'India is a key spot for BT's own transformation...to make us competitive globally'

BT considers India a key market for expansion and is targeting revenues of
$250 mn by 2009. BT has a network presence in eight prime business locations
across the country, and is investing in research and innovation in areas such as
broadband, mobility, intelligent systems, and ICT. In 2007, it acquired i2i
Enterprise, a Mumbai-based enterprise services company specializing in IP
communications services. In an interview with VOICE&DATA, Arun Seth, chairman &
MD, BT India, shares BT's India plans. Excerpts

BT exited the Indian mobile access market, where it had a significant
equity stake in Bharti (Bharti BT). Now, you are again entering the same
segment. What are the reasons behind it?

BT was essentially established in India to serve the connectivity needs of
our multinational customers. Post our licenses, we are keen to serve the
requirements of a new breed of Indian companies going global, which we have
identified as the “Indian multinationals”. These are based across sectors such
as BFSI, IT, pharma, media and hospitality among others.

As Indian organizations are going global and extending their geographical
boundaries, communication is a major pain point in their expansion and
integration. We help them transfer their non-core areas to us and let them focus
on core areas. This is where BT steps in to assist them embrace globalization
and let these companies concentrate in doing what they do best. We provide
high-speed quality video and voice services over our own MPLS network, which
also enables more companies to maximize the benefits from BT's networked IT
capability in the areas of convergence, CRM, and security.

Will you be targeting the mobility space or the consumer segment with
broadband and Internet services?

In India, BT Global Services focuses on delivering networked IT services
that support the needs and requirements of our multi-site corporate customers-MNCs
expanding in to India and Indian companies going global. This presents us with
an excellent opportunity to develop India into a digitally networked economy,
and our revolutionary 21st Century Network (21 CN) initiative will do just that.
Our customers today identify us as a truly global software-driven services
organization. Our expansion in India will enable a lot more companies to
maximize the benefit from BT's networked IT capability in the areas of
convergence, CRM, and security around the globe.

“In India, BT Global Services focuses on delivering networked IT services that support the needs and requirements of our multi-site corporate customers-MNCs expanding in India and Indian companies going global” Arun Seth, chairman & MD, BT India

At present, BT has fourteen nodes in India. What additions are you
planning for FY '08?

Six cities, including New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, and
Pune, will have multiple nodes plus an additional one in Kolkatka, which makes
BT the global network IT service provider with the highest number of connecting
points in India. This is the basis for high quality video and voice services
over the Internet, bringing the total number of nodes to fourteen in India.

We have a clear strategy in India to move into tier-2 and tier-3 towns,
cities, and SEZs to offer connectivity to our customers. With a leadership
position in the BPO sector firmly established, BT is now extending its horizon
to Indian multinationals going global with specific focus on banking, financial
services, media, broadcast, pharmaceuticals, IT and hospitality sectors.

BT's transformation lies in developing a completely digitally networked
economy. Where does India stand in the larger picture?

India is a core part of BT's DNA and in creating a mosaic for a completely
digitally networked economy. With a huge number of companies turning toward
globalization, it's imperative that we help build and grow a digitalized
economy.

What are your plans regarding extending network services to neighboring
countries?

BT's network capabilities will be further extended with Nepal, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka receiving independent nodes by the end of April 2008.

What is BT's strategy for capitalizing on the Indian contact center
market?

Business drivers like globalization and virtualization are key in demanding
change from all spheres of businesses, including the most important aspect of
contact centers in this relationship and services-driven economy. Our customers
in India who took advantage of this opportunity in phase one are now looking for
fast, flexible and anytime, anywhere solutions for their global contact centers.
BT with its IP strategy, global MPLS network, and key alliances is totally
geared to take advantage of this growth with contact center solutions.

BT talks of a 21 CN program that keeps it ahead of the game and makes it
an innovator; can you tell us more about it?

BT's global 21 CN is expanding quickly, adding a new city around the world
every week. BT believes its next-generation network (NGN) to be the broadest,
richest and most resilient in the world, enabling companies and organizations to
instantly trade across the globe with high speed and great resilience. In the
past three years, BT in Asia Pacific has invested more than $100 mn in expanding
its regional network. In February 2006, BT announced a $21 mn investment in a
global IP-based voice platform which will see the current legacy TDM network
being replaced by an MPLS-based network across over thirty countries worldwide.
A significant portion of this is planned to be invested in India.

Does the new phase of transformation of growth for the BT Group come from
India?

BT uses India to support its global operations, in fact, we account for 2%
of India in BPO exports, and this is growing. This explains why India is such a
key spot for BT's own transformation using our own services internally to make
us competitive globally.

As the Indian market matures, there will be new ways of working among
consumers and enterprises. We are watching these developments keenly through our
innovation scouting.

What are your plans related to broadcast and media segment in India?

India is one of the major markets for us. We have deployed three specially
equipped nodes in India to carry the video feeds from India to the global
platforms, and also to bring the global TV channels to the Indian platforms for
being able to broadcast via the teleports of different providers into India.

We are also looking at providing the workflow management over our media
network for the post-production companies trying to shift the digital
post-production from countries like the US and Europe to India. The unique
secure network, and the workflow management tools will enable the Indian
post-production companies to do the work in India for the producers in the US
and the UK. This is a very large market and BT will act as an enabler for Indian
companies to enter in.

What is the size of managed services in India, and what percentage of that
market has BT captured?

The IT/ITeS sectors alone is expected to exceed $40 bn in annual revenues
and reach $60 bn by 2010. Strong demand for global delivery by this sector is
felling demand for our networked IT services. It is difficult to estimate the
total needs of this sector but I estimate that they spend 10% on technology
services, giving a potential of $6 bn.

Sandeep Budki

sandeepb@cybermedia.co.in