Unified Communications

Polycom and Avaya are to expand their relationship and develop collaboration, video and voice products to bring to the business market. The Unified Communications (UC) products and services that the two companies will develop will be based around the Avaya Aura SIP platform and the Polycom Open Collaboration Network strategy for maximum effect.

By combining Avaya’s collaboration expertise and Polycom’s video and voice innovations, businesses are in for a good time in the next few months!

Business phone system manufacturer Avaya has come up with a new way to save money for small companies – again! Avaya has just announced the launch of a new unified communications (UC) platform for small businesses of 20 employees or less.

The new Avaya IP Office 6.0 is not really a new product from Avaya, but it has been made 40% more affordable, which makes it ideal for small businesses. The way Avaya has done this is by replacing the multiple Flash card set up with a single SD card that can support IP, digital and analogue devices. Simple yes, but extremely effective if you’re a small company!

Microsoft, a leading supplier of Unified Communications (UC) solutions, has recognised Vodafone for its competency in the UC market which adds to Vodafone’s growing list of accolades.

Vodafone can deliver and integrate IM, video conferencing, VoIP and voice via different end points to their customers, day by day. Vodafone also offer One Net, a solution that integrates IP phone systems and mobiles, allowing them to use one number. As UC solutions become more and more commonplace, Vodafone are offering innovative solutions.

A recent survey by the Radicati Group, a market research firm, has suggested that business users are for the first time sending less business emails as they move to other forms of communication.

In 2008, survey respondents sent an average of 140 emails per day whilst in 2009 the number dropped to 108 emails. Unified communications (UC) solutions are attributed to the drop in emails as UC becomes more of a service than a product. With large companies like Cisco and Microsoft offering integrated UC services, we’re bound to see a decline in the traditional email, say the Radicati Group – but not a complete shift away from them.

Research house In-Stat have reported that Unified Communications (UC) are beginning to be touted as a service and not a product as they migrate to the cloud. In-Stat analysts say that two emerging trends will catapult UC into the forefront of technology: SIP Trunking and higher data rates in the wireless industry. In-Stat have also made predictions about Avaya eventually becoming the leading provider of UC solutions due to its acquisition of Nortel. Only time will tell!

Voicemail it seems, is a dying application. Rather than the old stand-alone solution that voicemail used to be, many companies are now turning to other options instead. Don’t misunderstand though, voicemail is still a necessity in business – it’s just the way in which we integrate it that’s changing.

When it comes time to update a voicemail system, many companies tend to replace their phone system instead, aiming for a more modern VoIP (voice over internet protocol) system or more commonly now, a unified communications system (UC).  Using a unified communications system, all communications are bundled together – voicemail, fax, email, conferencing etc, making businesses more efficient and saving a lot of money. So wave goodbye to the traditional voicemail system – there’s a new player in town!

Those of us who offer unified communications (UC) solutions can tell you that you’ll see a swift ROI (return on investment). However, the norm has often been a case of ‘you have to try it to see it’ in the past. With new market research from Aberdeen Group though, you can really see how using a UC solution can improve the bottom line of your business as well as efficiency. The ‘Unified Communications: Gaining a Competitive Advantage While on the Move,’ report by Aberdeen Group says that a massive 79% of companies using a UC solution in the first year of deploying it. Colleagues communicated more often and with ease, efficiency was improved and customer responsiveness was increased!

Unified Communications (UC) is a growing industry in South Asia and the Middle East. Due to the recent economic downturn plus the growth of multiple office locations, solutions such as UC, conferencing and UC bundling are becoming more popular. India it seems is the largest buyer of UC solutions according to new reports by Frost and Sullivan. The report also found that the Sri Lankan market is turning towards IP telephony, more so than traditional telephony. The growth rates, according to Frost and Sullivan, should carry on well into 2015.

ABI Research has suggested that M2M communications (Machine to machine) is a growing industry. By the year 2014, ABI Research expects M2M comms to have tripled. M2M communications isn’t just about computer to computer communication via a wireless connection – things such as traffic sensors can communicate with other machines to regulate traffic flow for example. Most companies are well on the way to M2M communications with the advent of Unified Communications (UC) – things just need to go that extra step then think how much easier our IT would be!

The year 2013 could see the integration of social networks, IM and email in the ongoing surge of Unified Communications (UC). As communication options and tools increase, the desire for a simple way to communicate will propel UC into every corner of the world.

Within four years, says research firm Gartner, the market for unified communication and collaboration components (UCC) – which includes things like voice, conferencing, IM and presence – will be driven by consumers who want to use leisure products for work and vice versa. Rather than spending time using each communication tool separately, UC will do it all together whether you’re purpose is business or recreation, merging UC and collaboration components. Happy days!