ASCII Group and its community, we congratulate Pax8 on winning the 2019 ASCII Cup and the ASCII SMB IT Success Summit Top Distributor of the Year for the second year in a row.  In addition, we also wish to acknowledge the Top 10 Vendors and extend a big thank you to all of the companies that participated at our Success Summits this year. With over 70 unique vendors garnering votes and hundreds of ballots counted, we see first-hand the value that our sponsors bring to the membership and we applaud their commitment to continually provide innovative and channel-focused solutions,” said Shannon Mayer, Vice President of Channel Development, The ASCII Group.

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Photos of the ASCII Cup celebration will bemade available on The ASCII Group and The ASCII Cup Facebook pages.

For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.

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About The ASCII Group, Inc:

The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, VARsand solution providers. The Group has over 1,300 members located throughout theU.S. and Canada, and membership encompasses everyone from credentialed MSPsserving the SMB community to multi-location solution providers with a nationaland international reach. Founded in 1984, ASCII provides services to membersincluding leveraged purchasing programs, education and training, marketingassistance, extensive peer interaction and more.  ASCII works with avibrant ecosystem of leading and major technology vendors that complement theASCII community and support the mission of helping MSPs and VARs to grow theirbusinesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.

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Press Contact

Alysia Vetter

Vice President of Marketing

Tel: 800-394-2724 x 131

Email: alysia@ascii.com

Web:  www.ascii.com

The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, VARs and Solution Providers, is pleased to announce that its Chairman and CEO Alan Weinberger will be speaking to students at the New York University School of Law. Weinberger is returning to his alma mater (B.A and J.D NYU Law 1970) to explain the pivotal function of a Managed Service Provider (MSP) and to discuss how their role is pertinent to the online activity and safety of businessowners.

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Weinberger’s session, “Learn What a Managed Service Provider is and Why They Are the Doctors and Cyber Engineers of the 21^st Century”, will be held at Furman Hall on November 6, 2019, at 1:00 p.m. His address will focus on the surge of cybercriminal activity that is threatening national and global security and economic stability, and how safekeeping on the Internet has collapsed. With this present crisis, security, privacy, intellectual property and stored data is now of a fundamental concern. 

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Weinberger founded The ASCII Group in 1984, the world’s oldest and largest community and network of Managed Service Providers, and he will discuss the IT industry’s structure and why MSPs have become vital to our national interests. In addition, Alan will explain his professional journey, and how he decided to leave a law firm to become a founding professor of Vermont Law School, and eventually an entrepreneur and technology executive.

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“Our Internet platform is open to attack at any time by anyone, almost like a medical virus, and it is important to educate leaders of tomorrow on how best to make safe our infrastructure and private data.  A one-size-fits-all solution will not protect us, and just like a doctor forms a diagnosis based on the patient’s symptoms, MSPs have an unmatched record of looking at each situation and creating the unique solutions that will be needed to protect us against cybercriminals,” said Weinberger.

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“We are delighted to welcome Alan back to speak to our students. We look forward to hearing about his career and I know our students will benefit from his expertise and insights,” said Anthony Thomas, Executive Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships, New York University School of Law.

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For more information and to register for the event, please visit https://nyu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0rnf4NdZocC4e1v.

We have received reports of individuals applying for fraudulent job opportunities at our corporate Bethesda, MD headquarters. These job opportunities are being advertised on various job placement sites and through email communication from the domain @ascii-group.com. The ASCII Group is not affiliated with any correspondence originating from the domain ascii-group.com.

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We believe the aim of the scam is to obtain personal information such as driver’s licenses, social security numbers, addresses, banking info, etc. from victims. We are actively working with officials and suggest any intended victim to do the same and report the scam to the FTC.

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If you believe you have been targeted by this scam (or have received any suspicious emails relating to The ASCII Group) please forward the fraudulent communications to info@ascii.com, so that we can track and report the fraudsters.

Thank you.

Bethesda, Maryland – August 20, 2019 – The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, VARs and Solution Providers, is pleased to announce the upcoming dates and cities for its 2020 IT Success Summit Series.

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A pioneer in channel events, the ASCII Summits provide a mix of educational sessions, training, networking opportunities, and professionals and innovators sharing best practices and success stories. Now in its 21st year, ASCII IT Success Summits bring together nearly 1,500 IT solution providers, cutting edge technology vendors and key industry thought leaders in a two-day format.

