Fueling ITeS Growth Engine

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Fueling ITeS Growth Engine
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Who Are We?

• OSPAI is the OSP industry representative body
• An association of all Other Service Providers
  including BPOs / KPOs etc.
• Industry interface for the Government bodies like
  DoT, STPI, TRAI, SEZ, DIT etc., for growth of
  Indias Services GDP especially under the
  category of Other Service Providers

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Aims

• Present discuss the challenges of the industry
  with concerned Authorities in the Government and
  to facilitate policy changes
• Create awareness among our members regarding the
• Emerging Next Generation technology trends in
  Telecom IT
• Sharing of Best Business Practices across
  industry

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Objectives

• To collaborate with Department of Telecom,
  pertaining to issues like, but not limited to-
• To establish strategic relationship with
  government, to help formulate best policies and
  practices to promote co-operation.
• Suggestions for simplifying the procedures of
  registration enabling faster registration of new
  OSPs
• Encourage and facilitate Work from Home for Call
  Centre Agents.
• To make the Call Centre set up technology neutral

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Launch Of OSPAI at New Delhi on 11th Aug 2008
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OSP Industry - Facts

• Indian ITeS-BPO grew by 30 per cent in FY2008 to
  reach USD 11 billion in aggregate revenue
• IT-BPO Direct employment in Indian ITeS-BPO
  crossed the 7 lacs mark, indirect job creation is
  estimated at about 2 million
• BPO services exports up by 30 (USD), is the
  fastest growing segment across software and
  services exports driven by scale as well as
  scope.
• Huge potential (USD 50 bn, 2 mn additional
  direct jobs) to grow by ensuring competitive
  advantage for India through
• Regulations in line with Global trends
• Leverage infrastructure for domestic operations

Sources Nasscom
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Industry Thanks DoTfor the amendments to OSP
Policy

• The concept of agent positions working from Home
  has been introduced.
• The restriction of 10 outgoing PSTN lines in a
  Domestic Call Centre (DCC) and submission of
  associated Bank Guarantee of Rs.10 Lakhs has been
  dispensed with.
• The amount of Bank Guarantee has been reduced in
  cases of resources sharing between International
  OSP and Domestic OSP.
• Standalone OSP centres have been been merged with
  the Domestic OSPs category

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Contd

• 5) Definition of Telecom Resources has been
  expanded.
• 6) Documents required to be submitted along
  with the application form has been simplified.
• 7) A single application form for registration
  of OSP and uniform format for registration
  certificate to be issued by all VTM units to
  avoid discrepancies and eventually making the
  process online, have been prescribed

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Executive Council

• Mr. S.V. Ramana, President
• Mr. N.L. Verma, Secretary General
• Mr. Sanjay Diwan, Vice President
• Mr. Sanjay Prasad, Vice President
• Mr. P.V. Ramadas, Treasurer
• Mr. Jitesh Midha, Executive Member
• Ms. Archana Sasan, Executive Member
• Mr. Manish Dewan, Executive Member
• Mr. Sunil Cherian, Executive Member
• Mr. Dinesh K. Shiv, Executive Member

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OSPAI Board
S V Ramana President
Sanjay Diwan Vice President
Sanjay Prasad Vice President
N L Verma Secretary General
P V Ramadas Treasurer
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OSPAI Members
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OSP Operational Issues

• Return of BGs submitted earlier to DoT for Rs 10
  Lacs towards compliance to 10 of lines be
  outgoing out of total PSTN lines incase of DCC
  and finalization of operational mechanism for
  replacement of old BGs of Rs 2.5 Cr and Rs 5.0 Cr
  for sharing of seats/PBX between ICC DCC with
  new BGs of Rs 0.5 Cr and Rs 1.0 Cr
• Submission of network diagram being mandated by
  certain VTMs when the same is not required at
  the time of initial application
• Prior approvals are not be required for change of
  Location / Change of floor of OSP, only
  intimation is required. However this is not
  followed.
• 4) Audit of existing call center before
  processing an application for a new call center
  be dispensed with
• 5) Problems related to usage of foreign IP
  addresses.
• (As per some of the VTM only IP Address provided
  by APNIC should be used). Use of foreigner IP
  addresses should be allowed (including customer
  extended IPs)
• Problem Created by several VTMs in regard to
  getting Signatures on every page of memorandum
  and article of an association.
• Speedy implementation of on line OSP registration
• Different VTMs interpret the OSP guidelines
  differently
• Readiness of BG for Work From

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Work From HomeCurrent Policy, Issues/Challenges
Suggested changes
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Work From Home Current Policy

• The concept of Extended Agent Position (Work From
  Home) is permitted with the following conditions
  
• (i) The OSP operator shall submit a security
  deposit of Rs.5 crores with an agreement
  envisaging to meet certain obligations like
  exclusive use of home agent, all responsibility
  to be borne by OSP etc.
• The agents at home shall be treated as Extended
  Agent Position of the call centre and
  interconnection is permitted through authorised
  service Providers Provisioned (secured) VPN
  (PPVPN) which have pre defined locations i.e.
  home of the agents and OSP centre as VPN sites.
  Over and above PPVPN, the OSP may use their own
  security mechanism like Authentication,
  Authorization and Accounting. Such work from
  home facility shall be limited to the SSA of the
  OSP Centre and adjoining SSAs.
• The Authority shall have the right to carry out
  periodic / surprise inspections of such
  establishments.

