10th Dec 2007 07:01
Vodafone Group Plc10 December 2007 10 December 2007 Vodafone Essar agrees to IT outsourcing deal with IBM in India IBM to transform and manage Vodafone Essar's IT infrastructure and applications Vodafone Essar is to outsource all its IT operations to IBM India in a dealdesigned to boost efficiency and further enhance its service to customers. The 5 year agreement aims to ensure scalable, flexible and resilient IT supportfor the fast-paced roll out of new network infrastructure, keeping pace with therapid growth in Vodafone Essar's customer base. At the same time, the agreementis expected to lead to the faster roll out of more varied services to customers,while delivering greater cost efficiencies to Vodafone Essar. Under the deal, IBM India will assume responsibility for the management of allVodafone Essar's IT operations with the exception of network service platforms,spanning both hardware and software. The agreement will encompass the managementof IT services including the development and maintenance of key applicationssuch as billing and financial systems. IBM India will also manage other internal IT services for Vodafone Essar such asdata centre operations, desktop, laptop and IT help desk support whileoverseeing key areas such as security and change programmes. Vodafone Essar willcontinue to retain full strategic control of its IT requirements. To ensure greater flexibility for Vodafone Essar, the deal has been constructedon a risk-sharing basis, under the control of stringent Service LevelAgreements. "This agreement further demonstrates our continued focus on scalability and costcontrol, key criteria for success in the Indian mobile market. In IBM we havechosen a global partner, committed to the industry and with a proven trackrecord in the region", said Asim Ghosh, Managing Director, Vodafone Essar. "Weare confident this will deliver cost efficiency as well as an enhanced serviceto our customers." Vivek Gupta, Director and Country Manager, Communication Sector IBM India /SouthAsia said: "India is home to the fastest growing telecom market in Asia, andwith that comes significant challenges including effectively managing growth andimproving profitability. IBM is delighted to share its extensivetelecommunications industry insight and global IT outsourcing experience to helpVodafone Essar continue to deliver quality services to its rapidly growingcustomer base." The deal builds on Vodafone's existing agreement to outsource to IBM itsapplication development and maintenance services in its operating companies inSpain, the Czech Republic, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, Ireland, Greece,and Italy. That agreement was designed to improve the quality of softwareproduced as well as deliver greater flexibility. Vodafone completed the acquisition of Hutchison Essar in May 2007, rebrandingthe company as Vodafone in September in one of the largest rebranding campaignsundertaken in India. For further information: Vodafone Group Investor Relations Media Relations Tel: +44 (0) 1635 664447 Tel: +44 (0) 1635 664444 About Vodafone Essar Limited Vodafone Essar in India is a subsidiary of Vodafone Group Plc and commencedoperations in 1994 when its predecessor Hutchison Telecom acquired the cellularlicence for Mumbai. Vodafone Essar now has operations in 16 circles covering 86%of India's mobile customer base, with over 37.1 million customers*. Over the years, Vodafone Essar, under the Hutch brand, has been named the 'MostRespected Telecom Company', the 'Best Mobile Service in the country' and the'Most Creative and Most Effective Advertiser of the Year'. Vodafone is the world's leading international mobile communications company. Itnow has operations in 25 countries across 5 continents and 40 partner networkswith over 200 million customers worldwide. Vodafone has partnered with theEssar Group as its principal joint venture partner for the Indian market. The Essar Group is a diversified business corporation with interests spanningthe manufacturing and service sectors like Steel, Energy, Power, Communications,Shipping & Logistics and Construction. The Group has an asset base of overRs.400 billion (US$ 10 billion) and employs over 20,000 people. *Figures from Cellular Operators Association of India, October 31, 2007 About IBM For more information on IBM visit www.ibm.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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