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Telecom Italia and Microsoft: major initiative targeted at small and medium enterprises

04/05/2002 - 12:00 PM

New TLC and Information & Communication Technology solutions

Telecom Italia Domestic Wireline, Telecom Italia´s fixed-line telephony business unit, has teamed up with Microsoft to bring new TLC services and Information & Communication Technology (ICT) solutions to Small and Medium-Sized Business.

This initiative targets a potential marketplace of around 500,000 companies, for which the Internet is an indispensable tool for growing their business and becoming fully-fledged global market players.

Microsoft and Telecom Italia have developed a common strategy that makes it easier for SMEs to access their respective Software and Telecommunications Services ranges, from broadband connectivity to corporate technology infrastructure management. The cornerstone of the initiative is technological integration of each company´s products and services, alongside joint ventures to promote dissemination of an “ICT culture” within companies.

Telecom Italia is rolling out two new ad hoc services that are fully integrated with Microsoft technologies, particularly the Office XP working environment:

- Professional Net: a solution that enables every company to "take their office network online" simply and effectively, offering services at reduced cost that until now have been reserved solely for major corporations, including broadband Internet connection, professional e-mail and virtual hard disk services. Professional Net user companies enjoy always-on Internet access via a 640/128 Kbit/s ADSL link, a professional email service that integrates seamlessly with the Microsoft Office XP environment (5 e-mail addresses, antivirus program, electronic diary and contacts list), and a “virtual hard disk” hosted at a Telecom Italia Internet Data Center (IDC). User companies have access to 500 MB of safe and reliable storage space for documents and confidential information. 

- Enterprise Kit: the solution for setting up a corporate intranet, complete with workflow management tools, on a server dedicated to the customer featuring round-the-clock supervision at a Telecom Italia Internet Data Center. This reliable and economically competitive work tool functions as part of an integrated environment to support critical communications requirements, both in-company and towards external referents. The service leverages Microsoft´s innovative SharePoint Team Services technology, which offers companies turnkey web sites for shared management of all team projects and activities.

From 9 April to 16 May, Microsoft and Telecom Italia will be giving seminars on the “PC eXPerience” in twenty of Italy’s main towns, highlighting the innovative PC user experience opened up by Windows XP, Office XP and the Microsoft range of desktop products. During these events SMEs can obtain first-hand knowledge on how to get the best performance from their IT systems by using the most advanced Microsoft and Telecom Italia technologies. A special CD-ROM created by Telecom Italia offers an accessible walkthrough demo of Professional Net.

“This initiative,” says Riccardo Ruggiero, Head of Telecom Italia Domestic Wireline, “will provide a major boost for broadband take-up among SMEs in Italy. Access to innovative, secure and easy-to-manage services enables companies to significantly enhance their business and remain competitive.”

“We are convinced that this important project will assist in the digitization of small and medium-sized companies in Italy,” says  Mauro Meanti, Microsoft Italia CEO. “If they are to become more competitive in a continually evolving marketplace, these firms, which are a mainstay of the Italian economy, must be in a position to harness the potential offered by new technologies and by the Internet.”