User manual | Internet Telephony December Digital Issue 2006

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K
By Richard “Zippy” Grigonis
Group Publisher and Editor-In-Chief,
Rich Tehrani
([email protected])
EDITORIAL
Group Editorial Director, Greg Galitzine
([email protected])
Executive Editor, Richard Grigonis
([email protected])
Associate Editor, Erik Linask
End-of-Year
Ruminations
([email protected])
TMC LABS
Executive Technology Editor/CTO/VP, Tom Keating
([email protected])
ART
Senior Art Director, Lisa D. Morris
Art Director, Alan Urkawich
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
Nadji Tehrani, Chairman and CEO
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and Conferences
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203-838-4070
It’s that time of year when we tie up some loose
ends, collect and straighten out some other
odds and ends, and lend an ear to everyone
who has something important to say.
You’ll find in this December issue of Internet Telephony our always-comprehensive annual Buyers’ Guide, a keepsake that for many months will reside on
the desks of telecom managers around the globe.
Even so, a Buyers’ Guide, even as impressive as ours, is a static document
that can reveal only what goods and services are available — not ‘what it all
means’. That’s why you’ll also discover in this issue a large article about what
happened in IP Communications in 2006 and where it’s going in 2007. Yours
Truly talked with experts at 17 companies operating in various areas of our
industry to amass the varied opinions found in these pages. Interestingly, there
does seem to be some consensus among our industry figures: For example, the
fact that new phone systems deployments inevitably have some kind of IP
Communication capability, that IMS will slowly take its final form and be
deployed over the next year, and that voice is just one aspect of a growing
mélange of collaboration, conferencing, and instant messaging that will roam
with users. A year or so ago I coined the term “the Personal Cloud” to describe
this evolution in communications — in 2007 we’ll see if this “cloud” turns out
to be seamless, or just a patchwork of “almost interoperable” technologies that
needs more work.
One thing that everybody definitely agrees upon is that IP Communications
is not just growing, but is becoming really interesting, even intriguing.
These days, it’s difficult to believe that, in the long-ago circuit-switched days,
telecom was actually a boring industry, and those of us who wrote about it
were even more boring. Things were so mind-numbing that one of my former
editors, when playing golf with strangers, would avoid questions such as, “So,
what kind of industry do you work in?” He would pretend to be something
other than a telecom writer/editor, though he never said exactly what that was.
(Ventriloquist? Middle manager at a bowling ball factory? Stand-up comic?
Warm-up act for the Doodletown Pipers? We’ll never know.) Fortunately, IP
Communications is a lot more interesting than attempting to make a call with
a Western Electric 302 black rotary desk phone, as in the Days of Yore.
But even VoIP (define - news - alert) is no longer the tail that wags the IP
Communications dog. Communications is exciting again. Like the South Pole
in Frank Herbert’s Dune science fiction novels, it’s a land of mystery and possibility. It’s a place where some upcoming IMS-hatched “killer app” will make
communications — and business itself — not just more productive, but more
effortless and entertaining as well. Some people may find the details of such a
paradigm too gimmicky, while others will take the opposite view, calling IP
Communications a panacea for every business problem. The truth, as always,
lies somewhere in between. IT
Richard Grigonis is Executive Editor of TMC’s IP Communications Group.
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 1
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11/9/06 4:08:40 PM
Volume 9/ Number 12
December 2006
Contents
IN EACH ISSUE
10 Publisher’s Outlook
Cisco Systems Rockets Ahead,
Beats all Estimates
By Rich Tehrani, Publisher, Internet Telephony
COLUMNS
48 MindShare 2.0
IP Communications Enterprise Market Trends
By Marc Robins
50 Inside Networking
Unified Communications Meets SOA
By Tony Rybczynski
52 VoIPeering
Least Cost ENUM Routing
By Hunter Newby
54 Enterprise View
Spam for Internet Telephony: Hype or Reality?
By Dan York
56 Regulation Watch
VoIP E911: A Year in Review
78
By William B. Wilhelm, Jr., Esq. and
Jeffrey R. Strenkowski, Esq.
58 Integrator’s Corner
VoIP: All Mixed Up
by Joel A. Pogar
62 Disaster Preparedness
A Summary of the Disaster Preparedness
and Business Continuity Workshop at
IT Conference & EXPO West 2006
By Rich Tehrani & Max Schroeder
64 For the Record
Turning Metrics into Gold
QUOTE OF THE MONTH:
“
“
By Kelly Anderson
“I like to play with acronyms. IMS means a
lot of things to many different people: To
service providers from a business perspective,
IMS stands for ‘Incoming Money Soon’. From a vendor perspective, it means, ‘Install More Sh*#’. If you’re on the operations side, trying to make it work, it means, ‘Inflict More
Suffering’. And in the background across all
of this, it means that the ‘IETF [Socialistic]
Mindset Sucks’. As you can tell, I’m not
politically correct, I’m very irreverent.”
— Seamus Hourihan, page 80
4 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
DEPARTMENTS
1 The Zippy Files
16 Industry News
68 Rich Tehrani’s Executive Suite:
SPIRIT DSP’s Andrew Sviridenko
70 Rich Tehrani’s Executive Suite:
Siemen’s Tom Zimmerman
74 Special Focus: ITEXPO East Preview
76 Special Focus: ITEXPO West Best of Show
92 CEO Spotlight: Affinity VoIP Telecom
118 VoIP Marketplace
119 Ad Index
120 The VoIP Authority
EDITORIAL SPONSORSHIP SERIES
46 Hosted Services — A Logical Choice for Business
FEATURE ARTICLES
78 The Year in Review... The Year Ahead
By Richard “Zippy” Grigonis
2007 BUYERS’ GUIDE
94 Index
96 Alphabetical Listings
104 Product/Service Listings
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Contents
WHAT’S ON TMCNET.COM RIGHT NOW
To stay current and to keep up-to-date with all that’s happening in the fastpaced world of IP telephony, just point your browser to
http://www.tmcnet.com for all the latest news and analysis. With more than
16 million page views per month, translating into more than 1,000,000 visitors, TMCnet.com is where you need to be if you want to know what’s
happening in the world of VoIP.
Here’s a list of several articles currently on our site.
Top Cities Visiting TMCnet
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Herndon, VA
Milton, Australia
Marina Del Rey, CA
Singapore
Middletown, NJ
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
New York, NY
Mountain View, CA
San Jose, CA
Cambridge, MA
Redmond, WA
Driving Revenue into the Network Through Higher-Margin,
Value-Added Services
The telecommunications industry is undergoing a fundamental
shift as it migrates from circuit- to IP-based switching. This profound change is resulting in more efficient network architecture
with lower administration and operating overheads. It is also leading to the democratization of the provision of telecommunication
services with far greater functionality and breadth of services.
http://www.tmcnet.com/402.1
The One To Watch: Mobile TV
As uptake of 3G increases and more video-enabled devices are
sold, widespread adoption of Mobile TV edges closer. Initial indicators are good, with telecommunications researcher Telephia indicating a 45 percent quarter-on-quarter growth in mobile TV viewers to 3.7 million subscribers in the second quarter of 2006.
http://www.tmcnet.com/403.1
WHAT’S ON TMCNET.COM RIGHT NOW
http://www.tmcnet.com/406.1
TMC’s Triple Play Channel
The Triple Play Channel on TMCnet.com
features the latest news, articles, and case
studies in the booming Triple Play space.
With so many service providers actively
engaged in triple play discussions, be sure
to regularly visit the Triple Play Channel for
the latest news and features:
http://www.tmcnet.com/channels/tripleplay/. Sponsored by NetCentrex.
TMC’s Unified Communications Channel
The idea behind unified communications is
to eliminate the barriers created by the
communications silos by integrating all
forms of business communications. The
Unified Communications Channel brings
you the latest news and contributed editorial surrounding the convergence of email,
IM, VoIP, cellular, video, and Web-based
communications. To learn more, visit
http://www.tmcnet.com/channels/unifiedcommunications. It is sponsored by
Iwatsu.
6 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Overcoming System Incompatibilities Brought On By M&A
The lineage of my cable company reminds me a bit of a cartoon
from my childhood in which a small fish is eaten by a larger fish,
which has a big smile on his face until he is promptly swallowed
whole by an even larger fish, which in turn is quickly devoured by
a shark. The entire scene transpires in about two seconds.
http://www.tmcnet.com/404.1
Mobile Communications Now Acceptable at Holiday Gatherings
It used to be that holiday gatherings were a time to put all else
aside, and be with loved ones around the table, chatting and catching up on happenings in each other’s lives. When cell phones and
other communication methods emerged, it became ill-mannered to
answer them.
http://www.tmcnet.com/405.1
A Luxury Item No More
If you have ever moved in with someone, you know how hard it can
be to merge two sets of belongings. Suddenly, you find yourselves
with two sets of furniture, two sets of silverware, and two sets of
TVs and remotes. How will they fit into one abode? Most companies
have felt the same way about upgrading their legacy CRM systems.
What is the best way to merge your old data with any new data? And
how do you collect data and report on the old and the new?
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Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
IP Communications
Blogs
VoIP Blog — Tehrani.com
VoIP Authority Blog
Microsoft VoIP
Deutsche Bank on Tekelec
Andy has an entry
titled Microsoft to Enter
the VoIP World today
and it seems to sync up
with what I am seeing
and hearing from the
company as well. It
remains to be seen how
seriously Microsoft
pushes into VoIP in
2007 though. What I
can tell you is many
large enterprises are
looking at what Microsoft (quote - news -alert) does very closely. Many
shared these thoughts with me at the last ITEXPO.
Deutsche Bank Securities released
a company bulletin of Tekelec
today, a company that’s been in the
news this morning over the purported potential sell-off of their
Switching Solutions Group, which
was formed through the acquisitions over the past several years of
Santera, Taqua, and VocalData.
TMC’s editorial team is looking into
this developing story, but I thought
I’d share a bit of what was in the
Deutsche Bank report this a.m.
According to the bulletin...
In particular many enterprises are focusing on Microsoft’s vision for the
endpoints their employees will be using. Will phones be obsolete soon
they wonder? These discussions have been around for years of course
— now that Microsoft is more seriously in the game they are being
revisited.
See more of what Greg Galitzine has to say
at: http://voip-blog.tmcnet.com/blog/
greg-galitzine/
One might imagine that Microsoft doesn’t need to push phones but in
reality Microsoft will be playing more seriously in the enterprise phone
business and let’s not forget Windows Mobile devices that will work with
the company’s VoIP initiatives as well.
What most people don’t realize is that Microsoft is reentering the VoIP
space. They entered it in around 1996 with NetMeeting and then left it
for a number of years. Yes Microsoft is never first but was second in the
mid-nineties when they decided to copy the softphone from VocalTec.
To stay in the loop, visit Rich’s blog daily at http://tehrani.com
VoIP & Gadgets Blog
Broadcom PC-less Skype WiFi phone
Broadcom (news - alert) oday announced that the
Broadcom WiFi phone now supports Skype software.
Similar to other PC-less Skype
phones, you will be able to
scroll through your contacts,
see presence info, make free
Skype-to-Skype calls, as well
as SkypeIn and SkypeOut
support if you paid for these
optional services. The beauty
of this WiFi Skype phone is of
course you don’t have to be
tethered to your PC, nor does
this Skype phone have to
communicate with a base station connected (via USB) to a
PC running Skype.
8 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
The handset features include a high-resolution color display, speakerphone and Buffalo’s
AOSS easy configuration protocol.
The Buffalo WiFi phone will be
Skype (news - alert) Certified and
available for the Japanese market
in November 2006. The handset
comes with everything built-in to
connect to Skype via any personal,
business or free public WiFi
access point that does not
require browser authentication.
For more, check out Tom Keating’s blog at:
http://blog.tmcnet.com/blog/tom-keating/
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By Rich Tehrani
Cisco Systems Rockets Ahead,
Beats all Estimates.
Certainly the biggest news in recent months is that Cisco Systems, the world’s
biggest vendor of computer-networking equipment, reported first-quarter
2007 net sales of $8.2 billion (exceeding analyst predictions, which ranged
from $7.9 billion to about $8.05 billion) and net income of $1.61 billion (up
28% from last year). In a public statement, Cisco’s CEO John Chambers
boasted that the company “achieved, once again, record revenue of approximately $8.2 billion, a 25 percent year-over-year increase and a Cisco standalone increase of approximately 16 percent, which was above our standalone
guidance of 11 to 13 percent,” adding, “This is the fastest standalone yearover-year revenue growth rate we have seen in several years.”
After the news appeared, investors jumped into the market,
An increase in the number of broadband connections
sending Cisco (quote - news - alert) shares surging 7% to a
means that more Cisco routers and other infrastructure
new 52-week high of $27.44. The stock closed that day with
devices are sold, which is reflected in Cisco’s increased reva 6% gain, at $26.71 on the Nasdaq. Analysts everywhere
enues. Cisco’s U.S. equipment orders grew in the upper-teens
either immediately upgraded their rating on the stock to
and European orders grew in the low double-digits. Carrier
“buy” or else increased their price targets.
orders increased 23%, and even enterprise purchases of Cisco
The Associated Press quoted Ittai Kidron, an analyst with
equipment reached into the mid-teens.
CIBC: “Few businesses Cisco’s size can claim to have achieved
Two specific areas of hyper-growth for Cisco were wireless
what it did in [the quarter] — outperformance in nearly every which grew at 40% year-over-year and Unified
product line. . . From routers and switches to Digital set-tops
Communications at 30%.
and Storage Networks, the company had a breakout quarter,
But broadband growth in Europe, as impressive as it sounds,
with strong order trends and market share gains. . .”
is just part of the story. Broadband in Asia, particularly China, is
There are actually several reasons for Cisco’s good fortune,
growing at a phenomenal rate — adoption rate increases have
the most superficial of which was a strong rally of technology
reached 90% or more annually in China alone. According to the
stocks. One should take more notice of, for example, Cisco’s
DSL Forum, there are over 140 million consumer broadband
astute $6.9 billion acquisition of set-top box manufacturer
connections worldwide, around 37% of which are in EMEA.
Scientific-Atlanta in February 2006, which added $584 milThe world is stampeding toward broadband, and if Cisco
lion to net sales during the quarter. (Scientific Atlanta orders
can continue to boost its presence in global markets and
also increased 20% during this time.)
achieve the same kind of inroads worldwide as it has in
But even more important was Banc of America Securities
Europe, Japan and the U.S., its revenues will be even more
Analyst Tim Long noting that Cisco had boosted the number
impressive. To reach smaller and more varied carrier markets,
of its sales personnel, and the company had done particularly
Cisco launched during the quarter a new, small form factor
well in Europe and Japan, all while maintaining healthy sales
version (4-slots, single-shelf ) of their Cisco CRS-1 Carrier
in the USA.
Routing System, 8 and 16-slot
Much of Cisco’s spectacular
of which are normally
Cisco Also Does Well in the Philippines versions
success, then, can be attributed
found in the Internet’s largest
to good old-fashioned increased Apparently massive call center growth in the call center core installations.
industry has led Cisco to grow 100% in call center
sales of equipment, thanks to
As it is, however, I’m sure they
products and a full 333% in the IT storage space.
Cisco becoming diversified geofeel good about having 50%
graphically just as the world is
share of the router market and
experiencing accelerated broadband and VoIP adoption.
about 70% of the overall Ethernet switching market. Just as
For example, as of June 2006, Analysis Research
AT&T/Lucent and Nortel were the “duopoly” of the North
(http://research.analysys.com) estimated that the number of
American PBX market, the world of big core routing/switchbroadband connections in Europe rose by 4.4 million in the
ing devices also has a duopoly, Cisco and Juniper Networks,
second quarter of 2006 to reach 74.8 million. The proportion which have a combined market share of over 95%. It helps to
of European broadband connections using DSL held steady at explain how Cisco can be holding onto a hefty $16 billion in
79.9%, while cable lost a bit of share, from 16.6% to 16.4%.
cash and no long-term debt, not to mention its ability to genGermany remains the largest broadband market in Europe,
erate a cash flow averaging more than $600 million per month.
with 12.5 million connections (16.8% of Europe’s broadband
Aside from selling infrastructure equipment to support
connections), followed by the UK and France.
more broadband ports, Cisco is deriving increased revenues
10 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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ONE FOCUS.
ONE VISION.
ONE COMPANY.
Dialogic and Eicon have come together as One. The one with over 50 industry firsts and millions of
ports deployed. The one with more than 20 global locations dedicated to the advancement of
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powerful than ever. With over 40 years of telecommunications experience, we are poised to lead the
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www.dialogic.com
The Conclusion of the
Zultys Saga — For Now
from VoIP. After all, once people become broadband subscribers, they ask their friends what else they can do with it
other than surf the web quickly. IP Communications is generally the first “other thing” they hear about.
As VoIP (define - news - alert) usage increases, so does
Cisco’s revenues from its Linksys home router/gateway division, which started shipping VoIP products in April 2005 and
has seen the fastest growth of any Cisco/Linksys product line.
These products include the Linksys Phone Adapter for existing routers, the Wireless-G Router with two phone ports (that
was named Best VoIP Product in the Wireless Broadband
Innovation Awards), and the Wired Broadband Router with two
phone ports. Once you plug in your phone to one of these
devices, you can then subscribe to Vonage, AT&T CallVantage,
Verizon VoiceWing, or EarthLink TrueVoice, depending on
which device is supported by the provider.
Linksys and Yahoo have teamed up to sell a cordless phone
— the Linksys Dual-Mode Cordless Phone for Yahoo
Messenger with Voice (CIT310) — that’s specifically designed
to make free PC-to-PC calls using Yahoo’s Internet voice service. You can also use your Yahoo Phone Out accounts and
Yahoo Phone In accounts to make and receive calls. The
phone’s base station plugs into a conventional phone jack to
access ordinary PSTN phone service, and by pressing a button
on the phone users can toggle between regular PSTN service
and Yahoo Messenger with Voice service. The Linksys
CIT310 has a range of 985 feet outdoors and about 165 feet
indoors. Standby time is 100 hours and talk time is 10 hours.
