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News >> Technology >>
Indian SMBs to spend $8.73 B
By agencies
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Wednesday, 02 August 2006, 19:30 IST
KOLKATA: Indian small and medium businesses (SMBs) will spend $8.73 billion on telecom equipment and services this year, according to the study by New York based AMI-Partners. Expenditures on telecom services accounted for the bulk of all telecom investment, comprising 95 percent of total spending.
As India's SMBs (with employee sizes between 1 and 999) embrace the fast-globalizing economy, interaction with business partners has become an important focal point for these businesses. Indian SMBs prefer a highly personal touch in their interactions with business partners, says Neha Jalan, Kolkata-based Analyst at AMI-Partners. Their primary methods of communication with both clients and suppliers/vendors are via telephone calls and in-person visits.
Local telephony remained the primary driver of telecom spending among India's small businesses, accounting for 55 per cent of all telecom spending.
The majority of India's small businesses are consumer-centric, though sales to other small businesses also account for a significant proportion of their revenues. These businesses prefer to partner with other local small businesses, and telephone conversations remain their primary means of communication with business partners.
Wirelines are still essential to small and medium businesses in India they average 2.21 telephone lines per SB, and close to 20 lines per medium business.