The Hindu Business Line : Sify in profit zone in Q4

SIFY Ltd has reported a net profit of $0.54 million (Rs 2.34 crore) on sales revenue of $19.01 million (Rs 82.50 crore) for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 as against a net loss of $3.38 million (Rs 14.66 crore) on sales revenue of $13.97 million (Rs 60.62 crore) for the corresponding quarter last year.

The net profit during March 2004 quarter includes a one-time gain of $1.45 million (Rs 6.29 crore) on selling shares of Wisden CricInfo, a cricket-related Web site, said a company press release.

For the year ended March 31, 2004, the Internet, network and e-Commerce services company reported a net loss of $8.55 million (Rs 37.10 crore) on a turnover of $64.54 million (Rs 280.10 crore) as against a net loss of $30.62 million (Rs 132.89 crore) on a turnover of $45.96 million (Rs 199.46 crore) for the previous year, says a company release.

Mr R. Ramaraj, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Sify, said in the release, "Our consistent growth across businesses has enabled us to achieve a 40 per cent growth in revenues over previous year, with cash profits for the full year, and net profits for the last quarter. The company is now well poised to build on this performance in the coming year."

Sify's corporate services contributed 53 per cent of revenues during March 2004 quarter, while retail Internet access segment accounted 39 per cent of Sify's revenue.

During the quarter, Sify launched its converged IP VPN (Internet protocol virtual private network) services, including video conferencing.

The company received initial orders from Bombay Cooperative Bank, DCM Shriram and Cincom Systems. The application services division acquired new customers, including EAN European Articles Number (EAN), Department of Sales Tax, Government of India, Reserve Bank of India and Bisleri mineral water.

A major customer win in the Security services was Hyundai Motor India, said the press release.