However, word-of-mouth inevitably leads many broadband
users to the world’s single most popular free VoIP application,
Skype. As of November 2006 there were 113 million registered Skype users across the globe and over eight million
simultaneous Skype calls at any given time. Fortunately,
Linksys also offers a phone similar to the CIT310 for Skype
users, the Linksys CIT200 Skype.
So, just as Cisco’s infrastructure equipment sales are tied to
a global increase in broadband and VoIP adoption, so too is
the success of Cisco’s Linksys division.
Of course, Cisco is involved in other related areas. During the
quarter they acquired Arroyo Video Solutions and Meetinghouse
Data Communications. They introduced their TelePresence conferencing solution and launched the Cisco Digital Media System
and Cisco Wide Area Application Services.
With increased purchases of Cisco gear from enterprises
and service providers as they move into bandwidth-hungry
IMS and multimedia-centric environments, Cisco Systems
could very well continue its phenomenal growth for a surprisingly long time. Much of this growth of course is thanks to
Don’t Forget About
ITEXPO January in Florida
I love Florida in January and experience has shown that
the world’s buyers of VoIP and IP communications journey every year to ITEXPO East in Ft. Lauderdale. The
brochure for this show is now available and the conferences will be better than ever before. Don’t forget about
the collocated IMS and Call Center 2.0 events. Check it
out at http://www.itexpo.com and join us January 23-26 in 2007.
12 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
A few months back, TMC’s Greg Galitzine broke the
story (http://www.tmcnet.com/396.1) on his blog that
Zultys had ceased day-to-day operations. From there I
wrote about (http://www.tmcnet.com/397.1) the company closing down on my blog and later updated the story
when Zultys founder Iain Milnes told me the shut down
was temporary. A few days later Iain told me and I reported (http://www.tmcnet. com/398.1) that Zultys was back
up and running.
It turns out that if the company was indeed back up
and running this was only the case for a short while and a
bankruptcy filing took place shortly thereafter with a
bankruptcy auction in the works for the future. While this
situation took place, TMCnet
(http://www.tmcnet.com/399.1) and I reported
(http://www.tmcnet.com/400.1) on the happenings. Out
of the blue I received a phone call from a Zultys reseller
who told me how big his sales pipeline was and moreover
how big the pipeline of other resellers was. He had nothing but amazingly positive comments to share.
I shared the comments of this reseller who requested
anonymity under a blog entry titled Zultys Reseller
Update (http://www.tmcnet.com/401.1). It was at this
point the fireworks began. Dozens of commenters were
either supportive of Zultys or berated Zultys and even me
for having the nerve to write what a reseller told me. Well
the reseller was insulted so many times in the blog comments he decided to divulge his identity and from there
more people joined in on the dialog. I received many calls
and emails about this single entry and it blew me away
that a single blog entry became the general source for the
Zultys community to get its moment-by-moment information on the happenings of the bankruptcy proceedings.
The comments on the blog started to wind down once
the announcement was made that Pivot, a company supported by Telrad Connegy, an Israeli-based PBX manufacturer with a 50-year involvement in the global telecom
arena, had purchased the Zultys assets and hired many of
their engineers.
About a week or so after the auction, I received an
email from Iain Milnes, who told me he wanted to talk
about the real facts regarding the ordeal and he went on
to say that a tremendous amount of misinformation had
been spread. He wasn’t able to discuss any of this until we
spoke recently.
I had a conversation with Milnes for over an hour and
what emerged is quite interesting. He started off by saying
he believes the new management is acting very stupidly as
they are closing down sales offices throughout the world.
Many Zultys resellers around the world have complained to
Zultys that they have not been contacted. Iain went on to
explain there are eight times as many people in China and
India than there are in the U.S. He spent years building
up sales and partnerships in these areas and now the new
Zultys/Pivot management has destroyed it all in four days.
Milnes went on to say that 60% of the company’s business was international and there were offices in Bangalore,
China, and throughout the world. Iain went on to say
that, at Zultys, they were shooting for the stars and the
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goal was to make the company an international force in a short
amount of time. Many Zultys customers were international as well,
so they required their communications partner to be the same.
Iain continued by saying the international customers will not be
happy with service and support going forward but they love the
product.
Iain and I discussed the fact that an argument can be made that
the company is where it is because of a failed strategy that needs to
be changed. To this he replied that the new management seems to
think you should grow domestically and then expand overseas. He
sees this as a flawed strategy, as you aren’t able to sell multinationals in this manner and now the channels are already built. Their
offices in the UK and Australia are deserted, and China is winding
down and relinquishing their lease.
Iain reiterated the point that even if you think international
expansion was a flawed investment, it has already occurred.
“Homologation in China took 2 years,” he said emphatically. It
has been made and done and now the office had big orders from
major institutions and was profitable. As he said, “Even if you say
Milnes did a bad job with international expansion, not retaining it
is an even greater mistake.” In his opinion, the company doesn’t
understand why the company has failed. He believes if you are in
the PBX space and aren’t in China and other parts of the world
today, you can never break into these markets.
So why did the company fail? As Iain tells it, Zultys started with
a strategy of making the company hundreds of millions of dollars.
He says he didn’t think they could push Cisco or Avaya out but
they thought they could be in the top 3 or 5. He mentioned
Zultys was number 3 in Australia this summer in PBX sales.
After investing $67 million of his own money into the company
Iain decided to seek a round of funding in the fourth quarter of
last year. In the first and second quarters of this year they had
more orders than they could deliver. He needed money to put into
making products to fulfill expansion. They spoke to 5 investment
bankers. Citigroup courted them and got the business as they
thought there were good fundamentals, distribution, and the press
and analysts were talking highly about the company.
Everyone figured it would take only a few months to get the dollars they needed to keep going and to continue their expansion.
Citigroup wanted to be part of the IPO which everyone believed
would be a few years away. The investment bank spoke to 97
investors on their behalf and at the end they had one investor.
Verbal terms were then agreed upon a few days later, but when they
expected a term sheet to arrive they instead received a rejection.
According to Milnes, “There was no Plan B and that was the
problem.” They never thought they would fail. They seemed to
sincerely believe they would get the money and that others would
see the value in what they created and did.
In addition, the company had spent money manufacturing overseas but the products never ramped up enough to make it an intelligent investment. In other words, for the amount of product sold,
it would have been cheaper to make them in the U.S. Iain seems
to have toyed with the idea of laying off the engineering team to
save money in order to get them through the tough times, but this
didn’t seem like a wise idea while the company was seeking investors.
Iain went on to recount the reasons for failure. The list reads as
follows and seemed more like a confession than an interview.
• They should have been selling more.
• They should have worked out why they were having their particular problems.
• He understands it now.
14 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
• He was the head of the company and it was a team effort.
• They didn’t market as well as they could have.
• They didn’t engineer fast enough.
• They made lots of mistakes.
• The guy on top — him — did not really know how to take
this through with a Plan B.
• They should have planned more carefully.
Iain believes if the company had $10 million and working capital Zultys could have been a great company. He says he will go to
his grave wondering why no one wanted to invest in Zultys and he
thinks PBXs have been around 100 years and are not sexy.
Milnes went on to talk about all the international success Zultys
experienced and how resellers are now sad they have to go to more
complicated systems from the competition.
He doesn’t think the software engineers have a clue how to run
a company. He did point out that he started out [on his own] 20
years ago and wouldn’t deny the opportunity to anyone. The challenge as he sees it is in picking up a living, breathing organism.
“They are out of their depths,” he said, adding, “They have no
clue how to run a company or what is required to sell, service, and
support a product.” He also feels that a few of them have stabbed
him in the back. He mentioned that some people currently at
Zultys feel the same way and many of these people are looking for
other jobs while collecting a paycheck at the company.
Iain went on to say he is sorry to the suppliers, resellers, customers, and employees. He is very sorry for causing so much
havoc. He knows he affected lives of employees. He made a mistake and he thinks he knows what he did wrong and what he
would do right in the future
I asked Iain what is next for him. He said he will be forming a
new company. He doesn’t know what it is going to do, but he said,
“I think I know a bit about communications and running a company.” He said lots of people have come to him and want to work
for him. He is still looking for ideas, so if you have any, Iain asks
you to let me know and I will forward them to him.
I have known Iain for over a decade. The last company he worked
at was called Zarak and it used to make testing products. One of
these product lines was called Abacus. The company was purchased
a number of years back by Spirent and I mentioned to him that
Spirent is still selling the Abacus product. At that point he told me
that China sales had mushroomed after Spirent purchased Zarak.
Milnes recently went to dinner with a former salesperson for
Spirent who told him that in China they love the Abacus product.
He was hoping to achieve this same success with Zultys products.
Zultys was into some pretty big accounts. He thinks they could
have been very dominant in another 5 years
Iain said, “The loss of international emphasis is the gain of
other companies who can capitalize on it.” He went on to say he
was working so hard and putting in the money. He said he should
have stood back and looked at the market. He believes he should
have hired a good CFO one year ago and this might have helped,
though he mentioned he wasn’t looking at the numbers.
Iain summed it up by saying that he saw the success, but did
not see the need for cash until it was too late. They wanted to
believe they would be successful in raising it. He did not keep his
eye on long-term cash flow. That was the fundamental problem in
his opinion. Iain also said that Zultys could have sold more, had
better engineers, marketers and sales people. He reiterated it was
team effort. He asked, “Why was Zarak so successful?” He said
they demonstrated excellence in everything they did. He felt they
needed more excellence in Zultys. He summarized by saying he
blew it and he is terribly sorry — to everyone. IT
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page 18
Nortel Strengthens Support for SMBs
MobileAccess Networks and Cognio Team
Ericsson Announces New Version of its MX-ONE
Askey and Texas Instruments in VoIP Deal
Aruba Plots Course for True Mobility
page 24
Patton Now Shipping VoIP IADs
Ixia Consolidates Triple Play Testing
Raytheon Selects Themis RES Servers for
DAP Progrqm
AMTELCO XDS Adds Support for H.100 PCI Boards
BroadLogic Intros TeraPIX Video Processor for Cable
Pactolus Becomes an Open Source for VoIP Developers
Sangoma Ships T1/E1 PCI Cards
Verizon Business Intros Web Conferencing Service
Hosted VoIP Includes FMC, Naturally
Voxpath Launches Harmonica Connect Services
Espial’s Evo Server Based on a Strong Pedigree
page 28
Cingular, Samsung, Microsoft Launch BlackJack
Smartphone
Cypress Introduces 2.4 GHz Wireless VoIP Headset
Gennum Releases New VoIP Headset
Skype Selects iSkoot to Deliver Services to Mobile
Operators
Sprint, Microsoft Strike Deal to Offer Mobile Search
page 38
CounterPath’s VoIP Softphone Certified with BroadSoft
Inter-Tel 7000 SIP Softswitch Available
Data Connection Participates in Global SIP
Interop Event
page 40
Exit41 Improves Fast Food Drive-Thru
Telrex Announces CallRex Support For Cisco
UCN Announces Real-Time Call Center Benchmarking
Please tell the vendors
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INTERNET
TELEPHONY®
Magazine
www.itmag.com
16 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
page 42
Avaya Acquires Traverse Networks
WildPackets Teams with Gigamon
VoIP Supply and CyberData Partner
Tektronix Acquires VoIP Test Provider Minacom
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Nortel Strengthens Support for SMBs with New Products
and Enhancements
By Stefania Viscusi
(quote - news - alert) In a bid to help SMBs maximize their efforts towards cost savings, productivity, streamlined operations and superior customer service, Nortel
announced new products and enhancements for their SMB portfolio, which provides a
complete end-to-end solution that addresses the specific needs of the SMB market,
including voice, data, wireless, and Internet solutions.
As part of their latest move to strengthen their SMB offerings, Nortel has announced
two new products. The Business Ethernet Switch 200 and the Business Ethernet Switch
50. The introductions of these new products are an enhancement to the companies
recently announced SMB portfolio that includes solutions to “bring the power of wireless
LAN, Ethernet switching, security, and converged voice and data to smaller business,”
according to the company.
To further strengthen their foothold in the SMB market, Nortel also announced a series
of enhancements to their already existing SMB offerings. One of the key enhancements
can be seen in the Business Communications Manager (BCM) 50 Release 2. This platform, providing converged voice and data communication capabilities for SMBs, will now
feature reporting, real-time and Web presence features, with the addition of the
Intelligent Contact Center and Multimedia Contact Center.
http://www.nortel.com
MobileAccess Networks and Cognio Team on Quality
for Enterprise Wireless Networks
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18 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
By Laura Stotler
Cognio (news - alert) and MobileAccess Networks (news - alert) are teaming up
in an effort to ensure quality and reliability of enterprise wireless networks. The
MobileAccess Universal Wireless Network will be used in tandem with Cognio’s
Spectrum Expert to ensure customers receive real-time spectrum analysis capabilities to help detect foreign causes of interference that can degrade network performance.
The Universal Wireless Network from MobileAccess mitigates interference risks
that are associated with separate or parallel wireless networks. It features a “WireIt-Once” architecture to deliver all of a customer’s wireless services through a single, multi-service infrastructure in which the interference challenge is contained to
one network. The solution conditions every signal to ensure there is no serviceimpacting interference between wireless services running on the system.
When the Cognio Spectrum Expert is added to a multi-service wireless environment, enterprises may protect against unexpected external interference and
enhance their wireless environments. The tools from Cognio offer real-time spectrum analysis, enabling customers to isolate where and when their wireless networks are at risk from foreign interference. When combined with MobileAccess,
the Cognio solution is ideal for large enterprise customers requiring multiple wireless services indoors as well as those who require ongoing interference detection
capabilities.
“Disparate infrastructures and networks create huge challenges when it comes
to the predictability and resiliency of wireless applications and services,” said Jeff
White, executive vice president at Cognio. “We are excited about our relationship
with MobileAccess because together we address both the interference issues
caused by multiple wireless networks and the introduction of foreign devices.
Cognio provides enterprise IT managers the unprecedented ability to identify
devices that degrade network performance, ensuring that WiFi and other networks
operate at peak performance and support mission-critical network services.”
http://www.mobileaccess.com
http://www.cognio.com
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11/14/2006
11:04 AM
Page 1
Ericsson Announces New Version of its MX-ONE Platform
By Anuradha Shukla
Ericsson (news - alert) has launched the third release of its MX-ONE, which
optimizes business communications with unique mobility features that
increase efficiency and reduces total cost of ownership. Version three of
MX-ONE can seamlessly handle voice and data applications and combine mobile and fixed functionalities across private and public networks.
Enterprises can use the solution to control and reduce total cost of
ownership by delivering high accessibility and flexibility. They can also
smoothly and safely migrate to a future-proof IP network at their individual
pace. With extended system capacity for up to 50,000 end-users, standardized management, and Web-based tools, the new version of the MX-ONE IP
PBX can maximize business communications.
The version also includes SIP support, in both terminals and trunking for networked systems. MS Office users can now look up and dial people directly from any
MS Office document or application thanks to the integration towards Microsoft Live
Communication Server.
Businesses can also use the new version to integrate messaging and multimedia services with business class voice communications. Additionally MX-ONE Version 3 enables
wireless telephony over WiFi and allows the network to identify the origin of emergency
calls made from IP phones. Moreover security has also been enhanced on all areas of management accesses, and media encryption has been introduced.
Ericsson’s recent acquisition of Netwise has strengthened converged enterprise services
and new business applications like contact and presence management. The company can
offer businesses a complete solution to meet their needs together with other Ericsson
Enterprise products, such as WLAN base stations and applications.
The Ericsson Corporate Telephony client for mobile smartphones P990 and M600 is a
further enhancement of the MX-ONE Mobile Extension. The enhancement enables integration of mobile users with corporate databases and support functions.
http://www.sonyericsson.com
Askey and Texas Instruments in VoIP Deal
By Johanne Torres
Askey Computer (news - alert) announced it has opted for Texas Instruments (TI)’s
(quote - news - alert) VoIP systems for its IP phones and residential and enterprise gateways. Specifically, Askey chose to deploy TI’s integrated VoIP silicon and software systems, which include the Telogy Software for VoIP and PIQUA software used for better
voice quality and IP performance. The first IP phone and gateway products which will
incorporate TI’s technology from Askey, the VPD1120 phone and the VGE1020 residential gateway and VG603 enterprise gateway, are all currently in production.
“TI’s high-performance VoIP technology with embedded quality features offer us the
most integrated hardware and software solutions to deliver the best and most flexible
VoIP products to our customers,” said Wangson Wang, senior director, broadband communication division I, R&D group at Askey in a statement. “We are very impressed with
the company’s solid roadmap for developing and enhancing its VoIP product portfolio.”
TI’s TNETV1055 will power Askey’s IP phone products by expanding the options for
designers to create a wide variety of IP phone offerings. With TI’s software, Askey will
also be able to integrate different features into its IP phones.
Alternatively, TI’s TNETV2021 and TNETV2840 will enable Askey to provide products
featuring echo cancellation, adaptive jitter buffering, and tone detection. This combo
seems to be a good option for small to medium enterprise applications to be used at
places such as apartment buildings and college dorms.
http://www.askey.com.tw
http://www.ti.com
20 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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Aruba Plots
Course for
True Mobility
By Erik Linask
22 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Aruba Networks (news - alert) announced several major new features and product enhancements designed to enhance its Voice over WiFi (VoFi) solutions. The
enhancements are part of the company’s overall five-stage roadmap for reaching
what many agree is the holy grail of communications, true and complete
fixed/mobile convergence (FMC).
“You can have fast handoffs or secure handoffs, but the trick is to get them
both at once,” says Peter Thornycroft, senior product manager at Aruba.
The latest enhancements take into consideration quality and management
issues that are likely to present themselves in larger deployments as Aruba continues its drive to make the combination of hardware and network handover better, and more secure.
Improved Quality of Service (QoS) — Full implementation of the WMM specification, plus additional enhancements, ensure consistency between the QoS level
and traffic type and permit adjustments to the QoS level as appropriate, delivering
voice packets within acceptable delay, jitter and loss parameters. In other words,
Aruba has the capability not only to negotiate different levels of priorities, but also
to ascertain whether a packet labeled “high priority” actually is such.
