VSNL is a major global communication services provider offering a portfolio of next-generation Carrier and Enterprise solutions, including Voice, Mobile, Data and Ethernet. Looking to attract more broadband subscribers in India and boost current consumption, VSNL partnered with various content providers to launch a PC Video on Demand (VOD) service utilizing Microsoft solutions as its preferred platform. The service delivers live video streaming, static content (ring tones, wallpapers) and dynamic DRM-based content (movies) for its Indian customers on a pay-per-view basis. By implementing Microsoft® .NET Framework version 3.0, VSNL has achieved higher operational efficiency, better content management, and enhanced customer targeting while delivering services faster and with lower development costs.

1. Microsoft Communications Server
Customer Solution Case Study
Telco Speeds Up and Cuts Costs on its PC
Video on Demand Service
Overview “Microsoft came to us with good credentials in this
Country or Region: India
Industry: Telecommunications
space, and they had a technology roadmap which was
very similar to ours. The solutions were either readily
Customer Profile
With 5000 employees in 93 countries,
available or could be found quickly.”
VSNL is an India-based global Mukul Sood, VP Content and Applications, VSNL
telecommunications company with a
portfolio of services including voice,
bandwidth, Ethernet and fixed data
connectivity. VSNL is a major global communication services provider offering a
portfolio of next-generation Carrier and Enterprise solutions,
Business Situation
To grow its broadband subscription and including Voice, Mobile, Data and Ethernet. Looking to attract more
boost consumption, VSNL sought to deploy broadband subscribers in India and boost current consumption,
a PC Video On Demand (PC VOD) service to
deliver high-quality, secure multimedia VSNL partnered with various content providers to launch a PC Video
content to its subscribers. on Demand (VOD) service utilizing Microsoft solutions as its
Solution preferred platform. The service delivers live video streaming, static
VSNL selected a range of solutions content (ring tones, wallpapers) and dynamic DRM-based content
including Microsoft® .NET Framework
version 3.0, Windows Server® 2003 R2, (movies) for its Indian customers on a pay-per-view basis. By
Microsoft SQL Server™ 2005 and implementing Microsoft® .NET Framework version 3.0, VSNL has
Microsoft® BizTalk® Server 2004 for its PC
VOD service in India. achieved higher operational efficiency, better content management,
and enhanced customer targeting while delivering services faster
Benefits
 Better Content Management
and with lower development costs.
 Lower Costs, Greater Efficiency
 Higher Visibility, Positive Branding
 Secure Digital Rights Management
 Better Customer Segmentation

2. “Microsoft kept pace Situation subscribers by fostering ongoing interaction
Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL), a part and relationships. While the overall strategy
with our quest for better of the Tata Group, is a leading international sounded viable, it was not without its
market opportunities by telecommunications company based in India, challenges.
with operations in over 39 countries. “When we started out, Indian content was not
continuous interaction available in an Internet ready format. The
as well as offering pilots The company is one of the world’s largest business model of who to sell to, how to sell,
carriers of international voice and submarine at what price, size of the market opportunity,
for some of their newer bandwidth, and a leading provider of Indian and so on, was unclear,” remarks Sood. He
technologies like the private leased circuits. It also offers IP MPLS adds that VSNL was then an unknown entity
VPN, Internet access, hosting, mobile in the Indian entertainment industry and that
Connected Services signaling and several other IP services, plus a most content vendors did not see the
Framework.” range of retail services including high-speed benefits of an Internet play, and offered less-
broadband, dial-up Internet, Wi-Fi, and than-attractive terms. “There was also the
Internet telephony under the Tata Indicom question of distrust amongst content owners
Mukul Sood, VP Content and Applications, brand. when it came to Internet distribution,” says
VSNL Sood. “We had to find the right digital rights
A leading Internet company in India, VSNL is management (DRM) technologies that were
always seeking new opportunities and acceptable to the content owners.”
business drivers to expand its retail product
portfolio. Initially, its goal was to boost Convincing the various stakeholders that
consumption levels for broadband their strategy with the PC VOD service was
bandwidth. Says Mukul Sood, Vice President, viable was equally challenging. “It took us
Content and Applications, VSNL, “We wanted some time to convince people of our
to provide our subscribers with broadband business model and our requirements. We
applications that enhanced the value of their commissioned studios to reformat movies
high-speed connections. In this context, rich- suitable for Internet delivery, hired lawyers
media delivery such as video streaming was who were familiar with the Indian and
an important aspect of the overall strategy.” International IPR laws, and briefed our
finance teams about the applicable taxes,”
The strategy VSNL adopted was to first says Sood.
differentiate between its Internet connectivity
services from the competition by providing Ultimately, VSNL had to address all these
broadband-ready content. This would both concerns and convince stakeholders that
showcase broadband as a superior product to they could deliver not only great content but a
dial-up connectivity, and generate viable long-term business. “It was clear that
incremental revenues through content we required an array of technologies to fulfill
purchase. Secondly, VSNL would encourage the promise of PC VOD in India. We needed a
subscribers to purchase this content to boost customized solution that would create a
incremental revenues per user. Finally, more superior end user experience while providing
compelling “sticky” content such as content partners an online mechanism to
educational, entertainment and devotional upload their product and profit from it.”
elements would be offered to retain

