Aviva signs £300m comms deal

Insurance group moves to IP telephony

By Julian Goldsmith, 13 May 2008 11:38

NEWS

The world's fifth largest insurance group, Aviva has signed a six-year contract with Cable & Wireless Europe, Asia & US worth £300m.

The insurance company, which was formed from Norwich Union and GNU (itself the union of Commercial Union and General Accident) in 2002, will be using C&W for 72 separate services including telephony, data and IPVPN and MPLS wide area networking to support its 35,000 staff in the UK and India.

Exclusive Special Report: CIO Agenda 2008

Find out what's hot on the top tech execs' agendas for 2008…

♦  Video: CIO Agenda 2008

♦  Naked CIO: The true cost of IT

♦  Why IT must escape the belt-tightening

♦  Cost-cutting tops CIO priorities

♦  Recession fears hit IT budgets

♦  What governance can really mean to business

♦  The CIO shopping list

In total, C&W will be responsible for connecting over 1,000 sites with 57,000 and 74,000 data points. The contract is an extension to an existing partnership between the two companies, which has lasted for 12 years.

Two new services from the deal will be managed BlackBerry services and speech recognition. It is expected that the move to IP telephony will significantly reduce costs for the insurance group.

Norwich Union Insurance CEO Igal Mayer said in a statement: "It is important to our market success that we are able to respond to business and customer needs promptly and reliably. This contract represents a significant commitment on both sides to ensure cost effective service against the backdrop of a highly competitive marketplace."

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

Log in or create your silicon.com account below

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy.

Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Membership FAQ