PacificNet (PACT.PK) has announced intentions for its PacificNet Solutions IT outsourcing subsidiary to launch a new software development outsourcing center in Shenzhen which will begin operations this month.

The new software development center occupies two floors initially with capacity to expand to two additional floors. Each of the two floors will have the capacity to house about 200 employees. The new outsourcing development center will serve its existing clients, including some of the world's leading telecom and IT companies. Initially, the operation will have 200 employees, with plans to expand the staff significantly within one year.

"After emerging as the world's leading manufacturing center, China is quickly emerging as a leading outsourcing center for service jobs," said Tony Tong, Chairman and CEO of PacificNet. "China's huge domestic market and high growth economy has a big advantage over India, which must rely completely on service exports. The demand continues to grow for outsourcing services, including business process outsourcing (BPO) such as call center, CRM, back-office workflow, data entry, translation and localization and IT outsourcing (ITO) such as software development, testing. We believe, through our 10 plus years as a leader in BPO and ITO in Hong Kong and China, that PacificNet is well positioned to capture this rapidly growing demand for outsourcing services in China."