Increased Call Capacity — Full support for the WiFi Alliance’s TSpec protocol (which is akin to an RSVP system
for calls) to allow increased control
over the number of active voice calls
on an access point (AP) at any given
time, assuring bandwidth availability
and better call quality, even as voice
clients roam between APs. Aruba has
been able to get as many as 76 calls
on a single AP in a controlled environment.
Improved Battery Life — Because
people have gotten used to their small
form factor phones, batteries in dual
mode handsets cannot be much larger.
Improvements include full networkside implementation of WMM-PS, UAPSD and several enhancements, which together can improve talk time by a factor of two and sleep time by as much as five times, by extending sleep times and
reducing unnecessary battery drains. Aruba has been able to increase talk time
up to four hours and standby time up to 120 hours.
Faster Handoffs — In many cases, dual mode phones have not yet been
equipped with the latest state of the art algorithms for faster handoff.
Opportunistic Key Caching (OKC) for both WPA2 and WPA clients saves considerable authentication time and reduces call interruption during handover between
APs by limiting the number of frames that have to be exchanged at a new AP. The
standard reference point tends to be 50ms, but Aruba is measuring handoffs in
the 6ms range.
This latest set of enhancements mean that Aruba is able to scale its solution to
meet the needs of even the largest enterprises, such that it can move ahead with
the third phase of its roadmap, enterprise integration.
http://www.arubanetworks.com
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Project1
6/21/2006
12:07 PM
Page 1
Verizon Business Intros Web Conferencing Service
By Johanne Torres
Verizon Business (quote - news - alert) announced the introduction of Advanced Net
Conference, its new Web-based conferencing suite of services. The telecom’s new service suite includes features such as Reserved Net Conference, Instant Net Conference,
and Customized Net Conference. These features can be accessed via Microsoft Office
Outlook and Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005. Advanced Net
Conference users will also be able to instantly schedule Web meetings though these
software clients.
“This next generation of our successful Net Conference product is meeting a growing
demand and desire for virtually ‘anytime, anywhere’ meetings,” said Tom Roche, vice
president of marketing for Verizon Business’ network voice and data services in a statement. “Whether we’re helping to break down geographic boundaries for employees of
multinational companies or helping to quickly assemble government workers in
response to an unforeseen situation, Verizon Business continues to harness the latest
collaborative technology to help enhance teamwork and productivity for our customers.”
With Advanced Net Conference, users will also be able to collaborate from anywhere
in the world at anytime. Implementing a solution like this will surely slash enterprises’
travel expenses. Verizon Business currently handles millions of meetings a month via IP.
http://www.verizonbusiness.com
Hosted VoIP Includes FMC, Naturally
By Erik Linask
Natural Convergence (news - alert) is a hosted VoIP solution
provider, which takes a familiar system with its familiar features,
adds the advantages of VoIP, and focuses the modernized solution on small businesses with aging solutions and no in-house
IT team. These, the company believes, are the companies most
desperately in need of an easy to install, easy to use VoIP solution that requires no in-house personnel.
Natural Convergence provides ample features in its platform,
including three-way calling, voice mail, and others its customers
are used to having. But, among the features of release 3.0 of silhouette, the one that stands out is its Mobile Twinning capability. With the Natural Convergence solution, each user has a Web
page that allows them to configure various options, including
identifying a mobile number, to which an incoming call can be
“twinned.” When a call comes in to the user’s office phone, the
system simultaneously places an outgoing call to the predefined
mobile device, creating an increased level of productivity.
In addition, the desktop phone will indicate the user is ‘busy,’
even if the call is answered on the mobile device, and when the
user reaches his desk, he can press that line appearance key
and automatically transfer the call to the desk phone without the
other party realizing it (save for any call quality improvements).
An added benefit is that users will once again be able to separate their business lives from their personal lives, which, Cork
believes is a significant advantage to small businesses. Not do
they no longer need to give out mobile numbers, their voice
mails will once again be separate — calls dialed to the business
number are automatically directed to the business voice mail,
even though they ring on both lines.
The twinning feature also accommodates calls being directed
to remote offices simply by logging into the system there and
enabling the user’s main office extension at the remote location.
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
24 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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Business VoIP Solutions Provider Voxpath Launches
Harmonica Connect Services
By Cindy Waxer
For businesses with mobile workforces such as real estate agencies and IT consultancies, routing countless inbound phone calls can easily become a jumbled and disorganized affair. It’s a reality that can especially have a devastating impact on small businesses
eager to keep customers happy in a competitive environment. Voxpath Networks, however, offers a solution. A provider of hosted communications solutions for small businesses, Voxpath (news - alert) has launched Harmonica Connect services.
Specifically designed for small businesses, Harmonica Connect services gives them a
single number to automatically manage and route their inbound phone calls. Small businesses with distributed or mobile employees like service professionals, real estate and
mortgage companies, small medical offices, and business services and consultants, are
well suited to take advantage of the benefits and features of this hosted business phone
service.
Harmonica Connect provides small businesses with the tools they need to streamline
their business. A Virtual Receptionist automatically answers and routes calls to individuals or groups, freeing up employees to focus on other critical aspects of the business. A
company directory can be easily programmed to include answers to common questions
as well as provide callers with direct access to the person or department they need,
quickly and professionally.
Employees continue to use their existing mobile phones and land lines, so there’s no
need for a large upfront capital investment in equipment. In addition, the service is easy
to manage, so employees can configure their own forwarding and Find Me preferences
to ensure calls get to the right person every time, no matter where they are, minimizing
lost calls and reducing the number of call backs.
http://www.voxpath.com
Espial’s Evo Server Based on a Strong Pedigree
By Michelle Pasquerello
Espial, (news - alert) a provider of IPTV middleware and applications, is launching its
latest IPTV offering called Evo Server, a carrier-grade product collocated with the services provider’s head-end or operations center. Evo Server is not an immature product —
it has had trial deployments with two lead customers since 1Q06. What sets Evo Server
apart from the competition is its open environment which it calls the “Future-Proof
Framework” that allows operators and third parties to add applications, integrated third
party IPTV ecosystems, and make easy ports to new set-top boxes.
“Open means something very specific to us,” said Brian Mahony, VP of Marketing for
Espial, in an interview with TMCnet. “Our Future-Proof Framework has tangible financial
benefits that allow the operator a much greater level of self-sufficiency at less cost. The
ability to create new services or SkinTones without an army of consultants alone is a
major benefit, and something not available by the more closed solutions available on the
market right now.”
The other benefit of the Evo IPTV platform is the superior quality of experience it
offers. Just considering EPG navigation time, it can be 2-10 times faster than what
Espial calls “first-generation solutions.” Aside from its open architecture, the Espial Evo
data-driven architecture has “special sauce” resulting in faster performance for end
users. Again, Mahony did not elaborate on Espial’s trade secrets, but compared the system’s performance to “imbedded C code.”
Another key attribute of Evo is scalability. In comparison to “monolithic solutions”
(we know who Espial is talking about), Espial’s scalability has a 10,000/1 server/STB
ratio whereas the numbers for some of the other middleware players work out to be in
the hundreds.
http://www.espial.com
26 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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Cingular, Samsung, Microsoft Launch BlackJack Smartphone
By Mae Kowalke
Cingular (quote - news - alert), Samsung (news - alert), and Microsoft (quote - news - alert)
announced the launch of BlackJack, a multimedia device for making phone calls, listening to
music, taking photos, and a whole lot more.
BlackJack pulls together Cingular’s BroadbandConnect service and Windows Mobile 5.0 in
a sleek handheld.
The three companies BlackJack stressed the device’s business-related functionality such as
wireless access to e-mail accounts and over-the-air synchronization with enterprise applications like calendar, contact lists and address book, and mobile versions of familiar desktop
apps like Windows Media Player, Internet Explorer, and Outlook.
“BlackJack is a true converged product that serves voice and data needs with strengths in
multimedia and organization satisfying today’s on-the-go consumer,” said Kitae Lee, president
of Samsung’s network business. “Samsung is excited to be working with Cingular and
Microsoft to bring the BlackJack to the US market.”
BlackJack isn’t just for work, though. The device is souped up with a variety of entertainment features. One of those is access to Cingular Music, a service that includes 25 commercial-free XM Satellite Radio channels.
Content available with Cingular Music includes not only songs but music videos, ringtones,
and music chatrooms, among other features.
A similar service, Cingular Video, is available for visual entertainment. Content delivered
with that service includes sports, news and weather programs; and HBO shows such as “The
Sopranos” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
“We have hit on the right formula in developing a handheld device that will appeal both to
the most discerning business users and the most entertainment savvy consumers,” Cingular
president and CEO Stan Sigman said in a statement.
Steve Ballmer, CEO at Microsoft, added: “For millions of mobile professionals, this is the
device that will be the bridge between work and play.”
http://www.samsung.com
http://www.cingular.com
http://www.microsoft.com
Cypress Introduces 2.4 GHz Wireless VoIP Headset
By Cindy Waxer
By uniting interference technology with clean signal delivery, Cypress Semiconductor
Corp. (news - alert) has successfully introduced a demonstration kit for a VoIP headset.
The new CY4638 VoIP Demonstration Kit pairs the interference immunity of Cypress’ lowpower WirelessUSB LP (CYRF6936) 2.4-GHz radio system-on-chip with the clean signal
delivery of Winbond Electronics Corporation’s W681360 CODEC to provide an easily replicated, fast time-to-market design. According to Cypress Semiconductor, the new solution
results in fewer interruptions than headsets using competing wireless technologies, and
offers a range over 20-meters.
The WirelessUSB LP headset board includes a Cypress Wireless enCoRe II flash microcontroller, a low power Winbond CODEC, and a rechargeable battery with the radio module.
Winbond’s W681360 single-channel voice CODEC is a 13-bit linear analog-to-digital and
digital-to-analog converter. The W681360 offers high performance voice quality at the lowest power consumption in the industry, directly impacting talk-time and battery life.
“A primary concern of VoIP headset manufacturers is dropping packets due to interference, making the extremely robust WirelessUSB LP solution a natural fit to deliver an uninterrupted flow of data,” said Matt Branda, senior strategic marketing manager for Wireless
Products at Cypress. “Not only does the interference immunity of our WirelessUSB protocol outperform other 2.4-GHz solutions, its robust operation outdoes more expensive
Bluetooth and DECT solutions as well. When you add in the excellent signal quality of the
Winbond Codec, the CY4638 VoIP Demonstration Kit provides the groundwork for a winning VoIP headset.”
The CY4638 VoIP Headset Development Kit includes items such as an innovative dual
antenna design for robustness; a small form-factor bridge; and hardware schematics, bill of
materials and firmware for Wireless VoIP headset design.
http://www.cypress.com
28 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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Gennum Releases New VoIP Headset
By Cindy Waxer
Delivering a combination of Bluetooth simplicity and high-tech innovation, Gennum Corporation, (news - alert)a provider of technology for personal audio products, has released the nXZEN VoIP headset, its newest
Bluetooth product offering. The nXZEN VoIP headset system is a Skype
certified combination of Gennum’s nXZEN 5000 extreme noise-cancelling
Bluetooth headset with the new nXZEN USB audio dongle. Together, this
nXZEN pair creates a powerful, plug-and-play VoIP solution that introduces
Gennum’s own extreme noise cancellation technology to IP telephony
users.
The nXZEN VoIP headset system allows call answer/terminate and last
number redial up to 10m (33ft) from the PC. In addition, the nXZEN dongle eliminates the need to install Bluetooth drivers directly on a PC. The
headset can be paired with multiple devices and offers a full seven hours
of talk time and 100 hours of standby to accommodate any user’s VoIP
and Bluetooth enabled mobile phone needs.
Furthermore, the nXZEN VoIP headset incorporates the newest version
of the industry leading extreme noise cancellation technology found in
Gennum’s nXZEN 5000 headset. The nXZEN VoIP headset combines an
integrated Digital Signal Processor (DSP) that can process more than 120 Million
Instructions per Second (MIPS) with Gennum’s patented FRONTWAVE EXTREME technology
which utilizes a two-microphone array to sample two separate points in space. A custom
engineered algorithm in the DSP creates a hyper-directional ‘near field’ pick-up beam to target
the speaker’s voice and cancel the signal created by all environmental noise. Users are able to
make calls in loud settings where phone conversations would previously have been impossible, all while retaining natural voice inflections and eliminating unwanted noise.
http://www.gennum.com
Skype Selects iSkoot
Sprint, Microsoft Strike Deal to Offer
Windows Live Search on Mobile Phones
By Mae Kowalke
Microsoft (quote - news - alert) has entered an alliance
with mobile phone company Sprint to offer its Windows
Live Search on wireless phones. Sprint is offering
Windows Live Search on its mobile phones to provide
customers with a way “to conveniently search locationbased content from the Internet, such as nearby stores
and restaurants, as well as Sprint’s catalog of ring tones,
games, screen savers, and related services,” the company
said.
Sprint (quote - news - alert) Chief Marketing Officer
Mark Schweitzer said that the two companies share a
vision to help customers more easily access information
while on the go: “By adding Windows Live Search for
mobile to Sprint devices, customers now carry with them
a depth of relevant local search information, in addition to
quick and easy access to their favorite Sprint content.”
A key element of the new service is the ability to assign
particular keywords or phrases with specific, relevant
online content — a method of making searches on a
mobile device easier and faster.
“In recent years, the search box has fundamentally
changed the way people interact with the Internet, but we
have only just begun to scratch the surface for what
search and live Internet services can do in the mobile
space,” commented Steve Berkowitz, senior vice president
of Microsoft’s Online Services Group.
http://www.sprint.com, http://www.microsoft.com
30 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
to Deliver Services to
Mobile Operators
By Johanne Torres
Partners Skype (news - alert) and iSkoot (news - alert) announced a
deal that will enable 3, a mobile operator, to launch a service which
includes a pre-loaded version of Skype’s software on Nokia and Sony
Ericsson handsets, as well as iSkoot’s mobile client and network servers.
The 3 Group has recently built a new mobile broadband network. The
company has marketed the network globally under the 3 brand. The
group provides dual mode 3G services.
iSkoot’s client software allows mobile customers to use Skype’s service on-the-go. iSkoot’s servers are integrated into the operators’ network
so that seamless calling and billing can be offered to their users. The
partnership will also enable users to make and receive Skype calls from
any mobile phone by using the existing cellular voice network.
“Skype on mobile will quickly become a must-have feature. By combining Skype with iSkoot’s mobile solution, users will never be out of touch
with their online Skype contacts,” said iSkoot’s CEO Jacob Guedalia in a
statement. “3 is first out the gate, reaffirming the company’s cuttingedge, pioneer reputation. By utilizing existing network resources iSkoot
enables maximal availability with minimal software investment. Now
mobile operators can satisfy user demand for Skype and expand average
revenue per user, it’s a clear win-win situation. With iSkoot-enabled
Skype calls, 3 has a clear differentiator to offer mobile users.”
iSkoot’s Skype client combo for mobile operators allows the use
mobile handsets for Skype calls, without the need for PCs, special hardware, mobile broadband or WiFi; the ability for users to take their Skype
Contact Lists with them on their mobile phones; and the chance to let
contacts know if users are available by using Skype status icons such as
Online, Away, and Not Available.
http://www.skype.com, http://www.iskoot.com
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Patton Now Shipping VoIP IADs with Integrated G.SHDSL Modem
By Patrick Barnard
VoIP (define - news - alert) equipment maker Patton Electronics (news - alert) announced
that it is now shipping the SmartNode 4650 BRI Multiport VoIP IAD and the SmartNode 4960G
PRI Multiport VoIP IAD, new additions to the company’s impressive portfolio of VoIP customer
premises equipment designed for next generation networks. The new VoIP IADs, which include
a built-in G.SHDSL modem, are designed to reduce deployment costs and increase profits for
carrier-providers that offer business trunking and corporate VoIP services in ISDN markets.
“Now, with the SN4960G and SN4650, Patton is further expanding VoIP profit potential by
eliminating the expense of installing customer-site network-access modems,” the company
said. “Because thousands of units are required for a new service, any CPE cost
reduction is multiplied on the provider’s bottom line.”
These low-cost, high-performance IADs deliver business-class VoIP,
voice, and data over broadband access at up to 5.7 Mbps. The ease
of installation means businesses can immediately realize the cost
savings of VoIP, using advanced hardware and software that
seamlessly integrates with existing ISDN systems. The
SN4650 provides three to five BRI ports and supports 4 to
8 VoIP calls, while the SN4960G provides 1 to 4 PRI ports
and supports 15 to 120 VoIP calls. Additionally, Patton is
offering a free VPN license and five-year warranty with
each unit ordered before year’s end.
“Profitability is not a given with voice-over-IP, “said
Burton A. Patton, EVP of Patton Electronics, in the release.
“It’s a two-way street. Enabling profitable service models for our
carrier customers has taken hard work and innovation on our part. Now comes
the payoff – Patton’s advanced technology is making VoIP profitable ... first for our customers,
then for us.”
http://www.patton.com
Ixia Consolidates Triple Play Testing
By Erik Linask
Ixia, (news - alert) which develops performance and functionality testing systems for IP
networks — including the applications that run over them — has taken its testing applications a step further by developing Aptixia Test Conductor. This software application provides Ixia customers a central interface for managing the automation of multiple test applications.
While Ixia’s line of testing software — IxLoad, IxChariot, and IxVoice — provide a comprehensive testing platform for triple play providers, this latest products ties them all
together and makes the assessment process simpler and more efficient for service
providers as they evaluate various elements of their converged networks.
With Test Conductor, can set up custom regressions — any combination of tests from
the various test applications — that are combined and defined with consolidated pass/fail
criteria. Each regression can be scheduled to automatically run at a given time, with individual tests running simultaneously or consecutively, as network resources allow. Test
engineers design and coordinate testing via an easy to use server-based GUI, allowing multiple technicians to identify and schedule tests. In addition, these same engineers can connect to the server while on the road to monitor or edit scheduled tests or analyze results.
Perhaps the single most significant feature of Aptixia Test Conductor, though, is its ease
of use — automation is one thing, but enabling it in a manner that is conducive to easy
customization and use differentiates successful products. Especially today, in an environment where new multimedia services are being introduced more rapidly than ever, the ability to quickly, easily, and accurately test them can make the difference between being a
leader or a follower.
