The first conflict is the one that makes all the others possible. For most of the technology you buy, you are not allowed to buy it directly. You have to go through a reseller, whether or not you need one.
This is rarely stated out loud. If you ask a channel-only provider whether you can buy direct, you will usually get a deflection rather than a clean “no.” The answer is structural. The provider simply will not sell to you without a partner on the paperwork. The quote is written by a partner, the order is placed by a partner, the license keys are delivered by a partner. If you try to push past the partner, you discover that the provider does not have a direct sales contact for your account, or the direct rep exists but cannot give you terms without looping a partner back in.
The official framing is that the partner adds value. Product expertise, implementation, ongoing support. In many situations, a partner genuinely does. In many other situations, especially for organizations with capable in-house IT teams, the partner is fulfilling a role that was already covered internally before they arrived, and will be covered internally after they leave. You are paying for a function your own team performs.
The conflict here is not that partners exist. The conflict is that the choice of whether to use one has been taken away from you. Enterprises are often granted an exception. They have the procurement leverage, the direct relationships, and the legal muscle to insist on direct terms, and providers accommodate them to protect the relationship. Mid-sized organizations with equivalent in-house capability are not granted the same exception. They are routed through the channel by default, and asked to pay for a role they can perform themselves.
Every other conflict of interest in this catalog sits on top of this one. The margin you pay, the incentives that shape your reseller’s recommendations, the negotiation leverage you lose, the costs that compound on renewal. None of that exists if you are not forced through the channel in the first place. This is the foundation, and it is the one that most directly rewards being seen.