Service Provider Networks / Convergence /

Convedia pops low-end server for packet voice

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By Tim Greene
The Edge, 04/01/02

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - Convedia is introducing a low-end version of its media server designed for smaller packet voice service providers, larger providers with smaller locations and large companies.

CMS-1000 is a single device that can deliver custom IP telephony services such as voice mail, automated attendants and text-to-speech messaging. It is a scaled-down version of Convedia's carrier-class CMS-6000.

Media servers provide processing for voice network applications such as voice recognition and playing announcements that are hosted on separate application servers. Rather than each application having its own processing hardware, they share the media server, saving on the cost of equipment and reducing the number of devices to manage.

A corporation that provides voice recognition or touch-tone navigation of its customer-service phone system and also has audioconference bridging could use a CMS-1000 to process both applications.

"These [devices] are for larger enterprises that have their own dedicated IP networks, like financial firms, where security is important," says Jon Arnold, an analyst with Frost & Sullivan.

Convedia says a media server makes economic sense even if the customer is running only one application on it. As the number of applications increases, the more affordable it becomes, the company says.

A traditional audioconference bridge with dedicated hardware costs $1,000 per port, and a CMS-1000 can support the same service for $250 per port, Convedia says.

Service providers that host these services for corporate customers might dedicate CMS-1000s to customers who, for security reasons, don't want to share hardware with other customers, Convedia says.

Convedia breaks down the individual tasks the media server performs into seven categories: playing announcements; collecting and generating touch tones; bridging audio; recording and playing audio; performing text-to-speech translation; recognizing speech; and performing real-time video processing. The company says it will support video in 2003 and later will support text-to-speech.

Founded in 1996, Convedia faces start-up competitors IPUnity, SnowShore and ThinkEngine. None of these companies offer a media server as small as CMS-1000, which supports up to 300 simultaneous calls.

Morover, Convedia makes only media servers, unlike some of its competitors. It partners with other vendors to provide applications, softswitches and media gateways.

These partners include Pactolus, Iperia, Syndeo, Comgates, Unisphere Networks and Convergent Networks.

In a packet network, a media server would connect to media gateways that take in customer traffic, application servers and softswitches. To communicate with these other network devices, CMS-1000 supports Session Initiation Protocol, Media Gateway Control Protocol, MEGACO, voice XML, ATM Adaptation Layer and Real-time Transport Protocol.

While media servers are not used widely now, service providers that are testing them will start rolling out media server-based services in six to 12 months, Arnold says.

CMS-1000 will be available midyear at an entry-level cost of $22,000.

Convedia: www.convedia.com