13 July 2005 Nasscom, the body that represents the lucrative technology industry in India, has unveiled its rankings of the top 20 IT software and services exporters in India.

Topping the list was Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), part of one of Asia’s largest conglomerates (the Tata Group), which generated IT software and services revenues of $1.644 billion (excluding business process outsourcing revenue).

Infosys and Wipro were not far behind with revenues of $1.502 billion and $1.198 billion respectively.

The strength of the Indian technology sector was underlined by the overall level of software exports which reached $12 billion in 2004, up 30.4% on the previous year’s total of $9.2 billion.

“Despite a larger base, the Indian software and services industry has been able to maintain its growth momentum and delivered better-than-expected results,” said Kiran Karnik, president of Nasscom.

“With offshore adoption amongst the Fortune 500 companies increasing rapidly, from 300 in 2003 to 400 companies in 2004, we are optimistic about the long-term potential of this industry,” Karnik added.

While Karnik is naturally predisposed to talk warmly about the industry, the results clearly show that offshore outsourcing to India is increasingly a popular choice for large corporates.

The survey excluded IT enabled services and business process outsourcing revenues (a sector that makes up approximately a third of technology exports from India) and did not include US-listed companies, such as Cognizant, which have significant offshore operations in India.