ST. LOUIS and PRETORIA, South Africa, Nov. 17 - Amdocs (NYSE: DOX), the leading provider of software and services to enable integrated customer management and the intentional customer experience(TM), and Telkom South Africa Limited (Telkom), Africa's leading integrated communications company, today announced that Telkom has taken a significant step toward improving customer service by increasing its ability to track service issues that affect its network and subscribers. Telkom will install Amdocs' trouble-ticketing software, a component of Amdocs CRM, to help speed up the company's response to customer reports about service problems and reduce the amount of time customers spend on the phone with the customer service representatives.
For Telkom, the new software advances its integrated customer management (ICM) strategy, which aims to place the customer at the center of key business processes allowing the carrier to be more flexible and efficient, and to deliver an intentional and differentiated customer experience. Leading service providers worldwide are pursuing an ICM strategy as a way to introduce new, innovative and personalized voice and data services and bundles.
Amdocs' trouble-ticketing software enables Telkom to track the entire process of resolving customer problems. A unified database enables customer service representatives to view all steps in the process of resolving an issue related to a particular problem, such as a consumer complaint about a disruption in service. This ensures a consistency in service across the organization, a key to customer satisfaction. While the benefit to customers is clear -- better service -- the software also helps Telkom to become more efficient by reducing the amount of time a call center representative needs to spend on any one customer issue.
"The implementation of the centralized 'trouble-handling' processes will further promote the Company's drive to be customer-centric," said Joshua Motjuwadi, managing executive, information technology at Telkom.
As part of its ICM strategy, Telkom has already implemented Amdocs Billing, Amdocs CRM and Amdocs Order Management products. The Amdocs trouble- ticketing component will integrate into these existing applications. All of the above products are part of Amdocs 6, which is a comprehensive portfolio of modular products that enables carriers to accelerate the adoption of ICM.
"As the telecommunications market in Africa continues to expand, building strong customer relationships is essential to retaining the most valued customers, and ICM is the key to success in achieving that," said Michael Matthews, chief marketing officer at Amdocs. "We are glad that we continue to expand our relationship with Telkom to help the carrier in that mission, and to continue to be Telkom's partner as it solidifies its position as a leading provider on the African continent."
About Telkom South Africa
Telkom SA Limited is one of the largest companies registered in the Republic of South Africa and is the largest telecommunications service provider on the African continent based on operating revenue and assets. Telkom offers fixed-line voice and data services, branded as Telkom, and mobile communications services through a 50% shareholding in the joint venture, Vodacom, a company incorporated in the republic of South Africa, Tanzania, Lesotho, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique.
Telkom has approximately 4.8 million telephone access lines in service as of March 2005; Telkom is South Africa's incumbent operator. Telkom had consolidated operating profit of R43.1 billion ($6.9 billion) for 2005. Telkom's subsidiaries include Telkom Directory Services, which was formed as a result of a joint venture between Telkom and Maister Directories as well as Swiftnet, which was formed in 1994.
About Amdocs
Amdocs combines innovative software and services with deep business knowledge to accelerate implementation of integrated customer management by the world's leading service providers. By delivering a comprehensive portfolio of software and services that spans the customer lifecycle, Amdocs enables service companies to deliver an intentional customer experience(TM), which results in stronger, more profitable customer relationships. Service providers also benefit from a rapid return on investment, lower total cost of ownership and improved operational efficiencies. A global company with revenue of $2.039 billion in fiscal 2005, Amdocs employs about 12,000 IT professionals and serves customers in more than 50 countries around the world. For more information, visit Amdocs at http://www.amdocs.com.
Forward-Looking Statement
This press release includes information that constitutes forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements about Amdocs' growth and business results in future quarters. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be obtained or that any deviations will not be material. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ from those anticipated. These risks include, but are not limited to, the effects of general economic conditions, Amdocs' ability to grow in the mobile, wireline and IP business segments, adverse effects of market competition, rapid technological shifts that may render the Company's products and services obsolete, potential loss of a major customer, our ability to develop long-term relationships with our customers, and risks associated with operating businesses in the international market. These and other risks are discussed at greater length in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including in our Annual Report on Form 20-F, filed on December 30, 2004 and our Forms 6-K furnished on February 14, 2005, May 16 and August 15, 2005.
Media Contacts:
Amdocs
Runi Krishnamurty
Access Communications for Amdocs
Tel: +1-917-522-3507
E-Mail: rkrishnamurty@accesspr.com
Telkom SA Ltd
Lulu Letlape
Group Executive: Corporate Communication
Tel: +27 311 4301
Fax: +27 323 9424
Mobile: +27 82 829 5633