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ASCII hosts events in nine major cities across North America and the series focuses on areas that will help MSPs advance and move their businesses forward through the power of community and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing. The ASCII executive and membership teams will be on hand to provide attendees with personalized consultation.

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“In 2019, we had over 80 unique technology vendors sponsor one (or many) of our IT Success Summits. Our events are a proven model for bridging the relationships that are necessary for MSPs to add recurring revenue streams and take their businesses to the next level. Over 75% of attendees report that networking is one of the top reasons they attend this event,” said Shannon Mayer, VP Channel Development, The ASCII Group.

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The ASCII Group has announced the following dates and locations for its 2020 IT Success Summits:

Long Beach, CA - February 26 – 27

Houston, TX - March 25 – 26

Washington, D.C. - April 22 – 23

Chicago, IL - May 27 – 28

Cincinnati, OH - June 24 – 25

Toronto, Canada - July 29 – 30

Atlantic City, NJ - August 26 – 27

Boston, MA - September 24 – 25

Orlando, FL - October 21 – 22

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Keynote speakers will be announced at a later date. MSPs and solution providers can receive an invitation to attend an IT Success Summit 2020 by sending an email to events@ascii.com.

For more information, please visit www.asciievents.com.

Follow ASCII on Twitter @asciigroup and #ASCIISUCCESS.

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‍About The ASCII Group, Inc:

‍The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers. The Group has over 1,300 members located throughout the U.S. and Canada, and membership encompasses everyone from credentialed MSPs serving the SMB community to multi-location solution providers with a national and international reach. Founded in 1984, ASCII provides services to members including leveraged purchasing programs, education and training, marketing assistance, extensive peer interaction and more. ASCII works with a vibrant ecosystem of leading and major technology vendors that complement the ASCII community and support the mission of helping MSPs and VARs to grow their businesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.-30-

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‍Press Contact

‍Alysia VetterVice

President of Marketing

Tel: 800-394-2724 x 131

Email: alysia@ascii.com

‍Web: www.ascii.com

The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, VARs and Solution Providers, has announced ASCII Insider, a new service for MSPs to facilitate growth and collaboration within their respective businesses in a peer group setting.

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“Our goal is to further extend the significant conversations that are taking place within the ASCII community by enabling members to openly discuss operational strategies, business challenges and financial health, all within a private, non-competitive environment,” said Jerry Koutavas, President, The ASCII Group. “We recognize that peer groups are not something new, however based on member input, time considerations were a key factor in the structuring of these groups.  Activities will be vendor-free, solely focused on their businesses. And moderators will be selected based on deep industry experience as to enhance the business discussion and direction within these groups.”

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With multiple groups already engaged and committed, ASCII has handpicked industry veteran MJ Shoer to moderate these closed group discussions as well as future groups as ASCII Insider expands. MJ Shoer has been involved in the IT industry since 1992, including nearly 20 years as an ASCII member as the owner of Jenaly Technology Group.  He has served on several advisory councils, including ASCII, ConnectWise, Kaseya, and CompTIA, where he was Board Chair from 2011 to 2015.  MJ’s business experience and leadership role in the IT industry make him ideally qualified to lead the ASCII Insider groups.

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“The foundation and community of ASCII and how it helped my business transform, was incredibly strategic for me as an IT provider,” said MJ Shoer, Founder & Principal Consultant, MJ Shoer, LLC. “With ASCII Insider, I view this as a great opportunity to give back to the group and to help MSPs shape their business for future success.”

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For more information, please visit www.asciiinsider.com

Bethesda, Maryland – May 2, 2019 – The ASCII Group, a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, VARs and Solution Providers, has announced the appointment of Michigan-based technology expert Kimberly Nielsen of Computer Technologies, Inc. to its Member Advisory Board.  The Board includes a select group of IT professionals from various sectors of technology, who collaborate to provide input on ASCII membership and initiatives.

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Comprised of representatives from 15 member businesses from across North America, the Member Advisory Board works with ASCII headquarters on a regular basis to discuss new alliances, member programs, peer-to-peer networking opportunities for members, and overall ways to bring value to the growing membership community.  In addition to her industry knowledge and expertise, Nielsen has been a member of The ASCII Group for over 20 years.

