ePLDT eyes stronghold in call center business

ePLDT, the Internet and multi-media arm of leading telecommunications company Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), aims to establish its stronghold in the fast-growing call center business as it entered into an agreement with Echostar Communications Corp. to establish a $5.5- million (P275-million) call center in Makati City.

Parlance Systems, Inc., will become the third call center to be established by ePLDT this year and will be located on a PLDT site at Reposo corner Jupiter Streets in Makati. It will open with an initial 500 seats on March 15 next year.

The Philippines aims to becoming the call center capital of the world and is fighting tooth and nail with other countries such as India to get a bigger chunk of the customer service function being outsourced by big US and European companies.

PLDT senior vice president for multi-channel contact center Rosalie Montenegro said that the three-year contract with Echostar guarantees them income in the event that Echostar fails to deliver two million minutes per month at the end of the second or third month of operation. "We make it a point that the contracts we sign with other companies guarantees income for US," Montenegro said.

Montenegro refused to give projections as far as how much revenues Parlance will contribute to PLDT. She, however, said that return on investment will happen on the second or third year of operation.

Kem Lanzon, also from PLDT’s multi-channel contact center, said that aside from the assured call traffic volume that Echostar will bring in, the agreement also provides that there will be a corresponding revenue from the act that Echostar will be using PLDT’s network.

"We are guaranteed two minutes per month. In the event that this is not achieved, Echostar will pay us depending on the number of minutes sent. It will be computed based on a tiered pricing model. They will also pay us for the use of the network," he said.

PLDT earlier entered into an agreement with an Australian group to establish Contact World, ePLDT’s first foray into the call center business.

Vocative Systems, Inc. is the second call center of ePLDT whose commercial operation will begin next month at the e-Square IT Park in Fort Bonifacio. It is expected to initially generate 500 new jobs.

Vocative was established in cooperation with Teletech, a leading firm engaged in customer relationship and management solutions in the US. Under its agreement with Teletech, ePLDT will provide the facilities as well as other services such as the telecommunications and data inrastructure.

This call center will open with 500 seats, but the number is expected to grow to 800 in three years’ time.

ePLDT co- managing director Ariel Roda said that the agreement with Teletech will result in revenues as well as significant inbound call traffic through PLDT’s international network.

He estimates that there will be an increase of four million additional minutes per month.

PLDT’s venture with Teletech will utilize PLDT-International’s Robust and resilient to Global Point of Presence network, which spans eight countries worldwide, to haul voice and data call center traffic.

Teletech will capitalize on ePLDT’s wide array of Internet and data center services while bringing in strong global marketing and call center account management expertise.

Teletech currently operates in 11 countries including the US, Australia, Singapore, and China.