In our 19th annual Channel Champions, top vendors in 24 categories are determined by solution providers responding to surveys either online or by telephone. VARs were asked to evaluate the importance of technical, support and financial criteria, rate vendors' performance on technical, support and financial criteria and weigh vendors' performance scores by the relative importance of each technical, support and financial criteria. Only solution providers currently selling vendors' products and/or services in a category were eligible to respond. (Answers are weighted and therefore could total more than 100.)

Here now are the winners.

#1 In Power Protection: APC
In almost every category, APC was the clear winner in the power protection category. That's no surprise to Philip Alfrey, director of business development for Solid Networks, a Modesto, Calif.-based solution provider. Alfrey has been in the business for nearly 20 years and has never seen a company quite so dedicated to providing the channel solutions that are competitively priced, well designed and affordable for customers.

"APC cares about partners," Alfrey said. "That's why they blew the competition out of the water in a survey of solution providers. Partners know that they're going to have an ease of transaction, a solution that clients are happy with and one that makes them money -- how can you beat that?"