In addition to enabling the cumulative test process, Test Conductor also enables filtering
and reviewing of test results across multiple test runs all without any required scripting, a
point on which Ixia prides itself, as it truly enables a much simpler and efficient analysis of
service quality.
http://www.ixia.com
32 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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11/9/2006
10:23 AM
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Raytheon Selects Themis RES Servers for the Distributed
Adaptation Processor (DAP) Program
Themis Computer (news - alert) announced that Raytheon (news - alert) Company
will use Themis Rugged Enterprise Servers (RES) for the Distributed Adaptation
Processor (DAP) deployed on the DDG 1000 next-generation destroyer. The Navy’s
DDG 1000 destroyer, developed under the name DD(X), will lead a class of next-generation, multi-mission surface combatants tailored for land attack and littoral dominance,
with capabilities designed to defeat current and projected threats as well as improve
battle force defense. Raytheon will accept delivery of development RES systems in
2006, followed by an anticipated initial production delivery in 2007, for the first two
DDG 1000 shipsets.
The RES system is based on AMD’s fast Opteron processor. Designed to keep operating in environments where other systems fail, Themis’ 2RU system uses sophisticated thermal and mechanical techniques to deliver outstanding reliability. To ensure continuous operation in harsh environments, the RES server is designed to withstand
shock loads of 25G. When bundled with Red Hatsymbol 210 \f “Symbol” \s 12
Enterprise Linuxsymbol 210 \f “Symbol” \s 12 OS, Themis Rugged Enterprise Servers
provide all of the vital components needed to serve the most demanding mission-critical applications.
Ed Geisler, vice president and program manager of DDG 1000 for Raytheon
Integrated Defense Systems stated, “the selection of Themis RES Servers is a great
example of how DDG 1000 is executing the Navy’s Open Architecture (OA) strategy.
From a technical perspective, DDG 1000 uses a modular architecture that is based on
open standards. The Themis product fits well with that architecture.”
http://www.raytheon.com
http://www.themis.com
Sangoma Ships T1/E1 PCI Cards
AMTELCO XDS Adds New Driver
Support for H.100 PCI Boards
AMTELCO XDS (news - alert) announced
software driver support for Gentoo Linux
2006.0 (kernel 2.6), and Fedora Core 3
(kernel 2.6) operating systems. These new
software driver packages are designed for
use with AMTELCO XDS H.100 PCI boards.
AMTELCO offers a complete line of XDS
H.100 boards, including MC-3 MultiChassis Interconnect Boards, Enhanced
256-Port Conference Boards, 8-Port E&M
Boards, High Density 24-Port Station
Boards, 12/24-Port Loop Start Boards, 16Port S/T Interface BRI Boards, and 4 or 8Span T1/E1 Boards. AMTELCO XDS also
offers a complete line of H.110
CompactPCI boards.
A full range of easy-to-implement software drivers are available free of charge to
XDS customers.
http://www.xds.amtelco.com
34 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
By Cindy Waxer
Marking more than 20 years supporting data transport
applications in military, aerospace, medical and other mission-critical applications, Sangoma Technologies
Corporation, (news - alert) a provider of connectivity hardware and software products for VoIP, TDM voice, WANs
and Internet infrastructure, has announced that the A102d,
a dual port E1/T1/PRI card with carrier-grade echo cancellation, is now shipping.
The A102d includes the same digital processing and
PCI/PCI Express technology as the highly successful fourport A104d card and is intended to provide the benefits of
hardware-based echo cancellation and voice enhancement
for smaller, two-port T1/E1 installations. The A102d also
supports DMF encoding/decoding and tone recognition,
voice quality enhancement and adaptive noise reduction.
“The A102d was developed in response to the continuing
demand for a small capacity, low-cost E1/T1 card with
telco-grade echo cancellation,” said Sangoma Technologies
president and CEO David Mandelstam. “As an integral part
of Sangoma’s AFT design family, the A102d inherits the
compatibility, enhanced performance and reliability of its
siblings.”
The A102d supports PBX, IVR, and VoIP applications,
such as Asterisk, Yate, FreeSwitch, and many proprietary
telephony projects.
http://www.sangoma.com
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BroadLogic Intros TeraPIX Video Processor for Cable Operators
By Niladri Sekhar Nath
BroadLogic Network Technologies, (news - alert) a company that specializes
in solutions for broadband networks, introduced its new TeraPIX video
processor, designed to help cable operators triple their digital spectrum.
The processor provides bandwidth sufficient to make the performance
of multiple system operator (MSO) networks on par with fiber-to-thehome. The result is that operators can offer more and better services
— HD channels, telephony, high-speed cable modem — without
upgrading their networks.
BroadLogic claims that the BL80000 TeraPIX chip is the world’s first massively
parallel, multi-channel video processor capable of decoding dozens of digital video
streams and generating a full analog and digital service tier, including an 80-plus
analog channel lineup.
“The BroadLogic TeraPIX video processor is the cable industry’s best path to
tripling their digital bandwidth while sustaining the cable-ready competitive advantage they enjoy today,” said Danial Faizullabhoy, the company’s CEO.
The TeraPIX processing is being marketed as a tool to help the cable industry
regain its position by making it easier to provide the type of bandwidth-intensive
services (such as HDTV and triple-play packages) that consumers demand.
http://www.broadlogic.com
Pactolus Becomes an Open Source for VoIP Developers
By Erik Linask
Pactolus Communications (news - alert) Software
Corporation has introduced its online developer community,
http://www.SIPdev.org, which features a SIP-based service creation environment, application server, and software media server — a comprehensive environment including everything developers need to rapidly create innovative, media-rich applications
for next generation VoIP and IMS networks. In addition, the site
contains complete working applications and supporting application frameworks, all provided in open source to help developers
quickly gain proficiency and create quickly deployable applications for their markets.
The SIPdev.org initiative is based on the core underlying
Pactolus RapidFLEX Service Delivery Platform (SDP) technology, which is driving a multitude of different IP services at carriers and service providers, but other resources that are available
include the RapidFLEX Service Creation Environment (SCE)
software, RapidFLEX Application Server software, RapidFLEX
Media Server software, and RapidFLEX Element Manager and
Prompt Manager software utilities.
In addition, a fully functioning open source reservationless
audio conferencing reference application is available for use
with both the RapidFLEX Software Media Server and other popular DSP-based media servers.
Essentially, Pactolus is allowing downloads of what it has
productized over the last six years and is running in carrier networks today, allowing developers to create applications and
services that can quickly and easily be deployed in service
provider and enterprise environments.
For educational institutions, the community will provide unrestricted licenses for the RapidFLEX SCE, with the goal of driving
innovation back to the Pactolus platform. Developers at schools
are looking to develop new applications anyway, so, from
Pactolus’ perspective, they may as well use what is commercially available to build as big a platform as the want.
http://www.pactolus.com
http://www.sip-dev.org
36 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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CounterPath’s VoIP Softphone Certified with BroadSoft
By Erik Linask
CounterPath Solutions (news - alert) provides VoIP and Video over IP SIP softphones, and has seen its market presence grow for the past year or more. Part of the
company’s growth has been due to its early focus on SIP (Session Initiation Protocol),
which has since become widely adopted across the industry. Having already worked
the bugs out of eyeBeam, its SIP-based softphone, CounterPath is able to certify interoperability with infrastructure and application vendors.
Early adoption and adherence to SIP standards allowed CounterPath to proven interoperability with a variety of systems vendors like Siemens, Alcatel, Lucent, Nortel, and
Cisco, and it has now announced successful testing between eyeBeam 1.5 and the
BroadWorks platform from BroadSoft. BroadSoft’s (news - alert) voice and multimedia
applications and incorporate advanced features that allow service providers to roll out
new services, increase revenue, and retain a high level of customer satisfaction.
This latest collaborative effort will provide added flexibility to service providers,
knowing their customers will have the benefit of seamless, high-quality audio and
video calls, conference calls, and call transfers with the combination of CounterPath
and BroadSoft.
The eyeBeam 1.5 softphone — which is can be branded by the service provider —
combines voice, video, IM, and presence, thus offering all the key features customers
expect from their telephony devices today. Combined with the BroadWorks VoIP application platform, mobile and wireline carriers alike can combine the scalability, open
architecture, and proven reliability required by the world’s most discriminating businesses and consumers, while offering them the power of integrated SIP-based communications.
The testing on the BroadWorks platform included interoperability trials with the
Application Server, Network Server, Media Server, and ComPilot Call Manager, all of
were validated.
http://www.counterpath.com
http://www.broadsoft.com
Inter-Tel 7000 SIP Softswitch Available
By Greg Galitzine
Inter-Tel (news - alert) has announced that its muchanticipated Inter-Tel 7000 communications platform is
now available for sale. Serving enterprises with up to
2,500 users, the Inter-Tel 7000 provides full PBX-style
functionality, and is designed to enable customers to
integrate standard SIP devices and applications into
their networks to meet their business needs.
The Inter-Tel 7000 delivers a multimedia communications solution offering mid-size businesses and enterprises a series of IP telephony applications. Among
these are Inter-Tel’s presence management and
advanced call routing capabilities; powerful mobility
solutions; collaboration, Web and audio-conferencing
applications; and user-friendly system administrative
and diagnostic tools.
In addition to supporting a broad range of full-featured Inter-Tel IP endpoints, customers also have the
flexibility to integrate existing and future standard SIP
endpoints, gateways and vertical market applications
into their infrastructure to meet their individual business needs.
http://www.inter-tel.com
38 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Please tell
the vendors
you saw it in
INTERNET
TELEPHONY®
Magazine
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Data Connection Participates in Global SIP
Interoperability Test Event
Data Connection Limited (DCL), (news - alert) the world’s leading
independent provider of communications protocol software, announced
today its participation in SIPit 19, the nineteenth SIP interoperability
test (SIPit) event organized by the SIP Forum. SIPit is a week-long
event, held twice a year, to improve the quality of the SIP specification
and forge global interoperability among SIP implementations. Data
Connection was one of over seventy vendors who participated in the
event, which was hosted by the University of New Hampshire
Interoperability Laboratory.
At the event Data Connection deployed DC-SIP, its carrier grade protocol stack utilized by softswitches, gateways, servers, phones, access
devices, and IMS applications throughout the world. DC-SIP, which
includes IPv6 functionality, successfully interoperated with a number of
SIP solutions in peer-to-peer and multiparty test environments.
“The SIPit (news - alert) events are a great opportunity to ensure
industry compatibility and advance SIP technology in general. For
example, we were able to confirm multi-vendor interoperability with our
IPv6 implementation in a matter of hours,” said Jonathan Cumming,
Data Connection’s Director of VoIP Product Management for
Networking Protocols.
http://www.dataconnection.com
http://www.sipit.net
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Exit41 Improves Fast Food Drive-Thru
By Patrick Barnard
One of the newest trends in the Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) industry is call centerbased order taking, where your drive-thru orders are actually placed with someone in a call
center that is miles — perhaps even thousands of miles — away. After the call center agent
takes your order, he or she beams the information over a WAN, VPN, or the Internet directly to
the kitchen staff in the restaurant, who then prepare and package your order.
Indeed, restaurant owners who have been bold enough to deploy such systems are likely to
tell you that call center agents generally do a better job taking orders compared to on-site
employees, because they can focus on just that: taking orders. By the same token, freeing up
the restaurant staff from having to take orders allows them to focus on what they do best:
preparing and packaging meals, cleaning the restaurant, and handling the transactions. In fact,
these new systems deliver efficiencies that are proven to result in happier customers and, subsequently, increased business.
One of the leading companies supplying these systems to the QSR industry is Andover,
Massachusetts-based Exit41 Inc. — “the next generation restaurant ordering solutions company.” During a recent interview with TMCnet, CEO Joe Gagnon explained that the company’s
system can nearly double the number of drive-thru orders a restaurant can complete each
hour, while improving the accuracy of order taking “up to 90 to 98 percent.” He said for most
restaurants, Exit41’s system can deliver ROI “in less than one year.” The system is already
being used by the major fast food chains — including McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, and
Panda Express — and is, so far, deployed in more than 40 locations across the United States.
In addition, the system greatly improves order tracking. A digital camera mounted on the
menu board takes a photograph of the driver and the car, so that when that car pulls around to
the pick up window, the employee at the window can match the person’s order with the photograph on his monitor. This greatly reduces the possibility of the guy in front of you driving off
with your order… while you’re picking up his. In fact, Exit41 (news- alert) has dubbed this part
of its system the “Picture Perfect” solution. Similarly, its proprietary technology, which just
recently won patent approval, is known as its “Order Perfect” solution.
http://www.exit41.com
Telrex Announces CallRex Support For
Cisco Unified Contact Center 7.0
By David Sims
Telrex, (news- alert) a developer of VoIP call recording and monitoring software for businesses using IP PBXs or hosted PBX services, has announced CallRex support for Cisco Unified Contact Center
7.0 Enterprise Edition. With this integration, Telrex officials say, “call
centers can now trigger their CallRex recordings with Cisco
Unified Contact Center Enterprise Agent ID and DNIS fields.”
CallRex’s ability to record agents based on their Agent ID is
meant to enhance the value of Cisco Unified Contact Center
Enterprise deployments by allowing call recording for agents in
free seating contact center environments.
Michael Gyger, senior product manager at Telrex, said CallRex
has frequently been deployed alongside Cisco (quote - news- alert)
Unified Contact Center, and “now this custom integration will make
it easier for our joint Cisco-Telrex resellers to offer call recording
products that help them close contact center deals.”
By recording calls by agent instead of by phone, CallRex will track
all of a given agent’s conversations, regardless of which phone they
use. Combined with CallRex Agent Evaluation, tracking calls associated with a specific agent, the system allows managers to evaluate
and score phone calls made, regardless of the agent’s location in
the contact center. These calls can then be reviewed with call center
agents to ensure the appropriate training is consistently applied.
http://www.telrex.com, http://www.cisco.com
40 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
UCN Announces Real-Time Contact and
Call Center Benchmarking
By David Sims
UCN, (news- alert) a vendor of all-in-one, off-premises contact
center technology services, has announced
inContact/PeerCompare, what company officials describe as a
“real-time performance benchmarking service” to be provided in
conjunction with BenchmarkPortal. PeerCompare lets contact center managers compare their center’s performance against that of
other call centers in similar industries.
This service will enable participating inContact call centers to
have their automated contact distribution performance metrics automatically uploaded to the BenchmarkPortal database of best practice indicators. Submitted data is compared to other call centers in
the same industry, then a gap analysis table is presented within the
inContact real-time reporting tool. All individual data is kept in strict
confidence by BenchmarkPortal, UCN officials promise.
This service is provided in conjunction with Dr. Jon Anton of the
Center for Customer-Driven Quality at Purdue University, and the
guy you’re most likely to see quoted on a benchmarking issue. The
Center has been collecting call center performance data since
1995, and their data warehouse now contains data from over
35,000 call centers in 43 industries and 28 countries.
“Why own on-premises technology when you can gain significant cost advantages and automatically, month-to-month, compare
your performance improvements against your peers with the UCN
hosted solution?” Anton asks.
http://www.ucn.com
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11/14/2006
10:11 AM
Page 1
Avaya Acquires Enterprise Mobility Solutions Provider
Traverse Networks
By Anuradha Shukla
Avaya (quote - news - alert) has acquired Traverse Networks, (news - alert) a privately
held developer of enterprise mobility solutions for unified communications. According to
Eileen Rudden, vice president and general manager, Unified Communications Division,
Avaya, the acquisition will strengthen their current mobility solutions and extend
Intelligent Communications.
“The new capabilities will enable us to support simplified employee collaboration and
more productive use of communications, wherever people work and across a broader
range of devices,” he explained in a press release.
Durk Stelter, CEO, Traverse Networks sees the latest development as a good fit for
their solutions and organization. “With a vision similar to our own, Avaya brings additional energy to the goals Traverse set for itself when we started the company. We
become part of a larger group of technology innovators, and we look forward to working
together to expand our strengths,” he concluded.
Based in Fremont, California, Traverse delivers professional call handling applications
and sophisticated voice mail management to mobile devices. This enables mobile workers to be more productive and responsive to customers. With Traverse, users can see
and hear office voice mail through an email-like inbox on their mobile devices, which
offers streamlined access to messages and quick ways to respond.
The inbox displays office voice mail messages with information about the caller, the
message duration and the time it was sent. Users can listen to these messages in any
order without requiring a number for access, PIN, or touch-tone menus.
The Traverse solution allows users to control office calls and manage voice mail from
a mobile device and therefore extends the capabilities of enterprise communications
from the desktop.
http://www.avaya.com
http://www.traversenetworks.com
WildPackets Teams with Gigamon to Deliver Expert Analysis
of 10-Gigabit Networks
By Patrick Barnard
Network analysis technology provider WildPackets (news - alert) has forged an alliance
with Gigamon, (news - alert) a leading provider of data access solutions for out-of-band
network monitoring, to bring expert analysis to 10-Gigabit networks.
As a result of this new partnership, IT departments now have at their disposal a range of
solutions for troubleshooting and monitoring 10 Gigabit networks, including an Intel
PRO/10GbE adapter card, which can be installed in a standard Windows system running
WildPackets OmniEngine software — or an integrated solution with the Gigamon’s
GigaVUE-MP Data Access Switch, which enables IT managers to capture full-duplex 10
Gigabit traffic for analysis across multiple OmniEngines.
Subsequently, WildPackets has also announced a sales and marketing partnership with
Gigamon that will enable the two companies to more effectively market their combined
solutions.
“Customers who are deploying 10 Gigabit networks tell us they want to take full advantage of all the expert analysis, application monitoring, and VoIP troubleshooting capabilities
of our OmniAnalysis Platform,” said Mahboud Zabetian, president and CEO of WildPackets.
“The options we’re announcing give customers a broad range of choices for integrating
OmniEngines easily and affordably with their 10 Gigabit networks.”
