Atrium forecasts 2004 revenues of US$33mn

Brazilian telecom service provider Atrium expects to end the year with revenues of 91mn reais (US$33.1mn), up 40% from 65mn reais in 2003, Atrium president Maurício Vaz told BNamericas. The company hopes to have 2,165 clients at year-end. Prospects for next year are positive although the company has not yet disclosed its sales goals for 2005, according to Vaz. Atrium attributes its rapid growth to favorable economic conditions and its ability to reach a niche corporate market among SMEs. "We found a market niche consisting of companies that needed a differentiated service the telecom operators weren't giving," Vaz said. "We package telecom products in the way those companies want," he added. Atrium initially focused entirely on SMEs but has since expanded towards large business clients as well. Currently, roughly 25% of its clients are large companies and the rest are SMEs, according to Vaz. The company has not focused on any specific industry and has clients ranging from advertising companies, call centers, research centers, law offices and hospitals. To ensure future growth, the company is expanding its line of services. In 2005, it will launch a service to integrate fixed line and mobile line telephony into a single network. The company is also looking to expand its partnerships to include mobile companies. It has closed a partnership with mobile operator TIM and is currently negotiating with Claro and Vivo. Those partnerships consist of negotiating "special conditions to have discounts based on volume," according to Vaz. Atrium already has partnerships with almost all the fixed line and mirror operators in Brazil. The company also has partnerships with several manufacturers and is looking to create partnerships with IT companies but has not yet closed any, Vaz said.