Online retail giant Amazon.com is set to acquire 10 percent stake in India's Daksh.com, which will provide web-related services to the US firm, the Times of India daily reported Saturday.
Sanjay Aggarwal, co-founder and Chief Executive of Daksh.com, set up in January, did not disclose the amount Amazon would pay for the equity.
"Broadly, we will handle out of India all the major pre- and post-order queries from Amazon customers on a worldwide basis. Daksh will handle all the queries, analyze them and build up a knowledge base to offer highly personalized services to them," he said.
Aggarwal said Amazon had transferred technology to his company and added that Amazon customers would help Daksh earn some $10 million in the next three years.
Amazon vice-president for global customer service Bill Price said in a statement: "As Amazon.com continues to attract new customers from all over the world, it is important that we have trained staff ready to respond to a customer's inquiry no matter what time of day or night."
Amazon.com started life in the United States as an online bookshop in 1995 but has since expanded to include music, video, toys, beauty products, medicines, gifts, online auctions, sports goods and home improvement material.
India's burgeoning information technology sector is increasingly being eyed by foreign firms since the country boasts a cheap, English-speaking and skilled workforce. — (AFP)
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