Gigamon Systems’ GigaVUE-MP is an out-of-band data access switch. By filtering,
aggregating, and multicasting critical data to support multiple network monitoring tools,
GigaVUE-MP significantly reduces capital and operating expenditures, and improves network uptime by enabling more flexible network security, monitoring, and troubleshooting,
while using fewer and less intrusive tools.
http://www.wildpackets.com
http://www.gigamon.com
42 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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Project1
10/17/2006
4:37 PM
Page 1
VoIP Supply and CyberData Partner
By Cindy Waxer
In an effort to satisfy the paging needs of today’s companies, VoIP Supply, (news - alert)
an Internet retailer of VoIP equipment, including IP phones, telephone adaptors, and WiFi
VoIP solutions has partnered with CyberData Corp, (news - alert) an OEM design and manufacturing firm. Together, these vendors plan to deliver VoIP paging solutions to the North
American marketplace. The partnership will further expand VoIP Supply’s product catalog
and CyberData Corp’s presence in the North American marketplace.
“CyberData’s suite of VoIP Paging product’s answer the paging needs of businesses
making the switch to VoIP,” said Benjamin P. Sayers, president and CEO of VoIP Supply, in
a press release. “VoIP Paging is an underserved sector of the VoIP equipment market and
with the recent growth in the popularity of IP PBX systems in North America, VoIP Supply
and CyberData are in an outstanding position to meet the growing demand for VoIP Paging
solutions in the market place.”
“With broad adoption of VoIP phone systems in the corporate sector, VAR’s and resellers
are quickly beginning to move from analog paging systems to networked paging devices
that are easily connected to existing IP networks with a single Ethernet cable connection,”
said Matt Brahmana, director of VoIP product management.
The partnership will focus on the sale of CyberData’s VoIP Ceiling Speaker, VoIP Paging
Gateway, and their VoIP Loudspeaker Amplifiers through VoIP Supply’s Internet retail and
reseller channels in North America.
http://www.voipsupply.com
http://www.cyberdata.net
Tektronix Acquires VoIP Test Solutions Provider Minacom
By Mae Kowalke
Tektronix, (quote - news - alert) a company that specializes in testing, measuring, and
monitoring solutions for a variety of industries, including communications, announced its
plans to acquire Montreal, Canada-based telecommunications and VoIP test solutions manufacturer Minacom.
Tekronix said its purchase of Minacom for $27 million will expand its reach into the
market for next generation network management solutions.
Tektronix’s offerings include passive telecommunications testing solutions for various
types of networks (including mobile, IP, SS7, and WiMAX). Minacom’s active test solutions for VoIP, voice, video, Internet, fax, and fax over IP complement Tektronix’s existing
products.
Michel Nadeau, President and CEO of Minacom, (news - alert) told TMCnet a key reason
the two companies fit together so well is that Tektronix specializes in passive testing (which
looks at the signaling of calls) and Minacom specializes in active testing (which looks at the
media involved).
Customers of both companies have been asking about the other type of test solutions,
Nadeau said, and now they will have access to a complete range of test products.
“This acquisition will enable Tektronix to offer both active and passive probing capabilities for modern and legacy networks,” Tektronix’s Senior Vice President and General
Manager, Rich McBee said. “The integration of these products into one solution will accelerate delivery of our product roadmaps in key areas such as IP voice, video, and data
services and for access and edge network service management.”
http://www.tektronix.com
http://www.minacom.com
ATTENTION VENDORS!
Send your News and Product Releases via e-mail to [email protected]
Whenever possible, please include high-resolution
(minimum 300 dpi) color graphics (.BMP, .EPS, .TIF, or .JPG).
44 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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A Special Editorial Series Sponsored By Packet8®
Innovative Ideas from the “VoIP for Small Business” Experts
Hosted Services — A Logical
Choice for Business
By Richard “Zippy” Grigonis
SMBs (small and medium-sized businesses) have watched the rise of IP
Communications with both fascination and
anxiety. On the one hand, they are intrigued
by the possibility of saving money on phone
calls and gaining access to new communications features, but on the other, they worry
about the costs of installation and the
expertise needed to maintain such IP-based
phone systems. Fact is, for most SMBs, a ‘doit-yourself ’ approach to IP Communications
can lead to too many uncertain (not to mention economically unviable) scenarios.
SMBs can still participate in the IP
Communications revolution, however, thanks
to a bevy of sophisticated broadband-based
service providers that have targeted this market segment and can make the migration to
voice and video over IP easier than ever
before. Smaller businesses can now inexpensively enjoy the same calling features normally found in the big PBX phone systems of
large enterprises, simply by contracting with
a provider that hosts the technology off-site.
46 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Indeed, offerings such as 8x8’s Packet8
Virtual Office service (http://packet8.net/
about/virtual_office.asp) are so affordable
and easy-to-use that they make sense for residential as well as business customers.
“The TCO, or Total Cost of Ownership,
is really the primary reason that people
adopt a hosted model instead of a do-ityourself model,” says 8x8’s Senior Director
of Sales, David Immethun. “Also, ‘doing it
yourself ’ can mean many different things,
none of which are easy. You could go out
and purchase a server and softswitch software, such as Asterisk, but then you end up
having to become an expert on your own
phone system. SMBs often don’t have people on staff who can be dedicated to such
issues, so you could say the second reason
not to go it alone is the ownership
headaches, such as administration, education and upgrades. You could also try hiring
a combination of integrators and installers
to come into your business, install a system,
then put a service contract in place around
that, but then you lose a lot of the economic benefits and flexibility.”
Immethun beams, “Services such as
Packet8 Virtual Office completely eliminate
such headaches by offering a model that
includes full PBX features with dial tone
services, complete service support and furnishes customers with full administration
privileges and controls. By removing the
headaches, the day-to-day aspect of owning
a phone system becomes Moves, Adds, and
Changes. With the Packet8 Virtual Office,
an Add, Move, or Change can be as simple
as literally picking up a phone and moving it
without ever making a single administrative
change.”
Immethun elaborates: “For example, when
8x8 moved from one building across town to
another, 110 people bagged their phones
with their computers, threw them in their
cars, showed up at work the next day,
plugged them in, and the whole phone system was moved. There was no administrative
person doing this for us. We did it. The
plug-and-play ability of these devices is associated not with their IP addresses, but rather
with their MAC [Media Access Control]
addresses, which uniquely identifies each
extension to the service on any network.”
“Companies often forget about the maintenance aspects of a phone system,” says
Immethun. “A phone system often lasts
seven to ten years, and, just like a car, it
starts to break down over time, so the maintenance costs start to rise. Any a time you
want to add a new feature, you typically
have to upgrade the system’s software release.
With a hosted model, such as Packet8’s, all
new features added to the service are included and all of the maintenance is part of our
service offering to the customer. It’s a compelling fact that we provide the customer
with features, functionality and local and
long distance calling. Compare that with the
‘normal’ business phone system environment
where you buy your phone lines from one
company and you buy your phone system
from somebody else, and you need an integrator to come in and write up a service contract to install the system and keep it maintained and keep the dial tone up.”
Today’s communications services, such as
Packet8 Virtual Office, have targeted SMBs
and have formulated a feature set that most
companies will find extremely useful, such as
One Number Access, Find Me/Follow Me,
Voicemail-to-Email, etc.
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“Probably the Number One feature that
interests an SMB is multi-site support,” says
8x8’s Immethun. “Normally multi-site support is very expensive to buy and very complex to administer — especially when you
add applications such as voicemail, an autoattendant, or hunt groups. With our Packet8
Virtual Office, the location of the ‘site’ is
irrelevant. And whether you have ten sites
with one person or just one site with ten
people, from an administrative standpoint it’s
exactly the same. We give you local and long
distance from anywhere for anyone, without
the barriers of a local dial tone plan. We’ll do
it all for you; you have complete carte blanche
control to administer these employees yourself, or we can accommodate a combination
scenario of ‘we do some, you do the rest’.”
Packet8 offers a variety of service plans.
“In an extreme case, you can actually have
no extensions and let the staff operate off of
their cell phones, but to inbound callers it
will sound as if you have a big phone system
in an office,” says Immethun. “Our autoattendant can have several IVR options, such
as ‘Dial 1 for Sales’, ‘Dial 2 for Support’, and
‘Dial 3 to Dial-by-Name’. In actuality, what’s
behind that is a virtual PBX with no physical
hardware whatsoever, pointing to the individual cell phones. Yes, businesses can start, run,
and flourish without brick and mortar to
house their employees. After all, what could
better support a booming virtual company
than a virtual phone system?”
“You can also have a combination environment where your road warriors are always
on their cell phones, and your other people
are either situated in regional multiple
offices or in home offices, with a physical
handset,” says Immethun. “We give them
access to extension dialing, music-on-hold,
ring group capabilities, as well as access to
the auto-attendant. Of course, we can also
serve a full-blown company having extensions, virtual employees running around
everywhere using cell phones, and virtual
extensions that aren’t even connected to people, but are used instead for things such as
playing prompts for driving directions or the
latest sales promotions.”
Any way you look at it, services such as
Packet8 Virtual Office will have an immense
impact on businesses with staffs ranging
from just a few people to more than 250. IT
Richard Grigonis is Executive Editor of
TMC’s IP Communications Group.
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Packet8 Virtual Office:
Reduces TCO with Combined
Hosted PBX and Unlimited Calling Service
By Huw Rees
Small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are faced with a difficult task when it
comes to selecting or upgrading their telecommunications system. Typically, the economics of investing in a business phone system that is feature-rich and can scale to
their potential growth precludes them from purchasing these powerful tools in the initial stages of their company.
As with any technology investment, business owners must consider the Total Cost
of Ownership (TCO) when evaluating a telecommunications solution. To estimate TCO,
an SMB should look at three major categories:
• Equipment Costs — the initial cost of the equipment that must be in place to
implement the desired solution, including associated installation fees.
• Ongoing Monthly Charges — the recurring, monthly service fees associated with
implementation of the solution, i.e. local and long distance phone service, day-to-day
service management, equipment leases and other per user charges.
• Maintenance Fees — the cost of maintenance, repair and upgrades necessary to
keep the solution up-to-date with the latest fixes and enhancements.
The Packet8 (news - alert) Virtual Office hosted IP PBX service from VoIP technology pioneer 8x8, Inc. offers SMBs tremendous TCO advantages. Virtual Office dramatically decreases a businesses’ total cost of telecommunications ownership while
increasing the features, benefits, and productivity of the organization with the same
PBX functionality large corporations have access to at a fraction of the cost..
With Virtual Office, equipment costs amount to less than $150 per user for a
Packet8 hands-free business class telephone, Broadband Phone Adapter and one-time
activation fee of $39.99 per physical extension. A monthly service fee of $39.99 per
extension covers unlimited local and long distance calling in the United States and
Canada as well as all service configuration and counseling, administration, changes,
upgrades, tech support, and complete Web-based administration system controls.
Features such as Auto-attendant, Music On Hold, Extension Dialing, Business-class
Voicemail, Caller-ID with Name, Call Waiting, Call Transfer, 3-Way Calling, Call
Forwarding, Do Not Disturb, Distinctive Ringing, Hunt Groups, Ring Groups, and
more are included with every Virtual Office calling plan.
In addition to dramatically reducing monthly phone bills, Packet8’s Virtual Office
can help businesses eliminate the overhead cost associated with brick and mortar
buildings since employees may work from any location equipped with a high speed
Internet connection. Because all Virtual Office users are connected under the same
PBX phone system, businesses with staff operating from geographically dispersed
offices no longer have to pay premium local and long distance charges for inter-office
calling.
Implementation of the Virtual Office solution also saves time — an extremely valuable commodity to most SMBs. Many traditional phone companies require 45 to 60
days to install a new phone network while it takes just five to seven days to receive
Packet8 Virtual Office equipment and only five minutes to make it fully operational.
Configuration is handled by 8x8, so no special training is required.
8x8 places a high value on customer service which is one reason why 9 out of 10
companies who sign up for Packet8 Virtual Office keep the new service after the 44day trial period. IT
Huw Rees is Vice President of Marketing & Sales for 8x8’s Packet8 services. You can
reach him at [email protected]
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 47
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By Marc Robins
IP Communications Enterprise
Market Trends
During the last Internet Telephony Conference & EXPO in San Diego, I had
the pleasure to emcee and speak on a number of panels that were part of the
IP Communications Business Summit, with a number of well-regarded and
incredibly knowledgeable individuals, including analyst Jon Arnold, principal
of J. Arnold and Associates (http://www.jarnoldassociates.com); Ron Gruia,
Principal Analyst and Program Leader Information and Communications
Technology at the market research firm Frost & Sullivan
(http://www.frost.com); Richard Grigonis, Executive Editor of the IP
Communications Group at TMC; Andy Mercker, Director of Marketing at
Sphere Communications (http://www.spherecom.com); Ray Hernandez,
Managing Partner at VC firm ROTH Capital Partners LLC
(http://www.rothcp.com); and Ken Camp, speaker, writer and consultant who
also blogs about IP communications technology at IPadventures.com
(http://www.ipadventures.com).
Over the course of the two-day event, we covered a lot of
ground, delving into the leading industry trends and market
drivers for the corporate enterprise, service provider, SMB,
SOHO, consumer, and government market segments. We also
had an interesting session on the next wave of IP communications technology, where we were able to peer a bit into our
crystal balls and discuss what we saw coming down the pike.
So, for those of you who weren’t privy to the goings on at
the event, I thought I’d offer up a summary of the some of
the key talking points and trends we discussed during the session relating to the corporate and government enterprise marketplace. In future columns, I’ll try to focus on the other market segments.
into large, campus-based environments (especially in the education market). The price/performance equation is just too
good to ignore, and it was agreed that it’s only a short matter
of time when the “old-line” IP PBX vendors start to feel some
real heat from the upstart open-source competition.
Hosted/Managed Services: Hosted IP PBX, IP Centrex and
managed VoIP (define - news - alert) services all seem to be
enjoying dramatic growth as well, and represent an expanding
percentage of the market, especially among SMBs. Witness
the growth and success of M5 Networks, a hosted IP PBX
service provider in the metro NY area that just made the
Deloitte Fast 50 list of the fastest growing NY-based companies; Cbeyond, the publicly traded managed services provider
based in Atlanta that is methodically expanding operations in
The Corporate Enterprise Marketplace
key market segments across the U.S., and Accessline
We all agreed that the corporate enterprise marketplace
Communications, based in Bellevue, Washington.
was on fire, and that full-fledged adoption of IP
SIP Trunking: The movement to directly connect SIPCommunications technology
enabled IP PBXs to SIP-enabled
VoIP service providers is gainwas in full force. Today’s entering momentum as new specifiprise customers have a wealth of
We covered a lot of ground, delving
cations for interoperability, such
options to choose from when
into the leading industry trends and
as SIPconnect, gain wider
making the move to migrate
The argument for
from TDM to IP-based commarket drivers for the corporate enterprise, acceptance.
SIP trunking is quite communications, and we tried our
best to cover them all.
service provider, SMB, SOHO, consumer pelling: lower costs coupled
with increased functionality and
IP PBXs and Open Source
and government market segments.
security, and a much richer,
Solutions: CPE-based solutions
still appear to be the dominant
SIP-infused communications
choice today, with a wealth of
experience.
WiFi Telephony/Dual Mode Phones: Still lagging way
choices from an expanding array of system vendors. Most
behind home environments when it comes to cordless comcompelling was the torrid growth of the open source-based
munications, the workplace still has enormous room for
business, led by the poster child of open source, Digium and
expansion with respect to wireless communications, and WiFi
its Asterisk solution. And rather than being relegated to small
telephony and dual-mode mobile phones hold great promise.
business deployments, open source is making serious inroads
48 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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We expect 2007 to be the year when wireless VoIP and dualmode starts to blossom.
Video Telephony: As easy-to-use and low-to-no-cost video
capabilities find their way into more IP PBXs, and service
providers add more video applications to their service bundles, video telephony is expected to gain serious momentum
in the next few years. Technically speaking, there’s little to
hold IP video back: the main challenge for the industry is to
find ways to painlessly evolve user behavior and to nudge
users to embrace video as an acceptable mode of business
communications.
IP Contact Center Solutions: While only about 7-10% of
corporations have embraced IP contact center applications so
far, it is expected that the pace of adoption will pick up considerably in the coming years due to the incomparable valueproposition IP communications-empowered contact centers
represents, including the savings derived from distributed
resources and workforces, and productivity and efficiency
improvements stemming from the control and integration of
multi-channel communications.
The Government Sector
With respect to the government enterprise marketplace for
IP communications technology, it was agreed that the overall
adoption rate lags behind that of the private sector, and it
appears that government agencies are at least a couple years
behind in their embrace of VoIP. Government tends to tread
very slowly and carefully when it comes to the adoption of
new technology, and their experience with VoIP and IP communications is no different.
The requirements for government are also much more
demanding, and compliance with mandated security measures (which can limit or prohibit the use of certain features and capabilities), interoperability and/or duplication
of TDM-based priority services, such as GETS (the
Government Emergency Telecom Service that allow officials
to access network services during times of severe network
congestion and over-subscription), and access to emergency
e911 services (mandated by law), serve to make the development and the selling of IP communications technology
to certain government entities a much more specialized
practice. IT
Marc is Chief Evangelism Officer of RCG (Robins Consulting
Group), a leading marketing, communications and business development consulting firm dedicated to the IP Communications industry. He welcomes your comments regarding examples of new Web
2.0/VoIP mash-ups making their way to market. For more information about RCG, email [email protected], call 718-548-7245
or visit http://www.robinsconsult.com.
By Tony Rybczynski
Unified Communications
Meets SOA
While Unified Communications greatly enriches person-centric communications, the transformational value of Unified Communications comes from integration with business processes and applications leveraging SOA, the Services
Oriented Architecture. In fact, some (see http://www.ucstrategies.com) define
Unified Communications as “communications integrated to optimize business
processes.” This ‘application convergence’ is the natural next step in the evolution of convergence, that started at the network level with everything on IP,
and then evolved to the communications level with Unified Communications.
SOA was initially conceived as the way to allow easier business process and
application integration. SOA is being extended into real-time communications
with the objective of reducing the impact of human delays in business
processes.
