Millicom’s Tigo Business brand and Microsoft have announced a Microsoft Cloud OS Network (COSN) partnership to deliver cloud computing benefits to businesses in the Latam region.

The partnership will enable the delivery of innovative applications and cloud services to the business community in Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Bolivia and Paraguay. This partnership brings together two brand names which will combine their expertise to deliver a localised suite of products and services such as data services, increased security, local currency payments and account management.

Microsoft Azure is a flexible cloud computing platform from Microsoft which enables applications to be hosted and delivered to end users directly from the cloud. Tigo Business will work alongside Microsoft as a strategic partner providing agile service delivery and solutions, which allow its customers to manage their infrastructure needs in a more efficient way. Combining Tigo Business’s data centre infrastructure with Microsoft’s will enable large businesses and mobile network operators to enjoy state-of-the-art disaster recovery services, bringing increased resiliency, added security through the Tigo Business network, lower latency and better service level agreements. Additional services, such as virtual desktop and database, are just a few of the services provided via this partnership under the as a service model.

Marcelo Benitez, the vice president of Tigo Business, said: “The Tigo Business and Microsoft partnership offers a significant opportunity to bring cost, service and security benefits to businesses across the Latam region. Tigo Business is known for its fast delivery, and for supporting its business partners in executing cloud strategies efficiently and reliably. Now we can also offer truly innovative packages to our clients. Small and medium sized businesses are the engines of the economy in the region, and this partnership will help businesses to continue their digital transformations and capture the growth ahead.”

Pablo Lombardero, the director for the partner organization at Microsoft LatAm new markets, added: “At Microsoft we have a clear mission of empowering every person and organisation on the planet to achieve more. Through this partnership with Tigo Business, and due to their brand and reach, we see great possibilities to unlock new opportunities for our mutual customers. Both Tigo Business and Microsoft understand that cloud computing delivers significant efficiencies in costs, allowing organisations to benefit from the flexibility and efficiency of the Microsoft Azure platform.”