SingTel Taiwan office’s role in Taiwan now EXPAN-ded

Taipei, 18 December 2001 – Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SingTel), Asia’s leading communications company, has invested NT$130 million to provide EXPAN, a suite of Managed Hosting Services (MHS), to companies in Taiwan that have presence in Asia Pacific, and to Internet and Application Service Providers (ISPs and ASPs) for content hosting and delivery for their customers in Asia.

SingTel will leverage on the size and scale of its regional operations to offer corporate users in Taiwan a seamless solution to meet their data communications needs.   Customers can also outsource their entire communications network and web-hosting needs to SingTel.

EXPAN includes systems administration and maintenance, security services, data storage and administration, performance monitoring and fault management, problem resolution and technical support.  

Mr Chong Chin Kok Mark, Chief Executive Officer of SingTel Global Offices, who was in Taipei for the launch of EXPAN, said that demand for telecommunications, particularly data and Internet-related services in Asia Pacific, remains strong despite the current global economic downturn.

“SingTel has a proven track record of telco experience and reliability.   Unlike other independent operators of data centres, SingTel is the only pan-Asian MHS provider to offer one-stop convenience to both IT and network services on a regional basis,” Mr Chong said. “Our customers and their IT departments can enjoy peace of mind as they can outsource their entire communications operations to SingTel who is committed to meeting their needs and growing their businesses in the region.”

In Taiwan, EXPAN will be provided from SingTel’s data centre in Taipei.In addition, customers with cross-border needs will be supported by SingTel’s regional data centre in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and South Korea.SingTel will also offer hosting services in China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand next year.

Mr Chong added that SingTel’s network of overseas offices and joint ventures provide customers with in-country support and a consistent quality of service across the region.   “SingTel’s network of data centers are connected to the SingTel Internet Exchange, Asia’s biggest Internet backbone with connectivity to other Internet exchanges in the US and Asia.Our customers also enjoy ConnectPlus, a comprehensive suite of end-to-end managed services supported by our extensive and robust pan-Asian cable and satellite infrastructure.They are assured of network diversity and scalable access to bandwidth which are critical in today’s competitive business environment,” he said.

SingTel has formed partnerships with technology leaders such as BMC Software, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, National Computer Systems and NetScreen Technologies.   They will provide the equipment, software solutions and expertise to support the provision of these services in Taiwan and the rest of Asia.  In Taiwan, Datacraft and Netstar will act as SingTel Taiwan’s channel partners. “We are pleased to be SingTel’s strategic partner to providereliable, stable and always-on integrated network solution to enterprises,” said Jeremy Yu, HP Taiwan president. “By this strategic partnership, SingTel can have the professional support from HP worldwide service and multi-platform technical support. With the solid industry experience and cooperation with world-class carriers, HP can provide the IT total solution services for enterprises.”

IDC Research estimated that web-hosting revenues in Asia will grow by more than 46 per cent annually with the potential to reach US$1.8 billion in 2004. Most of this business will be dominated by leading regional telcos as they own networks and have access to bandwidth.