Dimension Data sees success with telepresence

02/09/10

Today, we hear from Dimension Data about its progress with telepresence following an interview we had recently with Dane Martin, a principal consultant for the company. Dimension Data, with more than 11,000 employees, is an IT services and solution provider that helps clients plan, build, support and manage their IT infrastructures. Dimension Data's Telepresence sales are closely aligned with Cisco and Tandberg.

SEN Group updates OpenScape Voice; Cisco plans iPhone app

02/05/10

Recent convergence news includes new OpenScape features from Siemens Enterprise Communications Group; an expanded fixed-mobile convergence offer from Sprint; Cisco's plans for an iPhone application; and a market update on Comcast' progress with VoIP.

AT&T U-verse reaches 1 million users

02/02/10

Today, we hit the convergence news highlights from AT&T on a VoIP service milestone, Agito with fixed mobile convergence progress, Zeacom on OCS integration, and Vidyo with a new telepresence system.

BroadSoft, Polycom announce integrated voice and video solution

01/29/10

BroadSoft and Polycom have introduced an integrated voice and video solution delivered over one common infrastructure. The solution, called "V2Connect", leverages Polycom's Open Collaboration Network strategy with BroadSoft's BroadWorks VoIP application platform and can be used by service providers to deliver a hosted service.

SEN Group, Polycom team up on telepresence, UC

01/26/10

This time we'll hit the highlights of several recent announcements coinciding with last week's IT Expo, including news from Siemens Enterprise Communications Group and Polycom, Verizon Business, Digium, Aastra, DASH Carrier Services and XCast Labs.

Avaya reveals integration plans

01/22/10

Avaya has unveiled its road map for product and service integration from the recently acquired Nortel Enterprise Solutions, so today we'll briefly cover the product highlights and include some insights from a post-announcement interview we had with Christopher Formant, president of Avaya Global Services.

ShoreTel launches release 10; Mitel to offer mobile services

01/19/10

ShoreTel had two announcements this week. The company has released its latest product version with ShoreTel 10, offering extended Microsoft Exchange 2007 including enhanced Session Initiation Protocol capabilities, T.38 fax integration and enhancements to multi-site capabilities. In the second announcement, the company disclosed that its ShoreTel 360 Legacy Migration Program has been successful with a "growing number" of enterprises.

Windstream announces SIP voice service

01/15/10

Windstream recently launched Dynamic Office–SIP as a business communications solution that combines voice, data and high-speed Internet services over a single connection. The voice connection includes the company's new Session Initiation Protocol trunks while the integrated service is offered over either a T1 or Ethernet access connection. Windstream already offers a hosted VoIP service.

MagicJack unveils femtocell at CES

01/12/10

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week, magicJack demonstrated a working femtocell at that connects GSM mobile handsets to a broadband-connected PC. Commercial service is planned for Q2 2010, with service prices less than $20 a year to make and receive unlimited local and domestic long-distance voice calls over the YMAX VoIP network. The femtocell USB device is priced separately at $20.

Skype supports HD video conferencing on PCs and HDTVs

01/08/10

Skype announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that it will support video calls on PCs in 720p high definition, as well as Skype software embedded into Internet-connected widescreen television sets. Skype has been delivering video conferencing to the desktop as a free service since 2005, so the HD-quality upgrade is a logical evolution of its existing PC to PC service.

Verizon combines wired Internet access with mobile broadband

01/05/10

In a twist on the usual fixed mobile convergence story angle that features the use of mobile devices for voice and unified communications applications, today we take note of a Verizon announcement that uses the mobile network for broadband backup targeted to the small/midsize business.

Genband to buy Nortel VoIP

01/04/10

While we were out on Christmas holiday, Genband signed an agreement last month late to buy Nortel's Carrier VoIP and Application Solutions Business Assets for $282 million and a total cost of ownership of over $400 million. Genband is working with One Equity Partners (one of Genband's existing shareholders) to acquire the Nortel assets. Like other Nortel asset sales, the purchase is subject to a competitive bidding process and closure is subject to customary legal and regulatory approvals.

Adtran announces UC offering

12/22/09

Adtran has entered the unified communications market with its recently introduced NetVanta Unified Communications Solution Suite, designed to accommodate from five to greater than 2,000 users per server. The solution's UC features include voice mail, unified messaging, fax server and auto attendant. The UC Solution Suite establishes an entry point for Adtran to take on other competitors such as Avaya and Cisco for the mid-tier and enterprise market.