Thirdly, application convergence adds real-time collaboraApplication Convergence Drivers
There are three primary drivers for application convergence, tion capabilities to document handling and project managethe relative importance of which is dependent on business pri- ment environments. A broad range of document types could
be included here, including curriculum formulation in educaorities and varies by vertical market.
tion, design documentation in hi-tech or in engineering firms,
Firstly, application convergence is driven by the need to
and copy in a publishing company — virtually any deadlineenhance customer service in agent-assisted and self-serve condriven environment in which people need to collaborate. For
tact centers. For example, a customer relationship management application could maintain the context of the customer’s example, a clinical emergency room admission application
could route admission forms and electronic patient records to
experience, as a customer moves from an interactive self-serve
voice response or kiosk environment to a live agent to a dialog the next available clinician recognizing their roles, presence
and location information, and handle exception handling
with an expert, anywhere across the enterprise. For example,
through distributed consultation — all this to speed up the
this ability would be of paramount importance in financial
service institutions which are targeting to up-sell and cross-sell delivery of timely patient care.
financial services. It would also be critical in any number of
Service Oriented Architecture
service desk environments, for example those run by SIs in
In many enterprises, the early adopters of application consupport of SLA-based contracts with enterprise customers.
vergence have been contact center environments, tying cusSecondly, application convergence is driven by opportunitomer-facing communications systems with back-office applities to extend the value of business processes and applications
cations. These use well-estabby enabling them with Unified
lished Computer Telephony
Communications capabilities,
Integration (CTI) interfaces,
within the enterprise and
developer toolkits including
beyond, through federations.
application programming interFor example, a supply chain
SOA was initially conceived as the
faces (APIs) and select Web
management application detectServices standards such as XML
ing a change to a critical supply
way to interoperate, streamline and
(Extensible Markup Language).
metric could initiate a collaboaccelerate business processes.
The future direction in this and
rative session and deliver releother areas is SOA, the Service
vant data to stakeholders, speedOriented Architecture.
ing issue resolution. This generSOA was initially conceived as
al approach can benefit a broad
the way to interoperate, streamrange of industries, including
line and accelerate business processes; and to establish a set of
manufacturing, hospitality, retail and healthcare. When combined with sensor networking (including location and RFID), service modules easily combined and reused to increase business agility for competitive advantage. One style of SOA uses
this will result in new environmentally aware applications,
an Enterprise Service Bus (a functional rather than physical
adding context to this environment (e.g., identifying personentity), across which business applications can discover,
nel in close proximity to an asset).
50 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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invoke, and orchestrate services in various ways. SOA relies on application convergence across the entire IT industry. In the
a number of standards developed by three primary bodies: the SOA model, Unified Communications is viewed by business
Web Services Interoperability Organization (WS-I); the
applications as a set of real-time services (e.g., session control,
WWW Consortium (W3C), and the Organization for the
speech recognition, presence and location status, personalizaAdvancement of Structured
tion) that can be discovered,
Information Standards (OASIS).
invoked and orchestrated in varSome of the more visible Web
ious ways across the SOA
Services standards include SOAP
Enterprise Service Bus.
(Simple Object Access Protocol),
The adoption of SOA is as
WSDL (Web Services
Show Me The Money
The value of application conDefinition Language), and variimportant to business today as was
vergence through communicaous forms of XML.
tions-enabled business processes
the adoption of PCs in the 1980s.
Without getting into a protois the acceleration of ‘time to X’
col discussion, the reality is that
— time to decision, to revenue,
to service, to support, to prodSOA methodologies have
uct; and increased business agilientered the mainstream with the
ty, service velocity and business
majority of larger enterprises
differentiation. It’s business
adopting SOA for business applications development, leverag- transformational in that it results in a significantly more effecing products from IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, and others. The
tive business environment. IT
adoption of SOA is as important to business today as was the
Tony Rybczynski is Director of Strategic Enterprise Technologies
adoption of PCs in the 1980s.
With the accelerating adoption of Unified Communications at Nortel. (quote - news - alert) He has over 20 years experience in
the application of packet network technology. For more information,
capabilities based on SIP (the Session Initiation Protocol)
please visit http://www.nortel.com.
across enterprise and service provider environments alike,
SOA and SIP are joining forces to be the engines behind
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 51
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By Hunter Newby
Least Cost ENUM Routing
Being a moderator of voice peering sessions at industry conferences has its
moments. I often make fascinating discoveries right in the middle of a session
and that can sometimes be awkward depending on who is on the panel. This
has a lot to do with the fact that we live in changing times and sometimes
change happens, or is realized, in a single instance. Questions, conclusions, and
corresponding answers occur to different people at different times, and trying
to capture information in real-time up on a stage and reformat it for audience
consumption can be a challenge. Such was the case in two separate sessions on
the same topic at the most recent Comptel and Internet Telephony Expo conferences in October.
The subject was Least Cost Routing and ENUM, how they ence.
differ related to technology, terminology, and the associated
The basis for the confusion it seemed stemmed from the
economic models and benefits. In the process of breaking
belief, right, or wrong, that somehow ENUM was analogous
down each component, it was made clear that both LCR and
to multilateral voice peering and the protocol was linked to
ENUM were software-based routing intelligence mechanisms. its economic meaning as well as its technical definition.
Identifying what their reasons for existence are is what became Many believe that as we all evolve into the future of IP comthe interesting twist.
munications, voice as an application ceases to become (or
LCR has traditionally been a function of bilateral TDM
dramatically decreases as) a standalone revenue generating
minutes trading with the associated Call Detail Records
business. In fact, it is believed that voice becomes “part of ”
(CDR), billing and settlement components that minutes carri- an experience, be it gaming, or full-duplex video, or at the
ers have based their businesses on since Day One. LCR has
very least emulates the Skype model. So, given that assumpbeen around over 20 years as a commercial “service,” or softtion, ENUM as a protocol and the providers that offer it as a
ware function provided to and used by carriers. Through the
service should be moving towards that goal and essentially
introduction of IP in to the voice world, LCR has now found
away from LCR.
itself right where it was in circuit switching, finding the lowest
What materialized from the various models and viewcost IP route for a minute.
points on the panel was actually somewhat different. First,
ENUM, (define - news - alert) on the other hand, has had a there was the issue of how to interconnect the various, disrelatively short commercial life span thus far. Originally,
parate ENUM registry islands. Potential users in the audiENUM, which is based on DNS, was introduced to the voice
ence wanted to understand the utility of any one such regbusiness as a multilateral, free
istry if it did not possess “all” of
traffic exchange routing facilitathe numbers itself or at least
tor. This is due to its roots in
have access to the other regISP multilateral peering which
istries for look-ups. The barrier
If one ENUM service charges a fee
has been around commercially
to that problem’s solution is not
since 1990 and has always been
in fact a technical one as the
per registered number and another
a free exchange of traffic
separate registries could in fact
charges per query, how do they
between “peers.” Recently, there
sort out interoperability issues
have been several new entrants
in the same fashion as email
reciprocally compensate each other?
to the ENUM service model
providers have in the past. The
business and those models
real obstacle is in fact the disinclude some fee, be it per regisparity of the various business
tered number monthly, or annumodels and how to get them to
ally, per query, per successful registry look-up, etc. As this new interoperate.
dimension — the departure from multilateral free back to
If one ENUM service charges a fee per registered number
bilateral billed minutes — was openly discussed, it raised a
and another charges per query, how do they reciprocally
few eyebrows and caused some confusion amongst the audicompensate each other? Neither have the others’ model, nor
52 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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revenue streams to adequately pay the other. It quickly
LCR for ENUM is only matched in difficulty level by the
became evident that this was a “show-stopper.” But then, one question of who is going to pay for it and then of course coming up with the cash.
of the panelists, a software engineer, made a comment that
As one member of the audience stated after the IT Expo
logically led many to the solution of the issue. He said, “The
session,
“If a free exchange is the first logical choice because
best way to build ENUM look-up functionality into your
of
the
clear
benefits of no fees to account for, then why
network to deal with this is to build a Least Cost Routing
would any user want to have a service with fees for ENUM?”
engine for ENUM. The first
These sessions dedicated to
registry your voice switch
ENUM and LCR were an eyeshould query is the free one
opener to the reality that there
because this is the best option.
may not actually be a sustainThe complexity of building and
If the ENUM number is not
able, long-term, revenue generating business model for
found there then go to then
maintaining an LCR for ENUM is
ENUM itself. Well, at least not
next cheapest option. The chalone without the added complexo
n
l
y
m
a
t
c
h
e
d
i
n
d
i
f
f
i
c
u
l
t
y
l
e
v
e
l
b
y
t
h
e
lenge will be to determine what
ity and cost of building an
that next option is beyond the
q
u
e
s
t
i
o
n
o
f
w
h
o
i
s
g
o
i
n
g
t
o
p
a
y
f
o
r
i
t
.
entirely new method of least
free one. If you know your avercost ENUM routing. On that
age call duration you will be
note, I would like to thank Rich
able to factor if a fee per query
Tehrani, Greg Galitzine, and the
is less expensive than a fee per
entire staff of TMC for making
number, but this requires significant analysis and programthe IT Expo and that session possible. Without their efforts,
ming.”
these realities would not so soon be realized. IT
What? An LCR for ENUM? Many in the audience
thought, “Isn’t that an oxymoron?” As Mark Fedor, CTO of
Hunter Newby is chief strategy officer for telx. (news - alert) For
SunRocket sees it, “Eliminating the cost accounting, billing
more information, please visit the company online at
and settlement for minutes is the primary reason for multilathttp://www.telx.com.
eral peering.” The complexity of building and maintaining an
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 53
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By Dan York
Spam for Internet Telephony:
Hype or Reality?
One morning, you walk into your office and find that you suddenly have 100
new voicemail messages waiting for you. Giving a quick listen, you find that
none are from your colleagues — instead, you are being offered vacation
homes in Florida, better auto insurance rates, new options for home mortgages,
and more. Moreover, you find out that: a) all the other employees in your
office have received the same type of messages; and b) your voicemail system
has run out of room and none of you can receive any more messages.
Congratulations! You have just become a victim of Spam for Internet
Telephony (SPIT), a new term for the age-old practice of telemarketing.
Is this nightmare scenario a reality? Or is it hype from venperson or a voicemail system, would then be sent an audio
dors wanting to sell security solutions?
stream with whatever message the telemarketer wants to delivThe answer today is that the threat is more theoretical than
er. In fact, after successfully making a connection, a smart
real — but that will definitely change in the time ahead as we telemarketer would probably immediately initiate another
move to more interconnected systems.
connection to deliver a second message for another potential
Before we examine SPIT, though, let’s take a step back and
client. And a third. And a fourth, etc.
look at the overall issue of unsolicited telephone calls over the
The cost to the telemarketer is essentially only that of their
standard Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). Today, Internet bandwidth, which, these days, continues to decline
telemarketers are limited in the number of calls they can make dramatically. No special hardware is required — any comby two major factors: cost and the PSTN’s inherent latency.
modity PC or server can run the required software.
To do large-scale telemarketing, there is a very real cost for the Additionally, there is basically no latency in call initiation as
required PSTN trunk lines, telephony equipment, etc. There
SIP INVITEs are simply small packets very similar to those
is also the time required for each call to be set up over the
your web browser might send to request a web page. Literally
PSTN. Both factors can certainly be addressed — the cost
thousands — or millions — of such packets could be sent in
continually decreases and automated dialers are available —
a minute. Streaming the audio will still take time and conbut they do impose limitations on the number of simultanesume bandwidth, but this is again purely a matter of the teleous connections that a telemarketer can make.
marketer obtaining more Internet bandwidth.
But what happens when we remove those limitations? What
The primary barrier to this being a threat now is the fact
if the cost to initiate the calls were close to zero? And what if
that today almost all enterprise VoIP (define - news - alert)
phone systems are not connected
hundreds or thousands (or
to the Internet in such a way
more!) of calls could be initiated
that would allow calls across the
at the same time?
Internet from random endThis is the great fear of SPIT.
The basic technique is that
points. Instead, calls between
Here is how it could work.
enterprises must travel over the
Instead of connecting to the
the attacker would send a
PSTN, turning the PSTN into a
PSTN, the telemarketer’s system
SIP “INVITE” message to various
de facto “SPIT firewall” between
would use the Internet to bypass
companies and organizations.
the PSTN and make calls directSIP addresses at a company.
Even most companies using “SIP
ly to other Voice-over-IP (VoIP)
trunks” out to Internet
phone systems using a protocol
Telephony Service Providers
such as the Session Initiation
(ITSPs) today are primarily
Protocol (SIP). The basic techusing them as a cost-saving tool in place of regular trunks to
nique is that the attacker would send a SIP “INVITE” mesthe PSTN. Those companies have replaced their PSTN trunk
sage to various SIP addresses at a company. For instance, they
lines with a “SIP trunk” across their Internet connection out
might try extension numbers and just start iterating through
to an ITSP who in turn is connecting them to the PSTN.
“[email protected],” “[email protected],”
However, calls outside their company still go across the
“[email protected],” etc. Whoever answered, either a
54 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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PSTN.
not something for you to worry about today. However, as you
This all starts to change, though, as enterprises first begin
look at SIP trunking across your Internet connection or at run“peering” with other enterprises to allow calls to go directly
ning SIP proxy servers on the edge of your network, you need
across the Internet from one enterprise to the other and then
to definitely be asking your service providers and vendors what
take the next step to allow calls to come across the Internet
they are doing to prevent SPIT from flooding your network.
from random SIP endpoints.
No one wants to come in to
(This can be done on the PSTN
receive a flood of unsolicited
today where anyone can basicalphone calls or have a voicemail
ly call any other number.)
inbox with hundreds of bogus
The good news in all of this is
messages, nor suffer the business
The good news in all of this
that there are people out there
loss of having their voicemail
working on ways to prevent
full. As we move to an increasis that there are people out there
SPIT. The Internet Engineering
ingly interconnected world of
Task Force (IETF) is exploring
VoIP, the challenge for all us will
working on ways to prevent SPIT.
technical solutions, while groups
be ensuring that we can allow
like the VoIP Security Alliance
legitimate callers to reach us,
(VOIPSA) are assembling policy
while limiting the unsolicited
and best practices recommendacalls to an acceptable level. IT
tions. Several security vendors
Dan York, CISSP, chairs Mitel’s Product Security Team and is also
offer products to monitor network traffic for potential SPIT
attacks and some service providers are working to provide this the Best Practices Chair for the Voice-over-IP Security Alliance
(VOIPSA).
protection on their networks.
In the end, how do you prevent your VoIP users from
Mitel (news - alert) is a leading global provider of business comdrowning in SPIT? If your VoIP systems today do not allow
munications
solutions and services. For more information, please
calls from unauthenticated SIP devices, odds are that SPIT is
visit http://www.mitel.com.
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 55
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By William B. Wilhelm, Jr., Esq. and Jeffrey R. Strenkowski, Esq.
VoIP E911: A Year in Review
In June 2005, the FCC issued an order requiring “interconnected” VoIP
providers, by November 28, 2005, to offer enhanced 911 (E911) service, which
includes the ability to send location and telephone number information automatically to 911 call centers. The order also required interconnected VoIP
providers to submit reports detailing their compliance with that mandate.
Some VoIP (define - news - alert) providers (mostly “fixed” VoIP providers like
cable companies, where the service cannot be moved) had little trouble meeting the Commission’s VoIP E911 requirements, making E911 service quickly
available. However, many other “nomadic” VoIP providers, which allow their
customers to access the service from virtually any broadband Internet connection,
faced serious difficulty in deploying their E911 solutions, with most unable to reach the
Commission’s requirements by the November 2005 deadline.
These delays primarily arose from the limitations these
for its conclusion that 120 days was a reasonable if aggressive
providers have in geographically locating their nomadic custime period for implementing this capability for nomadic
tomers, their restricted access to network 911 infrastructure,
VoIP providers.” While the FCC could have offered a longer
and the short time period provided by the Commission. Some timeframe, or required VoIP E911 service be provided in a
of these providers filed waiver petitions seeking an extension
multi-staged approach, they did not do so. According to the
of the Commission’s deadline. Others, led by Nuvio
Petitioners, “The rule, as written, is basically impossible to
Corporation, filed a lawsuit seeking judicial review of the
comply with.”
Commission’s VoIP E911 Order and a reversal of the rules.
The FCC, on the other hand, argued that if a longer
It has been one year since the Commission’s VoIP E911
deadline had been set by the FCC, little progress would have
deadline has passed. In that span, great progress has been
been made on such an important public safety matter. The
made, although no nomadic VoIP provider (including services agency argued that VoIP providers had the tools in place to
offered by the RBOCs) has complete nationwide E911/911
meet the Commission’s November 2005 deadline: “There is
coverage. Nomadic VoIP providers are required by the FCC
record evidence that the technology was there, the various
to limit selling and marketing their services to those regions of components of the technology were available, and it was
the country where VoIP E911/911 can be provided. Often,
simply a matter of making the necessary arrangements, coorthis limits the availability of many nomadic VoIP services to
dination, negotiation with various third parties to get this
the more populous areas of the country.
service rolled out.” The FCC also noted that a leading
Some providers have continued to update the Commission
nomadic VoIP provider, had made significant progress reachon the status of their E911 rollout efforts. Others have not.
ing agreements to access the underlying 911 infrastructure
The FCC has not ruled on any
with Qwest and Verizon, even
of the waiver petitions, nor has
before the Commission issued
it taken any enforcement action
the VoIP E911 Order. The
Great progress has been made,
against those service providers
Petitioners countered that large
that have not deployed a ubiquiproviders’ size and nationwide
although no nomadic VoIP provider
tous E911 solution.
footprint may give them a dis(including services offered by the
On September 12, 2006, oral
tinct advantage over smaller
arguments were heard at the
providers in reaching such
RBOCs) has complete nationwide
U.S. Court of Appeals D.C.
agreements. The Court also
Circuit on the VoIP providers’
questioned the FCC’s assumpE911/911 coverage.
case against the FCC. Nuvio
tion that it was reasonable for
and its joint petitioners agreed
smaller carriers to reach nationthat “the FCC in this case had a
wide VoIP E911 deployment,
very beneficial goal, everyone agrees, of trying to increase
when even the largest had itself been unable to do so by the
public safety.” Nuvio challenged, however, “the means [the
Commission’s deadline.
