IBM, Vodafone India extend partnership, launch IBM hybrid cloud

Extending on its eight years long collaboration, IBM has announced that it has signed a five year agreement with telecommunication firm, Vodafone India where Big Blue will be responsible for managing IT services support for Vodafone India’s IT infrastructure and applications environment. The financial details of the deal were absent but the statement issued by IBM called it a multi-million venture. However, Greyhound Research estimates, the deal to be in the range of $750-850 million which can be expected to cross $1 billion by 2023. The joint efforts and integration of both has also launched the new IBM hybrid cloud platform that claims to enable delivery of faster and more insightful data intelligence and support faster decision-making. The renewed terms on part of both the companies, could possibly aid Vodafone India, a boost in its customer engagement experience and scalability of IT infrastructure. It could also mean cost optimization and enhanced network operations after leveraging on IBM’s cloud capabilities. The platform will reportedly, combine Vodafone India’s enterprise data and cloud ready applications into a scalable environment that will keep data local, private and secure. Vishant Vora, Director, Technology & Network, Vodafone India, said:

“We are a technology driven organization and introducing the latest advances is key to delivering the best of experiences to our customers. Partnering with IBM will help us enhance customer experience with intuitive capabilities and build a cost optimized, flexible and scalable IT infrastructure.”

According to the deal, IBM will support Vodafone India’s IT transition to the IBM hybrid cloud, allowing the company to leverage and integrate existing IT resources and data assets with private cloud environments. It also claims to support Vodafone India’s ‘speed-to-market’ initiative and improve the efficiency of its network and IT operations. Vanitha Narayanan, Managing Director, IBM India, stated:

“We are delighted to continue our relationship with Vodafone India. IBM’s leading edge capabilities will help strengthen Vodafone India’s vision of delivering differentiated client experiences. I am grateful for Vodafone India’s continued trust in IBM and look forward to an enduring partnership with them.”

Earlier in 2007, IBM and Vodafone Essar had partnered on a five-year IT outsourcing $ 1 billion (estimated) deal which was later extended for another three years. But the current, certainly doesn’t mark the first for the business consultancy firm, where it also shares a similar business arrangement with Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India’s market competitor.