Virgin Blue Group Entrusts Core Business Application Monitoring to Verizon Business

 The Virgin Blue Group, a leading Australian airline operator, has selected Verizon Business to remotely manage the airline's core business applications. 

Through its application management service, Verizon Business will provide round-the-clock monitoring of the airline's critical information systems, including key revenue management, engineering, aircraft-to-ground data transfers, back office communications and business productivity applications.

The Virgin Blue Group -- which comprises Virgin Blue, Pacific Blue, Polynesian Blue and the new international airline, V Australia -- carries more than 18 million passengers annually to 42 destinations in 11 countries around the world.

The Verizon Business service will enable remote oversight of the airline group's critical applications accessed from Virgin Blue's offices and ports across Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and the U.S.  These include remote access to BlackBerry mail servers and other core business applications, as well as the monitoring of engineering parts and aircraft inventory, document management and seat pricing systems.

Rapid growth over the past several years, including international expansion through V Australia, prompted Virgin Blue to seek a highly reliable outsourcing partner so it could free up its internal IT resources to focus on its evolving strategic IT needs, rather than day-to-day business operations.

David Harvey, Virgin Blue's general manager of IT, said: "We wanted a partner with the ability, skills and capacity to respond to potential problems at any time of the day. Verizon Business, with its established global IT management services and proven application monitoring capabilities, is able to offer us the round-the-clock support we need to support the continuous availability of our core business applications for our employees, whether they are in or out of the office." 

Ron Gauci, managing director of Australia and New Zealand for Verizon Business, said: "For success in the airline industry, optimizing availability of complex IT systems is absolutely critical. We're delighted that Virgin Blue has chosen to partner with Verizon Business, entrusting the monitoring of its core operational infrastructure to us. We look forward to bringing our expertise and capabilities to bear to support the company's ongoing business growth."

Verizon Business' application management service manages and monitors business-critical applications and infrastructure wherever they are located.  It combines deep technological expertise, robust operational processes and service automation to deliver high-quality application management services, customized to support required business outcomes. It helps customers improve the performance of their online applications while reducing operational expenditures and downtime.

About Virgin Blue Group
Multi award winning airline Virgin Blue and international carriers V Australia, Pacific Blue and Polynesian Blue currently operate a fleet of 80 modern Boeing 737, Boeing 777 and Embraer E-Jet aircraft flying to 42 across 11 countries including Australia, New Zealand, America, Bali, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Tonga, Cook Islands, Vanuatu and Samoa.  Virgin Blue was the first airline in the world to launch a Government-certified carbon offset program, where Guests can offset the carbon emissions from their flights.  For further information please visit www.virginblue.com.au. 

About Verizon Business
Verizon Business, a unit of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), is a global leader in communications and IT solutions. We combine professional expertise with one of the world's most connected IP networks to deliver award-winning communications, IT, information security and network solutions. We securely connect today's extended enterprises of widespread and mobile customers, partners, suppliers and employees - enabling them to increase productivity and efficiency and help preserve the environment.  Many of the world's largest businesses and governments - including 96 percent of the Fortune 1000 and thousands of government agencies and educational institutions - rely on our professional and managed services and network technologies to accelerate their business. Find out more at www.verizonbusiness.com

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