The network of service providers on oDesk now tops 150,000 individuals worldwide in over 100 countries.

Some of the insights gained from the new reports include:

1. The United States has the greatest number of providers and highest average feedback rating. Homeshoring within the US continues to gain momentum.

2. The level of outsourcing to Philippines is growing faster than any other country. Its largest work category is Knowledge Processing Outsourcing (KPO), including things like data entry and virtual assistants. The country’s average feedback rating recently surpassed the oDesk average for the first time.

3. The level of outsourcing to India remains the highest in the industry boasting the highest number of new hires. Its largest work category is Software and Web Development.

4. Web Developers, Software Developers and Consultants are earning nearly 3x the rates of talented offshore writers and administrative assistants.

Phone calls from customers will now be answered by employees of APAC Customer Services Inc. at its three call centers in Quezon City and Muntinlupa City. According to the DBJ, “APAC employs about 4,000 “accent-neutral,” English-speaking operators who take calls about subscriptions, delivery problems and billing and then relay the information back to the client for action, according to reports on the deal in the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the Philippine Star.

“APAC already offers customer service for nearly 80 U.S. newspapers. Call centers for offshore clients are a booming business in the Philippines.”

This news was found in the email from the Bay Area newspaper guild organizing committee newsletter. They’ve filed with the NLRB to establish the union among the BANG-EB newspapers, including, the Contra Costa Times

See EBIG’s web site for info about a panel on outsourcing to be held April 13 at the Kaiser Center in Oakland. If you haven’t heard of EBIG (East Bay IT Group) snoop around its website to see where tech development and the East Bay collide.