Sify's foray into Network Management

Sify, the Nasdaq-listed provider of Internet, network and e-commerce services, is venturing into the remote-network management turf Ð a component of the infrastructure-management service, which according to analysts presents a huge service opportunity for India. Remote-network management, as the name suggests, involves remote management of a customer's network infrastructure. While there are no accurate estimates on the size of the remote network management market, analyst firms like Forrester and Giga surmise that the total global market for infrastructure management services is nearly $100 billion.

According to Gartner, it is a $60 billion opportunity, while Deutsche Bank estimates the global opportunity to be $80 billion of which $300 million is being delivered from Indian companies, both onsite and offshore. Sify's strength, said the company's president and chief operation officer Mr. George Zacharias, are its skills in remote-network management, the range of open source-based proprietary software that the company has developed for effective network management. From its centre in Chennai, Sify remotely manages 12,000 personal computers and over 1,000 devices (network equipment) used at its 1,800 iWay cyber cafes across the country. This learning, it says, is its competitive strength.

"We have developed a range of software and remote-management skills through our offerings to individuals and corporates. We are leveraging on this knowledge and experience", said Mr. Zacharias.

Sify's prime target, like for other Indian IT companies, is the lucrative US market. While there are over 400 managed service-providers who offer this service in the US, Sify's advantage is low cost of operating from India. "US companies offering this service are more expensive due to the higher cost of hiring engineers, while off-the-shelf remote network management software is very expensive," said the Chief Information Officer. US companies, according to him, are under tremendous pressure to cut cost and prefer to outsource the maintenance and management of their network to third parties.

Sify is doing some pilot remote-network management projects with a few corporates in the US, who cannot be named right now, he said. The large revenue that infrastructure management promises has attracted several Indian software vendors. Companies like HCL and Wipro are among those who have a strong IT infrastructure management offerings.

R. Subramayam - Bangalore, May 24