HONG KONG--Networking and IT services company BT has said it will invest further in its presence in the Philippines as it eyes further business from global customers setting up and expanding their operations in the country.

The UK-based firm has been expanding in the Asia Pacific region.

In the Philippines, BT employs a 10-member team of executives although it largely services BT's regional customers. BT also owns a majority share in Sun Microsystems Philippines, following its acquisition of regional IT services player Frontline Technologies. Â?Â?

Despite its scant presence in the country, BT executives said the company is committed to growing its customer base in the Philippines, targeting lucrative segments such as the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry.

"What we have now (in the Philippines) does not parallel BT's intent and strategy," said David Furniss, vice president of BT's merger and acquisitions (M&A) integration practice, based in the UK. Â?Â?Â?

Meanwhile, Paul Migliorini, BT's director for strategy and business development in Asia Pacific, said the Philippines is an important market for BT because of the presence of multinational companies, including BPOs.

"Our customers are globalizing and our goal is to be able to support them wherever they expand into," Migliorini said during interview sessions with journalists at BT's Asia Pacific Media Day here.

"We are investing in the Philippines and continue to do so," Migliorini said. "We are working on opportunities there and it's not just from our partnership with Sun, but those generated by our team."

He also cited opportunities in domestic companies, mentioning as an example manufacturing giant San Miguel Corp., that are going global.

As it expands its services business in Asia Pacific, it's also possible for BT to expand its customer support operations into the Philippines. BT runs help desk operations in Dalian, China.