MANILA, Philippines - Cyber City Teleservices (Philippines) Inc. has been given non-pioneer perks by the Board of Investments for its 250-seat call center.

New projects granted non-pioneer status by the BOI will enjoy, among others, a four-year income tax break and duty-free importation of capital equipment.

The P48-million facility is expected to initially employ 280 people when it starts commercial operations next month, according to data from the BOI.

The facility will initially have 100 seats, but will be ramped up to 250 seats by the third year of operations.

Among the services that the business process outsourcing facility will offer are inbound voice, as well as Web-enabled platforms such as help desk support, technical support via e-mail, live chat and 24/7 browsing assistance.

It will also provide outbound telemarketing services with technical support for all the Web interaction product needs of its clients.

The facility at Times Plaza Building on UN Avenue and Taft Avenue in Manila will serve US-based customers in the health and nutrition and sports equipment and gear sectors.

The company’s head office and call center operations are in Clark Field, Pampanga. Its US sales and marketing office is in New Jersey, while its telecommunications affiliate team is in California.

The BPO sector, considered one of the few sunshine industries in the country, is one of the sectors that the government is banking on to help the country cope with the economic crisis.

“The IT-BPO sector has remained resilient in the midst of the current global economic crisis. We remain optimistic that with our ‘Next Wave Cities’ initiative, we will be able to bring the economic benefits of the industry to cities outside our main IT-BPO hubs of Metro Manila and Metro Cebu,” Commission on Information and Communications Technology chief Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua III earlier said.

The 10 identified “Next Wave Cities” include Metro Laguna, Metro Cavite, Iloilo, Davao, Bacolod, Angeles-Clark-Mabalacat in Pampanga, Baliuag-Marilao-Meycuayan in Bulacan, Cagayan de Oro, Malolos-Calumpit in Bulacan and Lipa in Batangas.