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Work From Home Issues/Challenges Suggested
changes

• Issue Very High bank Guarantee Rs. 5 Crores
  per registration
• Suggested changes Reduction of BG to Rs. 1 Crore
  per company
• Issue Restriction of coverage area to Secondary
  Switching Area (SSA) and adjoining SSA
• Suggested changes Permit ICC agents to work from
  home, anywhere in India
• Issue Work From Agents interconnection permitted
  only through VPN (PP VPN), PSTN not permitted
• Suggested changes Permit interconnection through
  PSTN based Voice-over VPN service, as penetration
  of broad band in far flung areas is low and
  unstable
• Issue No Proof-of-concept (PoC) allowed without
  BG
• Suggested changes Allow OSPs to run PoC with
  Service Providers for a limited period (say 6
  months) after informing DoT, but without the need
  for BG. Production to start post BG only.

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Work from Home Voice VPN services
Already approved with Bank Guarantee of Rs. 5
Crores
No Connectivity between domestic PBX and OSP
Call Center PBX (or with logical partitioning)
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Sharing of PBX for ICC and domestic PSTN
useCurrent Policy, Issues/Challenges
Suggested changes
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Sharing of PBX for ICC and domestic PSTN use

• The current OSP Policy only allows sharing of PBX
  between ICC and
• DCC with logical partition BG
• Issue ICC OSP community has to make high Capital
  investments for a separate PBX, phones, cables,
  LAN infrastructure for call centre and normal
  PSTN use
• 200,000 for a 1000 seater facility
• A non environment friendly IT resulting huge
  e-waste and global warming in long term.
• Unable to compete with other countries like
  China, Philippines where single EPABX/other IT
  infrastructure is permitted.
• Suggested changes Permit sharing of single EPABX
  and other related IT infrastructure between ICC
  and domestic PSTN use with Bang Guarantee of INR
  1 Crore for one company, with out the need for
  DCC.

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Contd

• How separation will be achieved?
• There would be no call connectivity whatsoever
  between the International Call Center partition
  and the normal Office partition on the PBX
• A Single phone with dual buttons (one for ICC and
  the other for PSTN - normal PBX) will be deployed
  per agent location
• Compliance to NLD / ILD bypass through logical
  partitioning
• Calls cannot be conference/transferred/forwarded
  between the ICC partition and the PSTN partition

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Introduction of CUG concept for ICC and DCC
Data/Voice Interconnectivity among Provider of
the same category of Service - OSPs
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Permit CUG among ITES Companies

• 1. Permit interconnections of any two
  international OSPs
• Current Policy International OSPs of same
  company/group company is permitted to
  interconnect their networks.
• Issue International OSPs not belonging to same
  group company are not permitted to connect to
  each others network within India for data/voice
  connectivity.
• This is resulting in expensive connectivity costs
• Loss of benefits like call overflow, BCP
  situation etc.
• Suggested Changes Permit interconnect of any
  two international OSPs
• networks with-in India with-out any restrictions.
  
• 2. Permit interconnections of any two Domestic
  OSPs
• Current Policy Domestic OSPs of same
  company/group company is permitted to
  interconnect their networks.
• Issue Domestic OSPs not belonging to same
  group company are not permitted to connect to
  each others network within India for data/voice
  connectivity.
• This is resulting in expensive connectivity costs
• Loss of benefits like call overflow, BCP
  situation etc.
• Suggested Changes Permit interconnect of any
  two Domestic OSPs networks
• with-in India with-out any restrictions.

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Contd

• 3a. Permit interconnections between ICC and
  Client offices with-in India.
• Current Policy International OSPs of same
  company/group company are only permitted to
  interconnect their networks.
• Issue International OSP and customer office in
  India are not permitted to connect to each
  others network for use of customers
  international bandwidth by an who is ICC
  providing services
• This is resulting in expensive connectivity costs
• Loss of benefits like call overflow, BCP
  situation etc
• Slow application response for certain cases
• Suggested Changes Permit International OSPs to
  connect to
• their customer network within India for
  data/voice connectivity
• to Access customers applications / systems in
  India as well as
• Abroad through customers International
  connectivity.

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ICC and Customer Connectivity
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Contd

• 3b. Permit data interconnections between ICC/DCC
  and its contracted 3rd party company with-in
  India.
• Current Policy International/Domestic OSPs of
  same company/group company are only permitted to
  interconnect their networks.
• This helps in providing services at lower cost
• This will facilitate industry to be more
  competitive
• Suggested Changes Permit OSPs to connect to
• outsource data work to 3rd party providers (
  e.g. data entry operators ).

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OSP connectivity with 3rd Party Service Provider
3rd Party company may not require OSP registration
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Contd

• 3c. Permit voice/data interconnections between
  ICC/DCC and its contracted 3rd party companies
  with-in India.
• Current Policy International / Domestic OSPs
  of same company/group company are only permitted
  to interconnect their networks.
• This helps in providing services at lower cost
• This will facilitate industry to be more
  competitive
• Suggested Changes Permit OSPs to connect to
• outsourced work to 3rd party providers ( e.g.
  collections agents).

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ICC/DCC Connectivity to 3rd Party Service Provider
(3rd Party)
(3rd Party)
3rd Party company may not require OSP registration
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Telecom Service Providers Convergence

• Clarity / Permitting of Foreign Telecom Service
  Providers having channel partner agreement with
  Indian Authorised TSP, to provision bandwidth to
  OSPs, with Indian TSP approving network diagram.
• Permit seamless integration of India PSTN with
  leased lines (TDM / VoIP), since ADC is
  abolished, to boost Indian Service Industry i.e.
  full Convergence/Unified Communications

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Recommendation

• In a view to review policy matters towards
  promoting industry growth and strengthen the
  industry to compete effectively we recommend
  quarterly steering committee meeting with all
  stake holders.

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Thank You !!!