 | Issue: | Latin America 2008 |
| Article no.: | 3 | |
| Topic: | Competitiveness and customer focus | |
| Author: | Jose Formoso Martinez | |
| Title: | Executive General Director | |
| Organisation: | Embratel | |
| PDF size: | 261KB |
About author
Jose Formoso Martinez is the Executive General Director of Embratel. Prior to joining Embratel, he held positions as Vice-President of Telmex América Latina, President of Telecom El Salvador, General Manager of PCS Nicarágua, President of Telgua S.A, (Guatemala), General Manager of Cablevisión (Mexico), and Operations Manager and Business Manager at Condumex (Mexico). Mr Martinez played a key role in the acquisition of Embratel and, since then, holds the position of Vice-Chairman in the Administrative Board of Embratel Participações S.A., Vice-Chairman in the Administrative Board of Embratel, Vice-President of Embratel Participações S.A., and the General Manager of Embratel. José Formoso Martinez received his Mechanical Engineering degree from La Salle University, Mexico. He also graduated in Business Management from the Instituto Panamericano de Alta Dirección de Empresas (Mexico).
Article abstract
State-of-the-art technology, innovative services and a focus on the customer is the way to remain competitive. The privatisation of telecommunications ten years ago brought competition and an enormous amount of investment to the market. As a result, Brazil now has a fully modern telecommunications infrastructure to meet its citizens’ needs. Although 84 per cent of Brazil’s households have access to fixed and/or mobile phones, broadband is not yet widely available in the interior and few schools are connected to the Internet.
Full Article
To grow and remain competitive in the market, the recipe is simple: state-of-the-art technology, distinctive services, and a focus on the customer. This is the legacy of the privatization of the Brazilian telecommunications industry, which completed its tenth anniversary on August 27. During this period millions of consumers benefited from increased competitiveness and better services, particularly from companies that were able to focus their actions and planning from the client’s standpoint. That is why the telecom privatization in Brazil is seen as a success model. Companies have become more competitive, and the consumer benefited a lot from it. Just compare the challenge of purchasing a telephone line in the past with the current scenario. After privatization the domestic infrastructure improved, with billions of Reais invested to modernize the country. Today, Brazil counts on a state-of-the-art telecommunication infrastructure, which addresses the social demands with global integration and competitive pricing. Of course, telecommunications is the infrastructure area with the best quality in Brazil. The establishment of a regulatory agency – Agência Nacional de Telecomunicações (Anatel, National Telecommunications Agency) – and the heavy investments made in the privatised telecommunications companies advanced the industry and ensured increased access of the population to wireline telephony and VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) services. In the past, a telephone line was an asset, with mandatory listing in the tax return form, and seen as a service for a privileged few. In 1998, only dial-up Internet connections were available. Then, the need to develop faster, better access emerged, which made the broadband expansion a must for globalization and social integration. Figures provide evidence of the advancements made. During the past ten years the number of telephone lines grew. Today, we have 52.7 million fixed lines and 121 million cell phones, covering 84 per cent of Brazil’s households. The telecommunications sector accounts for over six per cent of the Brazilian GDP, and this figure is bound to grow. Of course, there are gaps to bridge. For example, in Brazil, broadband is only available at a few schools as of yet, and not all regions are addressed. In this context, inclusion programmes such as GESAC – an eGovernment programme to provide citizens with Internet access for a variety of social needs, developed by the Federal Government in partnership with carriers, bridge this gap – and represents a new way of life for millions of youths attending school. No doubt, new technologies play a key role in this process. Today, WiMAX is a critical tool to bring Internet to schools, libraries and community centres of locations very far from major cities, where telecommunication networks don’t provide local access. The final solution for digital inclusion also includes the entry of new players, which will further increase the market competitiveness. In this context, knowing how to innovate and remain competitive is a matter of survival. The first steps towards this goal include strategic planning and top-management focus, review of business opportunities, and communication with stakeholders. Today, telecom executives should be obsessive about trying to find new opportunities and about planning the next steps. Innovation is a key topic of our agenda. Moving forward, we expect that new technologies can be made more easily available to everyone, and that social-digital inclusion becomes an accomplished goal, not just a goal to be achieved. Converging voice and data services, in addition to partnerships between companies, could enable offerings at more affordable prices. Furthermore, the evolution of technology pushes changes in telecommunication regulations. Portability and voice, data and audio convergence are the next steps of the industry. Our future goes hand in hand with advancements in IT, with offerings that address different market niches and benefit the consumers. We should see a number of changes due to the General Grant Plan (Plano Geral de Outorgas, ‘PGO’- the regulations responsible for the granting of licences, concessions, spectrum, etc.). There will be a lot of work ahead – new offerings, modernity and new ways to benefit the client are among the operator’s primary duties. Number portability, recently been approved by Anatel, illustrates how dynamic our industry is. We are committed to portability, since we see it as a key instrument to foster competition in the Brazilian telecommunications industry. This will foster industry growth and advancement; millions of consumers will be the greatest beneficiaries of this decision. With portability, competition between companies will be even greater, and we believe this new age of competition will be positive to end consumers and companies alike. Voice, data, video and audio convergence is the next major challenge ahead for the industry. Moving forward, we expect that new technologies will be made available more easily to everyone, and that social-digital inclusion becomes an accomplished fact, not only a goal to be achieved.
