Telecom Lead Europe: Merck has signed a contract extension with Orange Business Services for IP VPN connectivity at 180 locations in 60 countries.

Pharmaceutical major will benefit as Orange Business provides video collaboration services, enabling cross-functional decision-making, and business acceleration that improves visibility, management and performance of applications through an optimized communications infrastructure.

Merck sites use a range of access solutions based on business requirements from Small Office Solutions using an xDSL-based, 2 Mbps connection for small to medium-sized locations up to Gigabit Ethernet for its mission-critical sites.

“To ensure optimal support for our business activities, we expect the best possible service – both in network or collaboration services – from our strategic service provider. Amidst the political upheaval in Egypt and the nuclear reactor catastrophe in Japan, Orange proved itself a reliable partner capable of securing our global production and business processes through tailored business continuity solutions,” said Peter Emele, director of Global eWorkplace and Communications, Merck.

“We are delighted by Merck’s vote of confidence in us,” said Helmut Reisinger, senior vice president for Europe, Orange Business Services. “We offer our customers a dependable and stable network with seamless network coverage, coupled with our strong track record in critical circumstances, such as natural disasters, for proven business continuity on a global level.”

Recently, TelecomLead.com reported that Orange Business Services has signed a contract with Cricket Australia to deploy its cloud computing solution. Orange did not disclose the size of the IT deal.

Orange’s Flexible Computing Premium is expected to transform Cricket Australia’s IT infrastructure into a scalable platform to cater to future business growth and development.

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