what is this thing called peopletel?
With speculation rife as to the possibility of forthcoming nuptials between Swiftel and People Telecom Ltd, it is perhaps timely to reflect on just who or what PeopleTel is.
The history of the company is most interesting. PeopleTel was founded in February 2000 by Ryan O'Hare and Colin Marland, a pair who had already at that time established an impressive track record by co-founding and later onselling the corpTel group of companies.
AAPT bought corpTel in 1998 for $40 million.
Besides Ryan O’Hare and Colin Marland, the original investors in PeopleTel included broadband network carrier Uecomm, f2 (the Fairfax interactive network), Village On-line Investments (part of the Village Roadshow Corporation), Ron Walker (chairman of Grand Prix Corporation) and Margaret Jackson (chairman of Qantas Airways)
In September 2002, most of the blue-chip companies and private investors accepted a buyout offer from Marland and O’Hare. Uecomm, John Fairfax Holdings, and private investors, Ron Walker, Margaret Jackson Brian Powers and the Lowy family sold their entire holdings in the company. Uecomm received $1.45 million, giving it a $0.45 million book profit in 2002.
Village Roadshow retained its holding until February 2003 when it, too, sold its stake to the founders.
People Telecom Ltd today is an unlisted private company headquartered in Sydney, with branches in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
It is a service provider to a range of businesses from small to large corporate, of a host of telephony services including:
- Fibre optic or wireless local loop (WLL) broadband access; - DSL connectivity over copper wire to 130 PoPs around Australia; - Local, STD and IDD fixed-line telephony and PABX equipment; - Mobile telephony services and equipment; - ADSL, HDSL and ISDN/OnRamp Internet connectivity, data networking and virtual private networks; - Web hosting, domain name registration, email and e-commerce solutions; - Bundled customer premises equipment (CPE) solutions and financing; - Network and project management; - Conferencing services; - Broadcasting services by fax, SMS and voice to text; - Paper and on-line consolidated billing systems with cost-centre allocation; - Real time on-line customer management systems; - High service response guarantees.
People Telecom is not a carrier, it is an enhanced service provider. It acquires telecommunications services wholesale from carrier networks, equipment suppliers and other providers - including Telstra, Optus, AAPT, Request, Ozhosting.com and Swiftel - repackages the services under its own brand and provides consolidated billing, an online account management service and enhanced customer services.
The company focuses on personalised customer service. Its products and services are designed to meet the specific needs of each customer segment. It uses a direct corporate sales force of thirty people and indirect sales channels of dealers and agents.
PeopleTel presently has just four shareholders: Ryan O'Hare, Colin Marland, Barry Hamilton and Telino Pty Ltd. Barry Hamilton is the company’s chairman, while the very well-connected Ryan O’Hare (Murdoch in-law) is its CEO.
The company presently has between 15,000 and 20,000 business customers. Being a private company, its financials are not readily available. However, in an April 2003 report by the communications analyst Paul Budde (based, it said, on “company data”), revenues were given as follows:
Year ending:
June 2001 - $5 million June 2002 - $32 million June 2003(e) - $42 million June 2004(e) - $78 million
The ‘fit’ between People Telecom and Swiftel has been much remarked upon. Already, Colin Marland sits on the boards of both companies, and is increasingly acting as the spokesperson for Swiftel. There is, too, that cross sales alliance between the two companies announced last June.
The combined broadband, telephony and corporate services that a merged entity could provide would clearly offer economies of scale and a host of technical and administrative advantages to both companies.
Besides, there are opportunities for the owners of the privately-run PeopleTel that only public listing can unlock.
Roll on Tuesday, I say, and clear news of just what’s in store!