Predictions for 2010, Part Two

12/18/09

Today we'll pick up where we left off last time, continuing with our predictions for 2010. We'll start with correcting our 2009 timeline predictions for 4G mobile applications. A year ago, we expected to see emerging fixed mobile convergence (FMC) applications designed for 4G networks. We still think this will happen, but it will be 2010 and beyond before FMC takes advantage of the broadband data bandwidth that LTE and WiMAX offer.

Predictions for 2010, Part 1

12/15/09

For our next several editions, we'll make some predictions about what we think might happen in the world of VoIP and convergence in 2010, beginning with some insights others have shared with us including industry veterans from IntelePeer, Siemens and a venture capital firm, MC Venture Partners.

Tallying up 2009 predictions

12/11/09

Today, we'll look back at the predictions we made a year ago to see how close we came with expectations for 2009, and in a week we'll look forward with some predictions for 2010. As we look back on 2009, we must admit it was filled with some pretty big surprises such as the breakup and sale of Nortel and the renewed FCC focus on net neutrality. But as we predicted 2009 was largely a year of gradual evolution for unified communications and convergence products and services.

Agito, Rivada team up

12/08/09

Agito Networks and Rivada Networks announced earlier this week that that their joint communications solution, the Interoperable Communications Extension, has been selected to help emergency response support for Homeland Security and Homeland Defense missions. The solution brings together interoperable voice, video and data communications to mobile deployments so that first responders can better communicate at an incident site.

Skype opens SIP beta program, Cisco's Tandberg acquisition moves forward

12/04/09

Skype has opened up its Session Initiation Protocol beta program so any business can now use its existing SIP-based PBX or unified communications systems. For the last several months, Skype had previously offered program participation with specific PBX and UC system vendors including ShoreTel and SIPfoundry.

XO announces SIP trunking solution

12/01/09

XO Communications has unveiled an enterprise-class, multi-site Session Initiation Protocol trunking solution designed to add flexibility and scalability to distributed voice network architecture for a more centralized and cost-effective VoIP solution. XO Enterprise SIP customers can use a centralized IP-PBX in one or a few primary locations to deliver VoIP services to other branch locations in the corporate WAN using XO's MPLS IP-VPN. Using SIP trunks can help customers reduce more expensive ISDN PRI or Digital T-1 voice trunks.

AT&T offers 'Caller ID on TV' app

11/25/09

AT&T announced earlier this month that it has added an on-screen "Caller ID on TV" application that displays U-verse Voice caller ID and voice mail notifications on the U-verse TV screen, offering the application to customers at no extra charge. By itself, the feature isn't particularly innovative -- especially since Cablevision, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner Cable already provide a similar service to their users. What is noteworthy from a convergence perspective is that underlying infrastructure enabling the on-screen caller ID feature uses an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) architecture and the Microsoft-supplied software that drives the U-verse set-top box.

Toshiba announces unified messaging product

11/20/09

Today we'll cover announcements from Toshiba with a unified messaging product targeting small/midsize businesses; from Mitel about an applications suite upgrade; and from a reader who commented earlier this month about our opinion pieces on net neutrality.

Cisco upgrades UC offerings

11/17/09

Cisco introduced wide-ranging upgrades with the latest release of its unified communications portfolio at the company's recent Collaboration Summit. The Cisco Unified Communications System 8.0 includes IP applications designed to improve communication using "federated presence" with instant messaging, customer care, conferencing, video and mobility capabilities, according to a Cisco statement.

Nortel adds UC features in software release

11/13/09

Today, we'll hit the highlights of recent announcements from Nortel with a new Business Communications Manager software release; Google, which has recently acquired Gizmo5; and a settlement reached between EBay and Skype founders.

Things to consider when installing VoIP

11/10/09

Today we hear about some practical tips from our longtime colleague William (Bill) Flanagan who heads up Flanagan Consulting. Flanagan has a comprehensive understanding of voice and data technologies, products, markets and customers derived from more than two decades of telecom experience.

Blabbelon announces free VoIP-based conferencing

11/06/09

Blabbelon has launched a free VoIP-based conferencing service that proved technically viable for more than 7,000 simultaneous same-conference users during a beta trial. Conference controls are included so session leaders can use, create and maintain their own private or public groups with text messages, e-mail notifications and privacy management.

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Steve Taylor is president of Distributed Networking Associates and publisher/editor-in-chief of Webtorials. Larry Hettick is a principal analyst at Current Analysis.