3. “Content owners retail broadband service,” says Sood. “Almost
everything related to content had to be
distrusted the net as a created from zero. We even had to educate
means of delivery. We the network planning people on the
requirements from a content delivery/
had to find the right management perspective. While Microsoft
DRM suppliers – had the building blocks in terms of
technology, we knew we had to customize
vendors who were Solution them extensively to accomplish our
acceptable to the When searching for the appropriate objectives.”
technologies, VSNL decided from the start
content owners.” not to develop a solution in-house. “Much of Sood adds that when Microsoft Consulting
what we were trying to achieve was not Services (MCS) convinced VSNL they were
available as a single off-the-shelf solution,” able to fulfill these specific needs, the
Mukul Sood, VP Content and Applications, remarks Sood. “We recognized that we had to company knew it had made the right
VSNL bring several distinct technologies together to decision, and MCS has been a close
make the entire experience seamless, and technology partner ever since. “The team
still offer the PC VOD service flexibility to grow helped us maximize our investments in
when required.” technology. In fact, the second phase is being
delivered by MCS,” he notes.
Initially, VSNL explored a variety of platform
technologies. “There were several options but MCS led the engagement with VSNL, bringing
we opted for Microsoft because they had a in trusted partners to give end to end
technology roadmap similar to ours,” says accountability, and partnering in retail
Sood. “Microsoft came to us with good content management technology plans for
credentials in this space. They were willing to VSNL. In the process, MCS was able to
be a ‘partner’ and worked with us very leverage its global expertise on complex
closely, both in developing the ideas and in technology issues whilst ensuring on-time
execution. The technology solution to most of delivery, within budget.
our problems was either readily available or
could be found quickly.” Targets were set regarding the width & depth
of content VSNL believed it could provide
Even so, VSNL recognized that the final through the new service. “We explored the
solution would require extensive many types of services we could offer and the
customization to meet their very specific depth or comprehensiveness of each service,
requirements. In the first phase, VSNL in terms of video or audio content,” says
worked with AG Technologies, and later, with Sood. The company started small, stabilized
system integrators Tata Consultancy Services things and determined that it would be better
(TCS) and Tech Mahindra Ltd (TM) to develop to build the service in phases. Since the
and customize specific modules. vision kept expanding with newer ideas and
service layers, VSNL set shorter, more
“At the time, we had a static HTML site with realistic timeframes for each development.
vanilla functionality as the gateway to our

4. Most VSNL divisions rallied behind the
project, including network planning, IT
support, customer care, content Benefits
management, Web design, revenue VSNL believes that working with a leading
(Assurance and Vendor Settlements), edge Microsoft platform has opened new
budgeting, and legal departments (contracts). market opportunities for the company. The
PC VOD service not only delivers a superior
The final Microsoft solution integrated several end user experience but also provides VSNL
enterprise grade core products and delivered with a credible platform to evolve its service
a high-end ecommerce-enabled broadband in the future. Combined with better content
portal for consumers. The solution was based management, improved customer
on Microsoft® Commerce Server 2002, segmentation, and a secure DRM solution,
Microsoft® Content Management Server the PC VOD service offers a highly efficient
2002 and Microsoft® .NET Framework and cost effective solution for VSNL
version 3.0. These were deployed on subscribers and content partners.
Windows Server® 2003 R2, Microsoft® SQL
Server™ 2005 and Microsoft® BizTalk® Server
2004, to offer a scalable and future-proof
solution. To ensure high availability at all
times, Microsoft® Operations Manager (MOM) Better Content Management
(now updated to Microsoft® System Center Moving from a static portal to a dynamic
Operations Manager 2007) was deployed in interface, the PC VOD service has been a
conjunction with Premier Support Services boon to VSNL subscribers and its own
from Microsoft Consultancy Services. administration of the service. Says Sood,
“From a consumer’s point of view, this has
The VSNL PC VOD service featured distinct been a good deployment. It allows us to
modules to serve each stakeholder: content present our PC VOD service in a far friendlier
management and user administration for manner – better navigation, better control
VSNL; content publishing and acquisition for over individual catalogues, and better refresh
content partners; and content catalogs and rates.”
billing mechanisms for subscribers. Phase
one was completed and launched in October, Lower Costs, Greater Efficiency
2005. To facilitate fast uptake, VSNL chose The seamless integration of separate
to bill subscribers’ rental charges for any Microsoft technologies into a single whole
content purchased and waive data transfer has boosted VSNL operational efficiency for
fees. the PC VOD service. The higher efficiency
allows staff to better manage the entire
This PC VOD service is an industry first in content life cycle; ingestion, encoding, DRM,
India with an online catalog of over 600,000 cataloging, management, and meta-data.
content assets. “Thanks to our collaboration “We can reduce turnaround times, reduce
with Microsoft, the service has a high degree costs, ensure better security and better
of acceptance with both customers and manage the content. This has resulted in
vendors,” notes Sood.

