"Sangoma will come to India for continuous interaction with channel partners"

Canada-based Sangoma Technologies Corporation is targeting the Indian market aggressively. It is a worldwide provider of connectivity hardware and software products for wide area network (WAN) and Internet infrastructure. The company is investing in India to strengthen its market. It will introduce VoIP-based solutions for the Indian market soon. Doug Vilim, VP, Sales and Marketing, Sangoma Technologies, unleashes the company´s outlook, strategy and approach for the Indian market. 

How is Sangoma positioned in the global and Indian market?

Sangoma Technologies began its operations from Canada in 1984 and now have touched around 112 countries worldwide. The biggest markets for us are USA, Europe and then Asia. In Asia we have Philippines as our biggest customer base and then India. In terms of our global figures in 2003, we were around a $3.2 million company and are still waiting for the official financial results of 2004. However, from India we did a business of around $ 2,40,000 in 2003. 

We have a fairly good amount of customers in India, many of which are Government organizations. In terms of numbers, we have nearly 14 customers, including BSNL, large telecom operators, Reliance, Rail Tel and Indian Railways. We are in India through our exclusive distributors -- IT Globe. This is why in the near future we will invest in the Indian market to strengthen our presence. 

In which directions shall these investments be made in India?

We will open our India office very soon. This will be a sales, marketing and technical support office. The total strength that we are looking for our India operation would be around a team of seven to eight dedicated employees. On the other hand, we will continue to penetrate the Indian market through IT Globe. As far as location is concerned, we will be based in New Delhi. 

What is the present market focus of Sangoma and how would you enhance it? Any new vertical that you plan to bring, globally and for the Indian market? 

The present focus of the company is purely on large telcos, PSUs and Government. We will take an aggressive market approach towards SMEs and target this sector for our upcoming VoIP-based solutions. These solutions are Sangoma´s latest edition in its product portfolio. 

Targeting SMEs in India can be a difficult task if you consider to target this segment on your own. 

Do you have plans for appointing channel partners in India for SMEs?

Yes, we are working closely with ITGlobe to select and establish our channel network. It should begin by the end of this quarter. This network would ideally cover all the major cities. As far as market acceptance is concerned, the Indian market will definitely respond very handsomely for our VoIP product portfolio as they will reduce the cost of communication on a high level.

What strategy would you adopt for the Indian market?

Our strategy would be centralized on providing hardware-based solutions to the market. Educating the market with our product capabilities, continuing to target large telecom players, Government and exploring the SME segment in India will be our strategy. 

In terms of providing support, how would you take care of Indian partners and customers?

We will keep coming to India for continuous interaction with our channel partner team. As far as support is concerned, our distributor ITGlobe takes care of tier one and two level of support and we handle the third level of support to our customers. 

In terms of regional market dynamics, what difference do you observe between India and China?

There is a huge difference between these two markets. In fact, as far as developing a market is concerned, China is rather a difficult market to develop. There are certain constraints like language and culture, which acts as hurdles for any outsider. Comparatively speaking, India is very a friendly and enterprising market for us. We are also fortunate that India and Canada enjoy a good business relationship. 

FAIZ ASKARI 

NEW DELHI