T-Systems to score with 2010 partners

Johannesburg, 19 Mar 2007

A high level heads of agreement is in place for T-Systems SA to secure an anchor partnership to provide technology solutions and infrastructure for the 2010 World Cup, says the company. It expects to conclude the deal soon.

Gert Schoonbee, GM for business development and strategy, says it is too early to reveal specific details around the agreement, but local partnering will be a primary focus of the deal. "We are talking to potential partners, but the anchor partnership is in a fairly advanced stage of being finalised."

T-Systems SA's German parent, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, provided 75% of the technology for the 2006 World Cup. The local group wants to leverage that knowledge to bring ICT solutions to SA, but with a strong emphasis on local relevance.

Skills transfer

"We have finalised our position and, at this stage, it remains to be seen how we will take those products to the World Cup, because there are also different decision-makers involved, including the local organising committee, Fifa and different stakeholders within the participating cities."

The structure of the anchor partnership will dictate the extent of T-Systems' 2010 involvement, says Schoonbee. This can range from consulting and lessons learnt, to end-to-end solutions.

A large consideration, he says, will be the transfer of skills and technology to SA, in such a way that it is sustainable beyond the World Cup. "It is not just about providing solutions for the World Cup, but also about how they will be delivered, how the skills transfer will happen and how local partners will be involved."

Market observers have recently questioned the country's ability to provide sufficient broadband for the World Cup, and Schoonbee concedes the situation is "difficult".

"With the technology that is available today, I am sure solutions will be put in place to overcome current difficulties. An example could be that we may have to use innovative new compression technology to overcome bandwidth challenges."

However, Schoonbee is doubtful physical constraints will prevent SA from staging a World Cup. "The challenges are around collaboration and time, as well as design, preparation and access and utilisation of skills."

One of the big focuses for T-Systems SA is to ensure its solutions are locally relevant and it has successful partnerships with local players, says CEO Mardia van der Walt-Korsten.

"That's what makes it quite tricky here. In Germany, in 2006, T-Systems had all those [ICT infrastructure] elements in one. In SA, we have to collaborate with different [local] players that fulfil these roles. In the end, this is an African World Cup and we feel quite strongly about that as well. There has to be some enablement and transfer of skills. So we've got the solutions and we developed the intellectual property, but we want to roll it out with local partners."