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“Kim’s business acumen, vast experience and longstanding membership with our community will add tremendous value to all we do through our leading network, as the industry continues to change at a rapid pace,” said Alan Weinberger, Chairman and CEO, The ASCII Group.

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“I am very excited to be joining the ASCII Member Advisory Board at this particular time when the Cyber/InfoTech industry is expected to grow by 13% (approximately557,100 new jobs) by 2026,” said Nielsen. “Being the CEO of a woman-owned business in the technology sector for the last 28 years provides me unique perspectives and experiences which I can draw upon and share within this group and to the ASCII community as a whole.”

The ASCII Member Advisory Board was established in 2001 and meets regularly during the year. The components discussed at the meetings add to the more than 70 value-add programs ASCII currently provides to its members.

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About The ASCII Group, Inc:

The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers. The Group has over 1,300 members located throughout the U.S. and Canada, and membership encompasses everyone from credentialed MSPs serving the SMB community to multi-location solution providers with a national and international reach. Founded in 1984, ASCII provides services to members including leveraged purchasing programs, education and training, marketing assistance, extensive peer interaction and more. ASCII works with a vibrant ecosystem of leading and major technology vendors that complement the ASCII community and support the mission of helping MSPs and VARs to grow their businesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.

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Press Contact

Alysia Vetter

Vice President of Marketing

Tel:800-394-2724 x 131

Email: alysia@ascii.com

Web:  www.ascii.com

Bethesda, Maryland – February 5, 2019 —  The ASCII Group is proud to announce it has reached an exciting milestone as the company celebrates 35 years of providing a membership-based community to North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers. Through ASCII membership, IT business owners have access to preferred pricing, networking opportunities with fellow professionals, exposure to the latest technology and more, as well as significant operating cost reductions.The ASCII Group began operations in 1984 when Alan D. Weinberger, the company’s Chairman and CEO, founded the company in a Washington D.C. suburb along with 40 ex-franchisees of a software chain. “I took a step back in the early 1980s at the start of the IT revolution and was able to reflect on the specialized, educated individuals who were driving the revolution by implementing the final solutions of new software and services, rather than just the computer retail giants or a few large vendors.” Recognizing a need to provide business tools for growth to like-minded IT professionals was the company’s founding principle three decades ago, and remains the same today. Led by its original founding executive, Weinberger, The ASCII Group continues to be committed to providing MSPs with a united, trusted community alongside programs, services and opportunities. With a consistent focus on meeting the needs of its members, the company’s programs and offerings have greatly expanded as the Channel has evolved, and all new technologies require learning and expertise.“We joined ASCII in 1988 in order to join the group buy discounts with distributors and have been members ever since! ASCII continues to save us money on our purchases but also adds so many more benefits with business support, technology education, knowledge sharing and peer networking. It’s wonderful to be part of an organization that puts the interest of its members first and continues to promote our importance in the industry,” said Chip Evans, President, Computerware, Inc., and member of The ASCII Group since 1988.Jerry Koutavas, President, The ASCII Group, added, “For 35 years our mission has always been to help independent IT companies collaborate, learn, and become more efficient. We are very proud to have made a difference in the success of so many businesses, and we look forward to continuing to provide new services to help MSPs.”Over the last five years, ASCII has experienced significant growth within North America, driven by strong member retention and remaining vendor neutral. The ASCII team has also been recognized for a number of industry accolades including CRN’s Women of the Channel, ChannelPro’s Silver Readers’ Choice Award for Best IT Community, and CompTIA’s Channel Changer 2018.The ASCII Group will commemorate the occasion throughout the next twelve months and an anniversary celebration will be held at its IT Success Summit in Washington, D.C. For more details on all of ASCII’s IT Success Summits, visit www.asciievents.comAbout The ASCII Group, Inc:The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, VARs and solution providers. The Group has over 1,300 members located throughout the U.S. and Canada, and membership encompasses everyone from credentialed MSPs serving the SMB community to multi-location solution providers with a national and international reach. Founded in 1984, ASCII provides services to members including leveraged purchasing programs, education and training, marketing assistance, extensive peer interaction and more. ASCII works with a vibrant ecosystem of major technology vendors that complement the ASCII community and support the mission of helping MSPs and VARs to grow their businesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.

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Press ContactAlysia VetterVice President of MarketingTel: 800-394-2724 x 131Email: alysia@ascii.comWeb:www.ascii.com