Q. How do you think the global financial crisis will affect the telecom industry?

The global financial crisis, which suddenly withdrew from the market an enormous volume of resources financing the growth of economies, has affected various parts of the world differently. The United States, Europe and Japan appear to be the hardest hit; in Europe, some countries – like England, Spain and Italy – feel the effects more than the others.

Similarly, the crisis is killing various segments of this country in different ways too.

In Brazil, export oriented sectors experienced the crisis early on. The telecommunications industry also felt the effects as it is also dependent on exports. Take for example the production of mobile devices.

Brazil is an emerging country that needs above average growth markets, and therefore requires infrastructure for telecommunications. A steady growth in the said industry is imperative in order to withstand the rising demands from other industries that depend on telecommunications for their own growth.

With the advent of privatization of telecommunications, the industry has grown larger and more diversified in the last ten years; large foreign investments gave the industry a boost in growth. The number of mobile phone users in Brazil went from 7.4 million in 1998 to 150.6 million in December 2008, growing to more than 20 times in 10 years.

In this country, the demand for Internet access is very large and various economic sectors’ growth requires accessibility, high speeds, and good quality of service. Telecom companies met the demands for voice services that were not fully answered by the fixed network. They also provided pre-paid services that allowed consumers with low incomes to avail of services.

The deployment of 3G mobile phones in plants has been the object of public policy for universal broadband in the country.

That said, it is clear that the telecom industry is very successful in Brazil, and great focus was given toward the domestic market utilizing the service. We can say that one of the bigger problems caused by the crisis is the loss of sources of funds necessary for investments.

The Brazilian government however, is committed to provide as much as possible, financial assistance to mitigate the effects of the crisis. Thus, the telecom sector is optimistic and has hopes that the crisis will not be as bad as it has been for the other industries.

Q. In your opinion, what challenges will operators face in the coming years?

In my opinion, the major challenge that will arise for operators is providing customer services with the same perceived quality at competitive prices.

Without a doubt, this requires a highly efficient network and good management.

The implementation of portability in Brazil means that customers can change operators without losing their identity (the phone number). Operators will be facing a great challenge in ensuring customer retention, specifically those who provide them with greater revenue.

The customers who demand higher quality services are the ones who use the service more and they require more urgent customer service. These customers compel telecom companies to continually enhance the quality of the services they provide.

To get ahead in the competition, carriers will need to offer services that meet customer expectations on price and quality, as well as the efficiency of customer support.

Q. What is your opinion on NBI and its impact on overall efficiency, network quality, real-time data access and operation management system integration?

As I mentioned, customers today have the power to choose their carriers without having to change their phone numbers, and this choice to change carriers all boils down to the quality of service and the quick resolution of network problems, among other things.

It is not possible to talk about the quality of the network without having tools that establish the total area of the network and facilities available.

The faster the customer is assisted in his demand for service, the better the impression that the operator leaves on the said customer; this is only possible if the network is closely monitored. The faster the fault can be detected (without the customer having to complain about the said fault before it can be detected) and the faster the fault can be remedied by using all available alternatives for prompt restoration of service, the better for everybody involved. Again, this is only possible with the use of management tools that utilize historical and real time data to provide information necessary for decision making on the part of the operators.

Q. How far are Brazilian operators with regards to looking at Network Business Intelligence?

Brazilian operators are aware of the importance of having a network that is managed intelligently, and that they should invest on the implementation of tools that make this task easier. We can definitely lower operation costs by avoiding needless investments that would have been made in ignorance - out of the lack of knowledge on maximizing existing facilities.

I would like to emphasize that intelligent network management tools will only prove to be valuable to a company if the workforce is able to enforce these new resources. We cannot neglect the training of technical staff in order to make the most of what available technologies can offer.

About Silvio de Carvalho Vince

Silvio de Carvalho Vince holds an MSc in Electrical Engineering; and with more than 38 years of experience in the telecommunications field, he has played an important role in Brazil’s telecommunications history. He has held various directorial positions for operators and service companies, as well as for his own company.

As Director of Telesp S.A. (now Telefonica), he was a pioneer on network management implementation.

At Telesp Celular (now Vivo), he was the Technical Director at the very beginning of the company’s operation.

He was also Director of CTBC (a Brazilian fixed line Operator) and he had his own company named Mega 21.

Nowadays, he is the Director at Tellnet, a Brazilian installation company, and also Technology Director of Abeprest (Brazilian Association of Telecom and IT Solutions Companies).