FCC] chose to accomplish it, and particularly the punitive
The Court also questioned whether it was appropriate for
nature of those means as applied to nomadic VoIP.”
the FCC to implement “technology forcing” rules. The FCC
Specifically, Nuvio argued that the FCC “had no factual basis responded that such an approach may be appropriate in cases
56 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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involving public safety. “One of the Commission’s primary
sion by the Court is expected by the end of the year. In the
objectives under Section 1 of the Communication’s Act is pro- meanwhile, the FCC continues to consider broadening the
moting the safety of life and property by a wire and radio
scope of the E911 obligation to apply to VoIP services such as
communications.” According to the FCC, the Commission
Skype’s one-way VoIP products. The FCC is also considering
previously engaged in something
the submissions of Intrado,
of a technology-forcing approach
Andrew Corporation and others
with regard to wireless 9-1-1, an
that assert that it may be feasible
approach the FCC noted that
to use various technologies to
The FCC continues to consider
the wireless industry did not
automatically determine a VoIP
broadening the scope of the E911
challenge.
customers’ location rather than
When questioned by the
rely on the customer to manualo
b
l
i
g
a
t
i
o
n
t
o
a
p
p
l
y
t
o
V
o
I
P
s
e
r
v
i
c
e
s
Court, counsel for the FCC reitly update their location with
erated that there remains the
such as Skype’s one-way VoIP products. their service provider. All of
possibility for enforcement
these developments, as well as
action, or grant of the pending
public safety concerns, ensure
waiver applications, depending
that E911 will continue to
on individual VoIP provider circumstances: “The Commission remain an issue for VoIP providers well into 2007. IT
staff is studying the compliance reports. It also has pending
William B. Wilhelm is a partner and Jeffrey R. Strenkowski is an
waiver petitions. It’s trying to make a determination as to
associate at the global law firm of Bingham McCutchen LLP. For
whether or not to grant waivers in certain circumstances. So
more information, please visit them online at
there is a possibility of liability, depending on the particular
http://www.bingham.com. The preceding represents the views of
circumstances and whether or not companies were in complithe authors only and does not necessarily represent the views of
ance by the deadline.”
Bingham McCutchen LLP or its clients. Bingham McCutchen repreWhile the FCC’s enforcement (or grant of the pending
sented the Petitioners in the case described above.
waiver petitions) in this proceeding remain uncertain, a deci-
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 57
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By Joel A. Pogar
VoIP: All Mixed Up
Heterogeneous VoIP may sound like something you need a vaccination for,
but it’s one of the latest buzzwords circling the IT industry. It’s hard to refute
that Voice over IP (VoIP) has taken off in the last few years. Many businesses,
big and small, have adopted VoIP for the features and cost savings it has to
offer. As the VoIP industry has grown, so have the number of VoIP vendors.
Just a few years ago, there were only four or five serious VoIP product vendors;
now there are over a dozen and the list keeps growing. Even Microsoft plans to
enter this market in a big way with the release of its next Windows operating
system, scheduled for 2007.
With the corporate economy rebounding, and an increase in
the number of mergers and acquisitions, it was only a matter of
time before companies ended up managing more than one VoIP
system. It’s not uncommon for companies in strong growth
industries to be grappling with three or more different VoIP systems. This can present challenges with incompatible gateways,
redundant voicemail, and inoperable unified messaging systems
— basically two or more VoIP (define - news - alert) environments that can’t communicate. But what should an IT or
Telecom department do? Can different VoIP systems work
together? Should everything be replaced? While the answers are
varied and complex, depending on which systems and vendors
are involved, there are some common issues to consider when
integrating disparate VoIP systems.
First and foremost, decide on a standard. If you are currently
managing multiple VoIP systems, pick one. No matter what
vendors tell you about open standards and interoperability, it’s
better to manage a single system. One of the biggest advantages of VoIP is cost savings, but cost savings begin to dwindle
when managing multiple environments. Disparate VoIP systems may require specialized hardware or software for interoperability and then only offering limited functionality. Such a
set-up will ultimately erode the return on investment offered
by VoIP, in addition to creating the usual headaches associated
with integration and maintenance of two or more systems.
Remember, VoIP vendors are aggressively competing for market share today. While most vendors are trusted business partners in your enterprise, some will be willing to sell, or tell you,
anything not to lose handsets on the desktop. So, evaluate proposed interoperability solutions carefully, especially if the information is coming from the vendor that may be displaced.
Another consideration is to keep an open mind when evaluating the systems in your environment. The phone system you
started with does not have to be the phone system you end up
with. If the company you are acquiring has a better VoIP solution, consider adopting their technology as the standard. Too
often, IT and telecom managers have an emotional attachment
to the system they developed from the ground up. Be objective
and think about the business needs of both companies before
making a final decision on an equipment standard.
When evaluating different VoIP systems, the protocol being
used could be an easy decision maker. There are two common
protocols in VoIP systems today: SIP and H.323. A signifi58 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
cant percentage of VoIP systems are using SIP, but that does
not mean that all of them are. Furthermore, early VoIP systems used proprietary versions of SIP or H.323. So, even if
both systems are using SIP or H.323 that still does not mean
they will work together. Don’t forget to look at the big picture. If your entire telecom environment is heavily weighted
toward one protocol or another, changing protocols could add
significant delays and expenses to a conversion project.
Not only do the phone systems have to be considered, but
any unified messaging, voicemail and security systems also
need to be evaluated. Maybe the phone systems are compatible
but the voicemail and security architecture are not. Ensure
your voicemail and security systems can accommodate the new
system, especially if it requires a change in VoIP protocols.
Before any implementation or conversion begins, the network
of the acquired party should be thoroughly examined. Don’t
take for granted that everyone uses “best practices” for the initial deployment of VoIP. If the proper network infrastructure is
not already in place, such as adequate bandwidth, VLAN segmentation, and QoS, you may be fighting a losing battle.
Don’t spend hours, days, or weeks trying to figure out why two
seemingly compatible VoIP systems can’t communicate, only
to find out the network was not properly designed in the first
place. It happens more than you think.
Finally, if it’s decided that one system needs to be replaced,
work with your vendor, or telecom provider, for trade-in discounts on the old system. VoIP vendors will offer trade-in discounts, especially for competitive gear. Typically, 10-40% discounts can be achieved when trading in your old system.
While some companies try to manage this themselves, it’s more
efficient to let the vendor do it if they have a trade-in program.
While most VoIP professionals advocate the use of a single
system for ease of deployment and maintenance, that’s not
always possible. Heterogeneous VoIP environments can and
do work. Making an educated decision and evaluating all of
the criteria are the keys to success. Be sure to evaluate more
than just the hardware, and consider what is in the best interest of both companies being united. IT
Joel Pogar is director of network solutions in Forsythe’s network
solutions and security practice. He has 19 years of experience in telecom, networking and IT security. Pogar is known in the industry as
an expert witness on technology matters, and has provided testimony
in several high profile trials. He holds CISSP certification and numerous vendor technology certifications, and was formerly CCIE certified.
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11/8/06 1:26:56 PM
By Rich Tehrani & Max Schroeder
A Summary of the Disaster
Preparedness and Business
Continuity Workshop at IT
Conference & EXPO West 2006
The Disaster Planning & Business Continuity Workshop was
held in the Pavilion area of the main exhibit floor, Thursday,
October 12, and covered a wide variety of subject matter. Many
different view points, but the same conclusion — enterprises
need to have a business continuity plan in place.
Richard Grigonis, the Executive Editor of TMC’s IP
Communications Group and the author of the book, Disaster
Survival Guide to Business Communications Networks, opened
the session with a brief history of fault tolerant computing
beginning with Step One — recognizing the need for reliable
computing power. Richard moved on to cover fault resilient
hardware architectures and faultless software designs setting
the stage for the entire session.
The next, speaker Gordon Payne, VP of Marketing for
Citrix’s Advanced Solutions Group, (quote - news - alert)provided a brief overview of recent disasters. One key statistic he
garnered from Gartner EXP showed that although 70% of
enterprises were prepared for a data center outage, only 13%
were prepared to handle a workflow disruption. Gordon went
on to review the real-life experience of Citrix customer
Lehman Brothers on September 11th. Although nearly 6,000
employees were displaced to more than 20 different locations
in New York and New Jersey, the Citrix Presentation Server
enabled every application to be deployed through a standard
Web browser and Lehman Brothers continued its operations.
Wendell Black, VP Sales, Oracle, (quote - news - alert) provided us with a clear definition of business continuity: “The
discipline of managing an enterprise under adverse conditions
— this is done by implementing resilience strategies, recovery
objectives, and crisis management plans as a key component
of an integrated risk management initiative.” (Source: The
Business Continuity Institute.) Wendell went on to cover the
“how to” of deploying contact centers so as to maintain business continuity and also provided numerous links to sites
dealing disaster planning.
Greg Gies, Marketing Director of Cantata, (news - alert)
reviewed the importance of fax in planning for business continuity. Specifically, Greg examined how IP fax and converged
communications provide for added integration and location
independence when architecting your company’s communication network.
One Touch Global Technologies (news - alert) President
Scott Riley provided the reseller perspective for the session
and focused on building an awareness of the importance of
fax server deployment considerations in a company’s PBX
implementation strategies. Scott also provided some interesting
statistics to demonstrate that “Fax is Alive and Well” includ62 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
ing the following:
• More faxing today than 5 years ago.
• ~200 million standalone fax machines
• One Touch corporate fax business: Up ~ 30% this year
Todd Landry, Sphere Communications’ Senior Vice
President, reviewed how an enterprise should evaluate its
readiness level and provided examples of 1-hour, 1-day or a 2day failover type of deployment. Todd emphasized that in a
business disruption situation the system should do most of the
work regardless of whether the disruption was caused by a complete facility failure, PBX connectivity, PBS Server failure, or
other type of disruption. Sphere also introduced the audience to
one of its strategic partners, PacStar. Jake Schmidt, Director of
Business Development, gave us all a tour of a yellow Humvee
they had on the show floor outfitted with a satellite dish. The
vehicle housed a PacStar 5500, which is an integrated communications appliance that delivers all the capabilities of a modern
office network to any location on the planet — a perfect communications solution for the ultimate disaster.
Jeffrey Stern, VP of Business Development, KoolSpan Inc.,
(news - alert) focused on assessing resiliency with specific
attention to data (replicated), hardware (redundant),
Internet/WAN (connections/speed), LAN/Ethernet (replicable), and security, which is their key specialty. He emphasized
that by implementing a private network with the proper security products an enterprise will save time, money and personnel bandwidth yet increase security and business resiliency.
C. Don Gant, VP of Channel Marketing and Business
Development, Iwatsu Voice Networks, (news - alert) opened
with a simple but important fact from AMR Research showing
that only 32% of businesses have a disaster preparedness plan
in place. He followed with results of a Harris Interactive survey
in 2004 which stated that 54% of executives from Fortune
1000 companies admitted to having a technology disruption
because they weren’t adequately prepared. The most startling
fact, however, came from KPMG Risk Advisory Services and
Continuity Insights Magazine. They conducted a 2005 survey
revealing that 43% of businesses damaged in a disaster close
for good.
If you would like to drill down further, full copies of all of
the presentations can be found at: http://www.tmcnet.com/
channels/disaster-preparedness/
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The ECA and TMC will also be hosting several sessions
and events to coincide with INTERNET TELEPHONY
Conference & EXPO East, at the Broward County
Convention Center from January 24-26, 2007
(http://www.tmcnet.com/voip/conference/).
First, there will a special Keynote panel: VoIP Options:
Disaster Preparedness — Are You Ready? It will take place
Wednesday January 24, 2007, from 3:45 to 4:30 P.M.
Hurricanes. Tornados. Earthquakes. Volcanoes. Our first
thoughts turn to the safety of loved ones; however, once the
dust settles, our thoughts turn immediately back to getting
our businesses back on their feet and back to the business of
making money.
Snowstorms. Vandalization. An errant backhoe. A fire in a
neighboring business. On the surface, these occurrences don’t
sound so tragic, but experience has shown us that business
disruptions caused by these seemingly benign events can be
far, far more problematic when it comes to getting a business
back up and running.
This special panel discussion will focus in on what you as
an owner or operations manager of an enterprise need to
know in order to prepare for the inevitable service disruption
due to forces beyond your control, and what you need to do
to keep your lights on, keep your phones operational, and
keep your business connected. Our experts will share their
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perspectives and discuss best practices, and most importantly,
they will be prepared to answer questions from the audience,
helping you learn what you need to know to effectively prepare for the day disaster strikes.
The moderator for this panel will be Greg Galitzine, the
Editorial Director of TMC’s IP Communications Group
which includes TMCnet.com, Internet Telephony Magazine,
SIP Magazine and IMS Magazine.
Also, on Thursday, January 25th, from 1:30 to 4:15 p.m.
the ECA/TMC team will host a full workshop — Disaster
Preparedness and Business Continuity for the Enterprise.
Whether your company already has a plan in place; is in the
process of developing a plan; or is simply in the research stage,
you need to join us in Fort Lauderdale, Florida to learn more
about how to protect your business. IT
Rich Tehrani is the President and Group Editor-in-Chief at TMC and
is Conference Chairman of Internet Telephony Conference & EXPO.
Max Schroeder is a board member of the Enterprise Communications
Association (ECA) and chairman of its Media Relations Committee.
If your organization is interested in participating in the TMC/ECA
Disaster Preparedness Communications Forum (DPCF), please contact [email protected] For additional information on the
DPCF and its members, TMC and the ECA, please visit the official
DPCF channel on TMCnet.
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 63
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By Kelly Anderson
Turning Metrics into Gold
Being the mother of a five-year-old daughter, I seem to have a part-time job
that consists of keeping up-to-date on the princess stories of today and yesteryear. In doing my homework, I came across an old Grimm fairy tale that I
had forgotten about — Rumpelstiltskin. In case you have forgotten,
Rumpelstiltskin is about a miller that wanted to marry his daughter off to a
king so he makes up a story that she can spin unvaluable straw into invaluable
gold to make her seem different and more appealing than other girls. Well,
the king sends for her and locks her into a room full of straw to prove her
worth to him. She, of course, can not do that, so an opportunistic elf shows
up to do the work for her and in exchange she will give him lots of gifts and
then finally her firstborn as payment for services rendered. When the time
comes for payment, she is unprepared to hand over her new baby girl to the
impatient elf. So, the elf gives her three days to find out his name to free her
of this obligation, and so on. Needless to say, I could not help but parallel the
debate about monitoring the home and carrier network and user activity to
this delightful fairytale.
The promise of IPTV and other content-based applications
There is a black hole around the home network that will
have proven to create quite a stir in the industry. We have
need to be addressed to make data complete and useable. Just
seen the emergence of what many would consider to be “gold” as the king had an expectation about his future wife’s capabilito a potential service provider. This “gold” is what back-office
ties, so too, content providers and advertisers will have the
professionals used to call CDRs or Call Detail Records in the
same expectations of IPTV if they make allowances they norold telephony days. This CDR data was once only available
mally wouldn’t just because of the promise of accurate user
and needed for applications like billing and fraud control. I
data. Since most formats and protocols to obtain home netthink only people who attended ATIS meetings really knew
work data today are propriety, a provider’s ability to work
what it was.
through multiple device vendors to get a clear cut view of data
Well, the industry is changing, and now there are articles
is compromised and almost completely inhibited in today’s
and analysts hyping the importance of this type of data to
test markets.
open up new content and efficiencies as well as monitor user
So, what needs to happen to get this effort moving? Just
behavior for advertisers, media outlets, and internal marketlike the value of gold from something inexpensive and seeming plans. While I am pleased to see the exposure on data
ingly meaningless such as data, service providers from all areas
(I have been a fan for many
of the industry need to not only
years of the potential of CDR
work in the organizations that
data), service providers have to
are addressing these issues, but
be careful about the applicaalso apply some pressure to venThere is a black hole around the
tions that provide the data,
dors wanting to promote and
and they need to make sure
develop propriety protocols that
home network that will need
the data record they receive has
make implementations of a cona complete picture of a given
structive data model difficult
to be addressed to make data
transaction. Impartial data that
and expensive to manage.
complete and useable.
does not consider all aspects of
The industry is in need of this
the user experience and use
change, and there are several
patterns may be as useable as
groups working on this effort
no data at all.
from all areas of the industry.
All of the data honestly boils down to metrics. These metThe problem is that the title of “Industry Liaison” has, for all
rics need to be present in the network today to give an accupractical purposes, gone away from a provider’s infrastructure.
rate picture of the providers’ network for capacity planning
Workers have been few in this area and the ones that are
and QoS monitoring, but what about the picture of what the
working on industry issues are doing double time to give the
customer is experiencing?
industry a standard and a single data model and transport
64 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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mechanism that the world of IPTV and other like services can toring and creating a great cross-vendor platform that will
live with.
make implementation easier and metrics of the entire user
The promises of data are being made and banked on, but
experience more complete than ever. The issue is that in the
the implementation is still
North American competitive
infantile at this stage. The
communications market it is
industry must get on board
going to take more than an elf to
quickly to keep the train of
spin this into gold. It will take
IPDR.org will be releasing its
data gold alive and running.
the entire kingdom working
In the next month,
together to implement a stanspecifications and protocol
IPDR.org will be releasing its
dard that will invite opportunity
designed to accommodate
specifications and protocol
for all without giving up their
designed to accommodate the
firstborn. IT
the data needs of IPTV.
data needs of IPTV. This effort
was completed with the help
Kelly Anderson is President and COO
of most of the major North
of IPDR.org, a collaborative industry
American and international
consortium focused on developing
standards organizations and is being incorporated into many
and driving the adoption of next-gen IP service usage exchange
of the standards for IPTV currently being released as well. It
standards worldwide.
honestly involved a cooperative effort I have not seen among
the standards organizations to date.
