In information technology, a reseller, also sometimes known as a value-added reseller (VAR), is a company that typically buys products such as computers in bulk from a manufacturer and then "adds value" to the original equipment by including specific software applications or other components. The reseller then markets and sells the customized product under its own name. For example, a VAR might take an operating system such as IBM's OS/390 with UNIX services and, adding its own proprietary UNIX application designed for architects, resell the package to architectural firms. Depending on sales and installation requirements, the reseller could choose whether or not to identify OS/390 as part of the package.
This was last updated in February 2001