Our geographical expansion is helping us sail through the recession

Post the appointment of Iris Computers as its national distributor,
Microsoft India is well on its way to reaching out to 260 cities. According to
Kiran Mani, Iris fits well in their overall scheme of things and will help them
penetrate the upcountry cities

How has the appointment of Iris Computers helped in streamlining your
sales strategy?

Iris' appointment is part of Microsoft's overall geographical expansion
plan. We plan to tap 260 cities by the end of our financial year (July 2007 to
June 2008). So we are half way through our target and are on track to achieving
it.

Iris is the fourth distributor we have tied up with. The other three are
Ingram Micro, Redington India and eSys. Iris comes as a natural fit into our
business pie because of its reach, and also because partners now have an
additional choice of distributor. Its upcountry reach will give Microsoft the
advantage it did not have earlier.

Are you considering appointing any more national or regional distributors?

We have no plans to appoint more national distis. But as part of our
geographical expansion we are looking at a sub-disti model, which will be a part
of the national disti plan. At present we don't have a number of sub-distis we
plan to take on, since the appointment will be as per need of the business.

Right now our focus is on dividing the PC shipments in India. According to a
report by IDC, 23 cities give us 82 percent market in India. We are
consolidating the findings of that report to make it a viable business.

What are some of the enablement initiatives you will undertake to achieve
growth?

We often hear from partners that PC sales are commoditized and there is a
need for value propositions. We have three pillars that we are working on. The
first is our intent to impress upon partners why original software is important
for customers. Secondly, our initiatives allow partners to expand on Microsoft
propositions. There is a need to educate customers about how Microsoft original
software can enhance the output of their PC.

Finally, we are training our partners through regional level programs. In the
next six months we are planning to hold training programs in 45-50 cities.

In our interaction with the channel, many have complained that Microsoft
is low on conducting educational programs for them. Do you agree?

I wouldn't deny it. We strongly feel the need to educate partners. That is
why we are investing so much and targeting more cities this year.

How many commercial OEM partners are you planning to recruit?

We don't have a figure on this. In the PC business there are approximately
20,000 to 22,000 resellers in the country. Any one of these resellers is a
potential business partner for Microsoft OEM business. Our intent is get get as
many of them to actively participate in our OEM business.

Kiran Mani Director-Business Strategy and Marketing, OEM Business Division Microsoft India

In view of the recession, has Microsoft's OEM business suffered?

No, we have been on a growth path and not seen any slowdown in our business.
Our geographical expansion has helped us keep up our growth.

What are your goals and forecasts for 2009?

Microsoft does not do any forecasting. However, on the goals front,
achieving geographical expansion is one of our key goals. The appointment of
Iris is a major cog in the wheel. The focus will be on reaching out to as many
partners in as many cities as we can.

RUTH SAMSON

(ruths@cybermedia.co.in)