Recent News & Press Coverage
Stay informed with official news and updates from The ASCII Group. This section features company announcements, strategic initiatives, and industry coverage that reflect our continued commitment to the MSP community and the broader IT channel.
The ASCII Group Appoints Ted Roller as Chief Community Officer
Washington, D.C.– January 14, 2026 – The ASCII Group, North America’s original and vendor-neutral community for Managed Service Providers (MSPs), is pleased to announce the appointment of Ted Roller as Chief Community Officer, a newly created executive role focused on strengthening member engagement and expanding ASCII’s community across the United States and Canada.
In this role, Roller will lead initiatives designed to deepen member connection and engagement, working closely with MSPs to help shape the future of the ASCII community. His focus will be on ensuring ASCII continues to reflect the real-world needs of MSP business owners and remains a trusted resource for peer insight and collaboration.
Roller brings more than 25 years of experience in the IT channel, with a career spanning MSP ownership and senior channel leadership roles. Earlier in his career, he owned and operated an MSP that was recognized locally as one of the Fast 50 fastest-growing companies, providing firsthand experience with the operational and strategic realities MSPs face.
He has since held senior channel leadership positions at LogMeIn, Intronis, Mailprotector, CloudRadial, Zomentum, and FlexPoint, where he helped build partner programs, strengthen community engagement, and support growth through indirect sales models. In addition, Roller has contributed to industry education as faculty for CompTIA and has been recognized by organizations including MSPmentor, The Channel Company, and SMB Nation.
“Ted’s background as both an MSP owner and a channel executive makes him uniquely qualified to lead our community efforts,” said Jerry Koutavas, CEO of The ASCII Group. “His role will be instrumental in strengthening member engagement and expanding ASCII’s reach as we continue to support MSPs across North America.”
“ASCII has always represented something different in this industry,” said Roller. “It is a community built on trust, openness, and shared experience. I’m honored to join the team and look forward to helping shape the next chapter of member engagement and community leadership.”
About The ASCII Group, Inc.
The ASCII Group is the premier community of North American MSPs, MSSPs and Solution Providers. The Group has 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 to grow their businesses. For more information, please visit www.ascii.com.
Press Contact
Jessica Turner
Senior Digital Engagement Manager
Tel: 800-394-2724
Email: jturner@ascii.com
Web: www.ascii.com
ASCII Part Of New International Trade Group By Heather Clancy, CRN February 15, 2007
Do you have your passport yet? I know many of my frequent contacts don’t have much to do with business outside the United States, but there’s plenty going on.
The same week that the CMP Channel Group hosted its first European XChange event in Budapest, Alan Weinberger of the ASCII Group popped up recently to tell me that the organization has become a founding member of the new International Technology Channels Association (ITCA), which bills itself as an “international communication platform” for distributors, resellers, service providers and vendors…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/blogs-op-ed/channel-programs/197006323/ascii-part-of-new-international-trade-group.htm
ASCII's Journey to India, Channel Insider, August 8, 2006, by John Hazard
ASCII Group, a U.S.-based group of small-business VARs and SIs is launching an India affiliate to connect U.S. vendors with small VARs on the subcontinent.
Read More….
http://www.channelinsider.com/c/a/News/ASCIIs-Journey-to-India/
ASCII Chief Blasts Lenovo-Best Buy Deal By Edward F. Moltzen, CRN, April 12, 2006
Lenovo’s deal with brick-and-mortar retailer Best Buy to begin selling notebooks and desktops to SMBs prompted a strong reaction from the head of the ASCII Group, who called the deal “outrageous” and said it would hurt VARs…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/185300554/ascii-chief-blasts-lenovo-best-buy-deal.htm
Katrina Relief: Doing Their Part By CRN Staff, CRN September 02, 2005
Here’s a partial list of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts by high-tech companies and organizations:
ASCII GROUP: Coordinating requests from members to offer e-mail, DNS and Web sites for other ASCII members in the Gulf Coast. Plans to expand effort…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/170700282/katrina-relief-doing-their-part.htm
At The Heart Of The Organizing Principle By Michael Gros, CRN November 05, 2004
A few years ago, I was researching an article on how VARs sell projectors to small businesses and, to better understand the process, filled out a form on the Web sites of two leading vendors, indicating that I wanted to speak to a reseller. Weeks went by, and then months. A year and a half later, I got a call from a VAR representing vendor No. 1, followed later by a VAR associated with vendor No. 2….
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/51202411/at-the-heart-of-the-organizing-principle.htm
Crime Scene By Steven Burke, CRN September 17, 2004
At least once a day, solution provider CompSource finds itself the target of a ripoff artist. In fact, Dean Bellone, founder and CEO of the $12 million, 13-year-old Cleveland-based company, has been targeted so many times he now considers himself a fraud expert…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/security/47900182/crime-scene.htm
Crime Scene By Steven Burke, CRN September 17, 2004
At least once a day, solution pro-vider CompSource finds itself the target of a ripoff artist. In fact, Dean Bellone, founder and CEO of the$12 million, 13-year-old Cleveland-based company, has been targeted so many times he now considers himself a fraud expert…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/security/47900182/crime-scene.htm
ASCII Group Writes Engagement Principles For Vendors By Craig Zarley, CRN June 09, 2004
The ASCII Group has written a “Statement of Principles for Sales and Service of IT products and Solutions” in an effort to get vendors to treat VARs more ethically, said Alan Weinberger, ASCII Group chairman and CEO.
Weinberger said the VAR organization, which has more than 2,000 members, would encourage vendors to sign the statement, saying they agree with terms of the document. “We are asking vendors to be straight forward with VARs by signing it,” he said…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/21600204/ascii-group-writes-engagement-principles-for-vendors.htm
Comdex Pays Off For ASCII Members By Jeff O'Heir, CRN November 20, 2003
For a few days, Danny Boice felt “larger than life.”
As principal partner with The Jaxara Group, a $1 million software developer and solution provider in Washington, D.C., Boice was one of 20 solution providers and ASCII members that set up shop on the show floor at Comdex Las Vegas 2003. For the first time in the show’s 23-year history…
read more...
http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/18840166/comdex-pays-off-for-ascii-members.htm
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