The rift between some retailers and Apple has begun to close, according to C|Net. The rift made itself known earlier this month when it was reported that Dell, Target, Fryis Electronics, Micro Center, and other prominent retailers had refused to sign a new reseller agreement with Apple. Though Apple later down played these resellers as only contributing 1.5% of Appleis 2002 sales, more than US$86 million according to TMOis math, it would seem the company went back to negotiating anyway. From the C|Net story:

Among the holdouts that have reached a pact with Apple are Dell Computer and regional computer sellers Fryis Electronics and Micro Center, according to a source familiar with the situation. As of Wednesday morning, the iPod had not reappeared on Dellis site, but a Dell representative confirmed that the Apple music players should be available again shortly.

Although some resellers have still not signed Appleis new contract, Apple said the amount of sales represented by such dealers had dropped significantly.

In a statement to CNET News.com, Apple said that those resellers that have not yet signed deals represented 0.3 percent of Appleis sales in fiscal 2002. A week ago, the resellers that had not signed accounted for roughly 1.5 percent.

At 0.3% of 2002is sales, the holdout retailers still represent some US$17.2 million. Note that Target is not listed as one of the resellers back on board with Apple. You can find more information in the full C|Net story.