By Blair Pleasant
There've been some changes to the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCIF) bylaws, which may encourage some of the vendor holdouts to join the forum - notably Cisco, Avaya, and IBM. These leading UC vendors have not joined the forum, which limits the value that the forum can actually provide. I'm hopeful that the changes to the bylaws will be the impetus needed to get these folks on board. Based on the changes, it appears that companies that are non-founders will have more say in what happens and can play a more important role, which was one of their primary complaints about the way the forum was structured. Read the rest of this article on UCStrategies.com.
By Pam Avila
There is no doubt that the convergence of voice, data, video and mobility has created a variety of challenges and opportunities for VARs, telecom and video dealers, and integrators. For anyone in the channel, one of the most significant challenges, as unified communications brings more and more opportunities, is determining which opportunities best fit the existing core competencies and strategies for the future. This article takes a look at the journey of one integrator who leveraged their initial core competencies developed as an IVR specialist to eventually become a premier UC integrator. Read the rest of this article on UCStrategies.com.
By Lisa Pierce
Based on statements it made yesterday, the FCC's Net Neutrality decision (FCC 10-201), leaves current and future U.S. UC customers and suppliers in no clearer or more certain circumstances than before. Uncertainty often inhibits investment in innovation, which is the exact opposite of the FCC's stated intentions. Read the rest of this article on UCStrategies.com.
By John Bartlett
Part of my consulting practice focuses on the network design needed to properly support voice and video conferencing (real-time) traffic on an IP network. One of the big disconnects today is on the testing side. Many enterprises are not using the right kind of test tools to find and fix problems in real-time traffic support. Read the rest of this article on UCStrategies.com.
I contend that gaining access to UC from the cloud is nothing new: the current enterprise UC technology derived from free consumer services such as the large Instant Messenger (IM) services, Skype, etc., all of which are hosted in remote data centers accessible via the internet. However, with commercial UC, this notion is being extended from a free ‘best efforts' social service to one that is more aligned to business communications and is therefore a substitute for traditional voice networks provided by the telephony carriers. Read the rest of this article on UCStrategies.com.
Before it became a necessity during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, many companies had already begun realizing the benefits inherent in embracing remote work. These benefits are substantial and signal that (even when the pandemic is but a memory) remote work will continue to flourish and become a mainstay in the redefined workplace - particularly when it comes to VoIP. This guide will demonstrate how the workforce is changing and leaning toward remote work as a permanent business choice, explain the critical role VoIP will continue to play in supporting remote work, and highlight some of the new trends and innovations coming in 2021 for VoIP. more