Anybody who can be on cloud is a customer, says Anant Maheshwari

Microsoft Kaizala is app designed for large group communications, work management, says Maheshwari

For Anant Maheshwari, the president of Microsoft India, it is not just major companies or e-commerce players that matter. In an interview with Karan Choudhury, he made it clear that they would try and bring into the Microsoft fold anyone and everyone who wants to be on cloud. He, however, avoided questions on making investments in e-commerce players such as Ola. Edited excerpts:
 
Microsoft is betting big on cloud and Office365 in India. So far, how much have you invested in data centres and infrastructure here?

We were early in making investments in India. We have three data centres here and last year we opened our cyber security engagement centre in the country. This is a unique investment for any company to have, as it is one among a network of eight now globally. It brings a different capability to India for managing all cyber security threats that both companies and the general population face. These are all visible forms of investments we have made. We are developing products for India. 

 

Are you planning to add capacity to your data centres or open new ones anytime soon?

As we grow further, we will continue to scale the capacity of the assets we have on the ground and evaluate new ones that we may need as the requirements change. But at this point in time, we would provide services through these three data centres.
 
How is government spending influencing your business decisions? Are you part of the smart cities project and government cloud contracts?

I would definitely state that our investments and decisions are not geared on just government investment or purchase. It is because we serve individuals, organisations ranging from small and medium businesses to enterprises, and we serve the government. For us, all are important stakeholders. We are part of many smart city contracts and we continue to partner with governments in creating their hybrid cloud capabilities or smart city and city governance capabilities.

 
What is the new product Microsoft Kaizala all about?

Microsoft Kaizala, a made for India product, is an app designed for large group communications and work management. The product will make it possible for organisations to interact with everyone both within and outside, seamlessly and with rich content. Microsoft Kaizala has been optimised for 2G networks to enable connectivity in remote locations and offers features with offline support. We have also launched, KaizalaPro, which is a subscription-based version. 
 
In India, is there a strategy to invest in companies so that they are locked in to use Azure for their cloud needs? The company has invested in Flipkart and there are reports of you investing in Ola.

 
Today anybody who is on the cloud in India or has the potential to be on the cloud is a conversation that Microsoft is having or can have. Any other conversations that we may have with someone around investments are completely disconnected. Our conversation with Flipkart has been around cloud. It is a very different decision that the global leadership took, that it is also a good investment opportunity. The investment decisions of Microsoft are based on global parameters and not linked to a specific relationship. From the cloud services we are providing, Flipkart is getting the power of global scale, flexibility, data and artificial capabilities that they need in online space, and also a modern workplace.

 
Where does India stand in terms of revenue? Have you touched the $2-billion-revenue mark?
 
It is a significant market for us. Globally, Microsoft has 14 areas that the company has organised itself into, and India is one of the 14 areas. It is one of the biggest countries we have investments in for many different capabilities. We have a lot of assets on ground and we will continue to build on that. There are a lot of unique capabilities and market modules that would come out of India.
 
How are you dealing with competition?
 
We are focused on customers and partners, and that is how we operate on a day-to-day basis. The space that we play in, if we just keep counting competition, I do not think we will have time to do anything else.