5. fewer people, less hand-offs and market for content services. This includes
consequently more efficiency,” notes Sood. providing content capabilities by offering a
‘white label’ solution to other service
Higher Visibility, Positive Branding providers anywhere in the world. “This has
As a pioneer in launching India’s first PC VOD spurred new opportunities to use content as
service, VSNL has cemented its position as a a business driver for VSNL,” says Sood.
forward-looking industry leader in the Internet
space. The high customer satisfaction from He notes that with globalization come new
subscribers and content partners has helped challenges such as global rights
VSNL retain its competitive edge in the management, licensing, taxes, and content
broadband connectivity and services market. delivery networks, among others. “We will
continue to build, adapt and add many new
Secure Digital Rights Management features to our content management
The success of a high-end consumer focused platform to meet these challenges.
portal is undoubtedly the content and Fortunately, Microsoft as our technology
applications. VSNL recognized the partner has kept pace with our quest for
importance of securing copyright protection better market opportunities through
in its enhanced partnerships with content continuous interaction and pilots for some of
providers across the globe. Working with their newer technologies.”
MCS, Windows Media® DRM 9 Series was
implemented on all digital assets on the site.
Additionally, Windows Media DRM was
extended to the live stream of devotional
content captured from cameras deployed in
religious temples.
Better Customer Segmentation
Flexibility in determining what and how
content is made available to subscribers is a
key technology advantage of the PC VOD
service. “We can today differentiate between
different customer profiles, locations and
requirements. Hence there are more market
opportunities available to us. In the content
business, licensing is all important and
service providers have to be able to restrict
their offerings to the licensed terms. The
[Microsoft] platform is an important gateway
for us,” adds Sood.
New Global Opportunities
Success with the PC VOD service has
prompted VSNL to look at a larger global

6. For More Information Microsoft Communications Sector
For more information about Microsoft Microsoft Communications Sector delivers
products and services, call the Microsoft integrated, adaptable, comprehensive
Sales Information Center at (800) solutions built on innovative software. These
426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft solutions help communications service
Canada Information Centre at (877) providers develop, deploy, and evolve
568-2495. Customers who are deaf or customized and differentiated offerings that
hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text enhance the user experience.
telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800)
892-5234 in the United States or (905) For more information about Microsoft
568-9641 in Canada. Outside the 50 solutions for the Communications Sector, go
United States and Canada, please contact to:
your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access www.microsoft.com/serviceproviders
information using the World Wide Web, go
to: www.microsoft.com
For more information about Tata
Consultancy Ltd products and services,
visit the Web site at:
www.tcs.com
For more information about Tech Mahindra
products and services, visit the Web site at
www.techmahindra.com
For more information about Videsh
Sanchar Nigam Limited products and
services, visit the Web site at:
www.vsnl.in
Software and Services  Technology
 Microsoft Server Product Portfolio - Microsoft .NET Framework version
− Microsoft Content Management Server 3.0
2002
− Microsoft Commerce Server 2002  Services
− Windows Server 2003 R2 - Microsoft Consulting Services
− Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - Microsoft Services Premier Support
− Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004
− Microsoft Operations Manager Partners
 Tech Mahindra Ltd
 Tata Consultancy Ltd
MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN
THIS SUMMARY.
Document published May 2007