Freshtel Deal to Bring 55 New Jobs to Victoria
Freshtel Deal to Bring 55 New Jobs to Victoria |
| Media release - 20 July 2006 |
| A major deal between a Victorian ICT company and UK supermarket giant Tesco has helped to further strengthen Victoria's global reputation in the ICT industry. The Minister for Information and Communication Technology, Marsha Thomson, said Freshtel Holdings had struck a wholesale partnership deal with Tesco, which will see the Melbourne CBD-based company grow to 55 people. Tesco is rolling out Freshtel's voice over internet protocol (VOIP) to offer to the chain's customers a simplified Tesco-branded service. Tesco is the largest and most profitable UK retailer, with 1,700 stores in the UK and 11 million loyalty club members. Tesco Telecoms has more than 1 million customers. Freshtel Holdings was founded in 2002 and currently has 70,000 registered users in Australia and 270,000 globally. Ms Thomson said the success of Freshtel was also a major win for Victoria. "While Freshtel is winning significant business in Australia with its innovative offerings, the main game is overseas. "That means not only established markets like the UK, but also emerging markets like India and China, where demand for phone services is exploding," she said. Freshtel is a leading global provider of VOIP solutions. The company designs handsets, VOIP software and other managed services. VOIP offers lower operating costs, lower capital expenditure and lower costs for phone calls than traditional telecoms. "The company is predominantly managing and servicing its UK customers from Melbourne, which means all the IP, service improvements and R&D are done here in Victoria," Ms Thomson said. |
