Virgin Media 2008 Annual Report Download - page 14

proposition and sector specific expertise, we believe that significant brand equity has been created in
the market over the past 16 years by each of the legacy businesses.
Sales Channels
The two sales organizations within the division, Business Markets and Service Provider, are
structured to support retail and wholesale customers, respectively.
•Business Markets—Private Sector: This sales channel focuses on meeting the telecommunications
needs of the U.K. private sector, from small businesses to large, national corporations.
Centralized telephone account managers serve small organizations (with 50 to 99 employees),
while regionally-located account, service and project management teams, supported by pre-sales
technical consultants, offer a differentiated service proposition to medium and large U.K.
businesses (with over 100 employees). We believe that our local presence and the resulting level
of service we provide is a key differentiator in this mid-market segment, and that the benefits of
this strategy are reflected in the long-term relationships held with many of our customers.
•Business Markets—Public Sector: This sales channel focuses on specific vertical segments,
including local government, education, health and the emergency services. This enables us to
provide sector-specific expertise where an understanding of the drivers and procurement
processes of publicly funded organizations is needed to enable the efficient deployment of
communications solutions. The inclusion of ntl:Telewest Business as an approved supplier under
various government framework agreements acts as both an enabler of growth in this sector and
an endorsement of our track-record, commitment and capability to offer value to publicly funded
organizations. An area of specific focus in 2008 lay within the health sector and the deployment
of Community of Interest Networks, or COINs. Given our deep regional coverage, we believe
we are ideally placed to deliver these multi-site solutions, which enable health authorities to
move to integrated network architectures, delivering both operational efficiencies and cost
savings to these publicly funded organizations.
•Service Provider: This sales channel is divided into segments based on the network requirements
of each type of service provider. Account and service management teams support carriers,
mobile operators, system integrators, or SIs, and internet service providers, or ISPs. This channel
predominantly provides data connectivity both in terms of local access (tail-ends) and core
networks. Being well placed to leverage our extensive network asset, the Service Provider sales
channel provides customers with backhaul solutions, which are high bandwidth connections
between a site and the core network. We believe significant market demand still exists for such
services driven by the need to transport data away from BT exchanges, as well as for mobile
operators requiring higher bandwidth connections from mobile masts as a result of growth in 3G
and data services.
Products and Services
ntl:Telewest Business offers a wide portfolio of voice and data services, from analog telephony to
managed data networks and applications. Our product strategy is focused on delivering managed
services, such as national Ethernet and internet protocol virtual private networks, or IP VPN, products.
We enhance product development through an internal program we have developed that drives
regular and timely deliverables that are aligned with the needs of target customers. This clear focus has
helped to maintain our leadership in Ethernet services in 2008, innovate in new areas such as IP CCTV
and IP Multimedia, and drive cost-base improvements in more traditional services. The launch of a
high capacity services, or HCS, product has also enabled us to address the higher bandwidth
requirements of some larger organizations. In addition to product developments, other key areas of
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