BT 2008 Annual Report Download - page 16

BT Group plc Annual Report & Form 20-F 15
combination of direct sales and services capabilities and strategic
partnerships.
North America
We have been operating in North America for 20 years. Having
successfully integrated four acquisitions in the past three years,
we now have more than 3,600 professionals serving over 1,000
customers. Major customers include Microsoft, PepsiCo,
American Express, Continental Airlines and Bristol Myers Squibb.
In addition to providing our customers with the full range of
infrastructure, outsourcing, contact centre and mobility services,
we are recognised as a market leader in the provision of
managed security services. We offer a broad, flexible range of
services including consulting, device management and
monitoring.
Asia Pacific
Revenue in the Asia Pacific region grew by a spectacular 66% in
2008.
In the year, we made a further commitment to the Chinese
market (forecast to grow by almost 10% in 2008
1
) by opening a
technology and service centre in Dalian and a research and
development centre in Shanghai.
We also signed an agreement with Shenzhen-based ZTE
Corporation, a leading provider of telecommunications
equipment and network solutions, to provide contact centre and
MPLS connection services to support ZTE’s worldwide business
expansion.
In March 2008, we completed the acquisition of Frontline
Technologies Corporation Ltd, one of the leading providers of
end-to-end IT services in the Asia Pacific region.
Over the past year, we have grown to be one of the most
extensive foreign network operators in India, where we have
both national and international licences. During 2008, BT India
acquired i2i Enterprise Pvt Ltd (subsequently renamed BT Global
Communications India Pvt Ltd), a provider of data
communications services in India. In addition, we own a 35%
stake in Tech Mahindra Ltd, which provides IT services and
solutions to the telecommunications industry. In 2008, we
jointly opened a shared services centre in Noida in the National
Capital Region in the north of the country. Predictions are that
the Indian economy will grow by around 8% in 2008
2
and it is
critical that we play a part in this expanding economy.
Europe, Middle East and Africa
Our expansion in the more mature continental European markets
continued with the acquisition of: the IT infrastructure division
of CS Communication & Syste
`mes, a French IT systems and
network services provider; Net2S SA, a technology consulting
and engineering service provider based in France; and INS Group
SA, a Belgium-based network and systems operator.
In 2008, we launched mobile services in Italy and Spain,
reinforcing our ability to meet the fixed and mobile
communications needs of our business customers in both
countries. And we introduced a number of new services in the
German market, including Onevoice Mobile Access, BT Hosted
Contact Centre and, in partnership with Reuters (now known as
Thomson Reuters, following Thomson Corp’s acquisition of
Reuters on 17 April 2008), a new variant of the Reuters Market
Data System.
We have been active in the dynamic Central and Eastern
European (CEE) market since the late 1990s and our CEE
organisation provides services to more than 370 multinational
companies. In 2008, we announced an expansion of our
operations in Hungary. A new centre of excellence in Debrecen
will provide regional customer service for European corporate
customers and support for our commercial and technical
activities.
The launch – in partnership with telecoms service provider
Etisalat – of Radianz services in the United Arab Emirates
enabled significant expansion of our financial services capability
in the Middle East. In South Africa, where we have had a
presence for 15 years, we announced a two-year business
expansion plan.
Latin America
We have been rapidly expanding our Latin American presence to
support the needs of our multi-site customers. Today, we have
more than 1,000 people serving more than 350 companies and
government organisations in 22 countries, including Argentina,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Peru,
Uruguay and Venezuela. A 24/7 operations centre in Sao Paulo,
Brazil, supports customers in Latin America, Europe and Asia.
Following the acquisition of Comsat International, we signed
contracts with, among others, Caixa Econo
ˆmica Federal, the
Brazilian state-owned bank, and the Colombian Ministry of
Communications.
Networked IT services
We have demonstrated that we have the expertise to help our
customers succeed in a world in which business applications are
increasingly networked and networks are increasingly vital to
productivity and competitive advantage. In 2008, we secured
networked IT services orders in the UK and around the world
with a total value of £5 billion.
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revenue growth outside the U
K
18%
1
(fiscal year) www.economist.com/countries/china
2
(fiscal year) www.economist.com/countries/india
Report of the Directors Business