ShoreTel has expanded its offerings with ShoreTel 8.1, which adds support for seven new countries, plus support for ShoreTel's Unified Communications desktop client. Also included are VPN-enabled phones and two new voice switches. The company has also established new offices and expanded its distribution channels to support the increased global portfolio.

ShoreTel 8.1 feature additions include:

* High resolution video-enabled ShoreWare Professional Call Manager with an improved look and feel, and enhanced usability. The new video option enables point-to-point high resolution video up to 1024x768.

* A VPN-enabled phone which requires a ShoreTel VPN Concentrator installed at the headquarter location and terminates the secure VPN tunnel established with the remote phones to provides a seamless network connection to the ShoreGear switches and servers on the LAN.

* A mid-range Gigabit IP Phone: the ShorePhone IP 230g provides full Gig-E network connectivity for users who need high speeds at the desktop with a compact form factor and functionally equivalent to the IP 230 telephone.

* Mobile Call Manager enhancements offering remote access to all the productivity features linked to their extensions with support for BlackBerry 81xx series (Pearl) BlackBerry 83xx series (Curve) , and BlackBerry 88xx series; Nokia E65; and the Motorola Razr V3 and Motorola Razr V3xx series.

* Improved support for connecting SIP-based end-points to the system to ShoreTel’s Office Anywhere feature.

* A broader choice of IM servers including ShoreTel Converged Conferencing 7.1, Microsoft LCS 2005 or Microsoft OCS 2007.

* Two new voice switches: the ShoreGear E1k replaces the ShoreGear E1 switch in the new 1U half-width form factor with a single E1 interface and the ShoreGear 30BRI which is designed as a very low-cost switch for small offices.

In a prepared statement John W. Combs, ShoreTel’s chairman, president and CEO said, "ShoreTel continues to aggressively invest in moving forward on its promise of innovative unified communications solutions, both in terms of the markets we serve and the capabilities we offer. We anticipate significant and steadily growing momentum, just as we have seen in the U.S."

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