New Google Partner Program Increases Margins, Requirements

Leaked documents have revealed some significant changes to Google’s (GOOG) new channel partner program, including new partner requirements and increased margins for Premier tier partners.

The new specifications were revealed by CRN after obtaining a series of internal documents detailing the company’s recently announced Work and Education Partner Program, which went into effect Jan. 1.

The most notable change in the new program is a jump in profit margins for Premier partners to 30 percent from 20 percent for Google Apps for Work and Search for Work. However, more stringent Premier partner requirements will likely lead to far fewer qualifying partners than before.

Google has raised the sales threshold required to qualify as a Premier partner to $500,000, with all revenue required to be sourced directly by the partner, according to the documents. Partners also will be required to post yearly growth in bookings of more than 25 percent.

Google is also implementing a $4,000 revenue requirement for partners looking to meet the basic needs of the standard partner tier, with transfer rates for resellers decreasing for certain products, such as Apps, to 15 percent from 20 percent.

The documents outlining Google’s new policies justified the changes as an easier way for partners to sell multiple licenses across the portfolio. But the company’s more stringent partner requirements mean that many current Premier partners will not be able to meet the high standards set by the IT giant.

While Google refused to comment on the documents, CRN reported the company did specify that current Premium partners will be able to continue in the Premium tier through the this year, after which time they will be evaluated on the previous four quarters of performance. If the new standards are not met, these partners will be dropped down to the standard partner tier.

Google’s latest partner program fuses the IT giant’s previous programs into a single entity, including Google Apps, Chrome, Cloud Platform, Maps and Search. Partners will be divided into three separate tracks, including Sales, Services and Technology. The initial program details were revealed in December, although Google has yet to go on record regarding the nuances of the program, including changes to partner margins and additional incentives.