If you are interested in purchasing reprints of this article (in either print or PDF forThe key to its success will be in the implementation by
mat), please visit Reprint Management Services online at http://http://www.reprintvendors who may or may not have been part of this effort.
buyer.com or contact a representative via e-mail at [email protected] or by
This has the potential of streamlining network data moniphone at 800-290-5460.
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 65
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SPIRIT’s Andrew Sviridenko
Rich Tehrani’s Executive Suite is a monthly feature in which leading
executives in the VoIP/IP Communications industry discuss their
company’s latest developments with TMC president Rich Tehrani as
well as providing analysis on industry news and trends.
ships are already in place for that, such as
the one with ARM.
In this issue, Rich speaks with Andrew Sviredenko, chief executive
officer at SPIRIT DSP.
AS: We’ve already added video to the
SPIRIT mobile voice engine. SPIRIT
will make major announcements with
Tier 1 global customers soon in the
mobile voice engine and mobile audio
(music) markets. SPIRIT and ARM are
global partners now.
RT: Describe how your business has
changed the world.
AS: Since its inception in 1992, SPIRIT
(news - alert) was focused on mathematically intensive software for the global
market, and from 1996 we were focused
entirely on voice and communications
software. By 2002 SPIRIT became the
largest DSP software house in Europe
(TI data on the number of processors
sold with third-party software). With all
of our DSP expertise and 140-person
team, in 2004 SPIRIT entered the PC
voice engine market and licensed SPIRIT voice products to Adobe, Interwise,
HP, Paltalk, MediaRing, Oracle, and
Microsoft, among many others. In
2005, SPIRIT entered the mobile voice
engine market, (VoIP over WiFi and
3G) with deployments now both in Asia
and Europe. During the last 10 years,
SPIRIT built a global reputation for
technically the best voice software products worldwide. Today SPIRIT powers
100 million voice channels and about
40 million audio (music) channels in 80
countries. SPIRIT is now on track (the
proper partnerships are already in place)
to power a billion voice channels by
2008. SPIRIT is a bootstrap; it had no
VC funding, and our prime pricing
68 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
scheme is a royalty per copy or per
channel. So we are not paid much until
our client’s hardware or software product becomes successful. SPIRIT’s success
is based on the market successes of our
customers’ products. SPIRIT now serves
200 telecom, hardware, and software
customers with passion and this is why
our voice products are technically the
best in the world today.
RT: How has your business changed
as a result of supplying solutions to
Adobe, Paltalk, Oracle, MediaRing,
Microsoft, HTC, Compal, and other
clients in enterprise conferencing and
mobile OEM space?
AS: Each customer brings experience and
deeper market understanding. In less
than two years SPIRIT got to the leading
position in the enterprise multi-way voice
conferencing and collaboration market,
and now SPIRIT is the global leader in
the mobile voice engine market as well.
SPIRIT is constantly staffing up professionals, both in R&D and S&M. Lately,
HTC and Compal have signed with
SPIRIT for mobile voice engines for their
3G video handsets. As I’ve said, SPIRIT
is now on track to power a billion voice
channels by 2008; the proper partner-
RT: What products we can see from
your company soon?
RT: What do you think about the future
of Mobile VoIP and Wi-Fi telephony?
AS: It is great, and SPIRIT is going to
continue its lead in the global mobile
voice engine market. The TeamSpirit™
Mobile Voice Engine enables wideband,
full duplex, noise- and echo-free voice
and a decent battery life on low power
ARM processors.
Mobile applications are a true acid test
for capabilities of a voice engine supplier.
SPIRIT has solutions today to serve the
needs of mobile OEMs and softphone
developers. TeamSpirit™ Mobile is the
industry’s first voice engine that enables
a full VoIP application and can be run
on an ARM9e at 168MHz, as compared
to Skype running on a 312MHz Intel
XScale processor. The SPIRIT solution
ensures rich voice and quality video and
is optimized for devices running under
Windows Mobile 5.0, Windows Mobile
5.0 SmartPhone Edition, Windows
PocketPC 2003, or Windows
Smartphone 2003 operating systems.
Continued on page 73
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Siemens’ Thomas Zimmerman
Rich Tehrani’s Executive Suite is a monthly feature in which leading
executives in the VoIP/IP Communications industry discuss their
company’s latest developments with TMC president Rich Tehrani, as
well as providing analysis on industry news and trends.
Unified Communications has been the focus of many conversations,
many articles, and many presentations — it should be, as it is widely purported to be the future of the business communications environment. Unified Communications also means vastly different
things to different people and different organizations, and for many
of them, unified communications is a new foray. Siemens, however,
has been preaching and preparing for it for several years now, and
believes the time is now right for Unified Communications to
become the dominant solution in the communications landscape.
Rich recently had occasion to speak to Tom Zimmerman, president
of Siemens Communications’ enterprise systems group, (news - alert)
who explained Siemens’ approach to unified communications and
how it will play out in the coming years.
RT: Can you provide an overview of
Siemens’ view on unified
communications?
TZ: We think we have to combine our
key domain, the mobile domain, and
the voice domain, so that the customer
gains the benefit of these converged
worlds. We also think that unified communications should be based on open
standards.
One key is that unified communication applications have to be embedded
into the IT application landscape and,
therefore, this open unified communication. So, “open communication” is our
unique position, and it is deeply based
on our software oriented architecture
with our two main products, the 8000
softswitch and the OpenScape applications around it.
70 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
The last thing is that, with the tools
we have to help the customer enter the
unified communications area, we have
to offer a migration path from the traditional world into the unified communications world.
RT: You’ve been preaching unified
communications for quite some time.
Can you give me some history of
Siemens’ view on the market?
TZ: We started talking about unified
communications about three years ago,
and also talking about integrating our
applications, not only into key applications, but into the business processes.
We also began closely working with
some of the industry leaders in the software world, like Microsoft. As you
know, our first product, OpenScape, is
now about two years in the market and
it’s been a leading unified communications application. This is something we
want to build on.
We really thank some of our competitors for embracing this decision now
that we made three years ago — this
shows that this is the right strategy. We
now have a three-year product development lead and we are very committed to
transforming this into market success —
we think the market is starting to pick
up in this area and we’re still leveraging
our alliance with Microsoft.
We also will enter alliances with other
big software vendors, like IBM and SAP,
and are working very closely with them
to reach similar integrated solutions as
we have in the unified communication
area with Microsoft today.
RT: Has all of the activity surrounding
the term “unified communications”
been good or bad for your business?
TZ: We are committed to open standards, so we’ve also had some challenges,
because some part of the value chain will
be with some of our potential partners.
As we move from the telecommunications industry into the IT industry, it is
clear we have to focus on our value
chain, just as we are focusing on the
software business now. Our goal is to be
a leading software provider for a focused
unified communications portfolio.
The second thing is that we will build
upon service. Besides the software business, we will build on our huge sales
and service delivery business that we
have, which today is about a €€1.5 billion business. We will look to transform
it more and more to a solution house,
offering value-added integration services
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for our products. Our journey is very
clear: We want to be a leader in the software business and in the value-added
services business.
On the product side, that means that
we will give up some part of the value
chain. As you know, in the past, we had
our own telephone systems with proprietary hardware and software. In the
future, we will build on open platforms,
open servers, and focus on the software
we deliver. This is a change in the entire
market, but we prefer to lead this
change and this transformation.
RT: What are your thoughts on
separating the service provider
communications business?
TZ: We think the market will come
more and more together. Business customers, service providers, and also carriers will have a bigger presence in our
market, as well as some new players like
IBM, Microsoft, and even Accenture,
and others. We believe our strategy
places us as the leading open software
solution provider, and having service
integration capability will be a good
asset in creating additional partnerships
with software vendors as well as carriers.
We can also leverage our relationships
with our carrier colleagues now, with
Nokia Siemens Networks, in order to
work together with carriers, helping
them enter the enterprise business space.
Voice is becoming just another application on the network, but for now, it is
still the most complex one — and it’s
still one for which customers have the
highest expectations. They want to pick
up their handset and hear a dial tone,
and they want to hear it all the time.
So, reliability is the key, and that’s
why I think, when we combine what we
know on the telecom side with our new
knowledge on the IT side, we are well
positioned to carve out a huge chunk of
this service business.
RT: Competitively speaking, whom do
you see as the company on which
you’re most focused?
72 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
TZ: This will change over time, but at
the moment, of course, it’s still the traditional competitors. I expect that,
within the next, let’s say 12 to 18
months, the new entrants in our market
— and I mentioned some with
Microsoft, Cisco, and also some of the
service providers — will be our largest
competitors.
Being a software provider and a system integrator, we expect that our competitors will change with the market,
and we do everything to transform our
company to remain competitive. This
means really working with some of the
leading software companies and carriers,
on the one hand, and with some of the
leading integration companies on the
other. This new ecosystem will be a very
complex landscape and we will have
competitors and partnerships at the
same time.
But we believe we are well prepared
for playing in this very competitive, but
also very fantastic, environment.
RT: From an open systems standpoint,
do you think your old competitors,
such as Avaya and Cisco, will evolve
to be more similar to you? Or do you
think that they’re going to continue
with their traditional approach?
TZ: I think some of them will adopt our
approach and build on open standards
and SOA and similar things. But others,
if they have a huge installed base on a
proprietary architecture, they may not
want to go to open standards. That’s
why I think we can offer a clear alternative based on an open standard. We
have different deployment models and a
more decentralized approach, and putting it all together, we offer quite a
unique value proposition.
RT: What are customers saying
about it so far?
TZ: Customers really appreciate it. As
you know, we introduced the 8000
product last year and, at the beginning,
we had some challenges with the new
architecture and new product coming
out of the carrier space. We have spent
much of the year-and-a-half catching up
with features and additional requirements and have transformed a lot of
R&D from our traditional product to
the 8000. So, after two software
upgrades this year, our customers realize
that the product is not only unique in
its architecture and leading in its technology, but also now is much more
developed. And the feedback is very
good. We are winning a new 8000 customer nearly every week now
Our Microsoft alliance is also very
much appreciated, because our customers want to integrate our applications into the Microsoft desktop, so
I’m convinced that we are on the right
strategic path.
RT: If you’re beginning to make more
money from systems integration, IBM
showed that they were able to generate much higher margins on systems
integration and consulting. Is that
similar to what you’re doing?
Wouldn’t you make higher margins
and more money by going into that
business?
TZ: That is the plan. As you know, in
the past, proprietary systems were a
profitable business, but this is changing
now and there are huge price pressures
in many markets. Our goal is to balance
this with higher margins in the valueadded service business — both professional services and managed services
and more.
RT: How do you see service oriented
architecture as coming into play in
this business?
TZ: I think this is prerequisite to integrating our solutions and our applications into a broader IT landscape. Not
everyone can do everything on his own
in the unified communication area but
we think we can build our market share.
However, we cannot offer everything in
this application landscape and we have
to work together with other leading
software companies. And this can also
only be based on a service-oriented
architecture, and we do not want to
have relationships with only one or
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two players. Instead, we really want to
have the possibility to integrate our
applications in most of the other leading systems.
RT: What do you think open source is
going to do to the market?
TZ: We do not expect, at least not for
our large global customers, a big impact.
Most customers still see that open standards and open communications are
important, but they should be managed.
Our customers are telling us, “open but
managed.” This is especially true if these
applications are to be integrated into the
broader IT landscape of these customers, where security and availability
become increasingly important.
RT: Are you implying that managed or
open source can’t be managed?
TZ: I think that there are still a lot of
issues around security and other things
SPIRIT’s Andrew Sviridenko
Continued from page 68
RT: What benefits do you bring to
your clients?
AS: TeamSpirit™ Mobile is the world’s
most compact voice engine running on
mobile devices today — and with the
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and, up to now, my feeling, based on
feedback from the market, is that customers, especially large customers, are
not ready for it. So, for a movement like
Asterisk and others, I do not expect a
huge impact, not in the next couple of
years. We are watching it closely, and we
do not want to underestimate it, but, up
to now, the reaction of our large global
customers tells us we don’t have to be
very concerned.
RT: How do you see the communications industry changing over the next
five years or so?
TZ: I think that unified communication
will start to grow dramatically now.
We’ve talked about this for a couple of
years, but I think the time has come,
highest voice quality. It allows our
clients to aggressively pursue the markets of VoIP-enabled handsets for fast
and mass deployments.
RT: What do you think about the
future of 3GVT market?
AS: In 2008, 3G phone shipments are
and customers are ready for it, partly
because of customized solutions available for different verticals. I think this
will be a huge growth area.
I think that open standards will
become the industry standard, and
enterprise communication will become
more and more SIP-based — our competitors are also following this assumption. And I think unified communications will fundamentally change the way
we communicate. Our customers are
really integrating communications into
business processes and achieving greater
productivity and effectiveness. This will
be the next big thing.
For the industry, this means a consolidation in the marketplace for some of
the big vendors, like we’re seeing in the
carrier world. IT
forecast to reach 300 million with
approximately 250 million consumers
using mobile video services. It’s a market having great opportunities for
everybody. SPIRIT voice products are
already deployed in mobile video
devices distributed by T-Mobile,
Orange, Vodafone, and O2. SPIRIT
voice powers the Compal and HTC. IT
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 73
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The Place to Be, for IP
By Erik Linask
It wasn’t all that long ago that we were excited about the advent of
mobile telephony — remember those large boxes you used to keep
in your car? Since then, much has changed in the world of communications — many things have come and many others have gone, as
the communications world has begun its transition to IP. The pace
of change has been furious, and the rapid evolution of IP
Communications has redefined communication, not only at the
office, but at home and on the road as well, with concepts like unified communications. Indeed, businesses large and small are now
investigating their options for integrating VoIP into their communications solutions.
The evolution of IP Communications, as far as it has come, is hardly
slowing; in fact, it continues to change
at an equally impressive pace. Each day,
developers, service providers, and software vendors are introducing new products and solutions to further enhance
offerings already on the market. With
each passing month, new solutions
make others introduced just a year ago
seem obsolete.
Now, the latest generations of products and services are integrating video
into voice applications, combining fixed
and mobile solutions through IMS infrastructures, and leveraging IP services to
improve productivity, lower costs, and
grow revenues. Security, hosting, open
source, IPTV, FMC, disaster preparedness, conferencing & collaboration,
peering, billing & OSS, and so many
other areas are all being fused by IP.
To help identify and understand the
trends and opportunities in IP
Communications, IP Telephony
Conference & Expo (ITEXPO) has,
since 1999, been single-minded in its
drive to bring together industry movers
74 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
and shakers to help service providers,
developers, enterprises, SMBs, government entities, resellers, and others make
informed communications decisions.
Not that anyone really needs an
excuse to visit South Florida in January,
other than the climate itself, but there is
another real reason to find yourself in
Ft. Lauderdale this January 24-27. With
so many vendors and providers touting
their wares, this can be a confusing marketplace — ITEXPO East will help you
understand what is important and what
is not, now and in the future. In fact, if
it’s important to IP Communications,
you will find it at ITEXPO. The unique
blend of speakers and exhibitors at
ITEXPO is certain to support TMC’s
guarantee that attendees will leave
ITEXPO more knowledgeable and better able make informed communications decisions, a certainty that is driven
by TMC’s experienced editorial team
and its industry spanning publications
— Internet Telephony, SIP Magazine,
IMS Magazine, and Customer
[email protected] Solutions, ensuring no stone
is left unturned.
At ITEXPO, you will have the opportunity for a first-rate educational experience around IP Communications.
Indeed, as the communications landscape evolves, it also becomes more
complicated, but ITEXPO offers a
learning environment to allow you to
keep pace with the industry. Regardless
of your background, and your company’s business notwithstanding, ITEXPO
provides an unparalleled opportunity to
understand how the changes in communications can help your firm.
ITEXPO brings to you more commercial-free conference tracks than any
other event — with each track offering
a variety of micro-topics presented by
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the industry’s most knowledgeable
speakers for attendees representing all
corners of the communications world.
Each topic is specifically chosen by
TMC for its current relevance, and each
speaker is hand-picked based on their
ability to communicate effectively while
providing an unbiased education.
In addition to sessions covering the
most important current topics, this
year’s event will feature keynote addresses by some of the most influential —
and knowledgeable — industry personalities who are looking forward to sharing their thoughts on the opportunity
the burgeoning IP Communications
space provides, including:
• Chris Gravett, Sales and Marketing
Director, Aculab
• James D. Foy, President, CEO and
Director, Aspect Software, Inc.
• Mark Zionts, Chief Executive
Officer, Cantata Technology
• Laurent Philonenko, VP and GM,
Customer Contact Business Unit,
Cisco Systems
• Jim Machi, VP, Product
Management and Planning,
Dialogic Corp.
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• Brett Shockley, Founder, CEO and
Chairman, Spanlink
Communications
• Todd Landry, Senior Vice President,
Sphere Communications
• Michael Tribolet, President, Vonage
America Inc.
Also, the well-known Service
Provider Shootout panel discussion will
feature some of the industry’s foremost
experts as part of a moderated panel
that will provide perspectives from leading service providers on next generation
solutions, the latest developments, what
to expect from the future, as well as
real-life stories. Topics will range to
include net neutrality, government regulations, competitive pressures, FMC
and IMS, wireless alternatives, IPTV,
Triple Play, and anything else that
might come up.
Special seminars are also on the agenda that will focus on reseller solutions,
SIP trunking, VoIP peering, and disaster
preparedness. These full-day seminars
will help resellers, enterprises, and service providers sort through the myriad of
equipment and service alternatives facing them — whether they are looking
for themselves, for clients, or for subscribers.
In addition to the unmatched educational tracks and keynotes, Internet
Telephony Conference & Expo also
rewards attendees with invaluable networking time and an opportunity to see
product and service offerings from more
than 200 exhibitors on a show floor that
grows annually. In the exhibit hall, you
will see the latest IP hardware, software
solutions, services, and gadgets. The
conference schedule leaves generous
time to peruse the exhibit floor and
meet with the vendors displaying their
wares with the single-minded purpose of
enabling you to run your business more
effectively.
Ultimately, the vendor you choose for
your deployment will become as much a
partner as a supplier, whether you are
deploying a solution or are a service
provider preparing your VoIP network.
It is your responsibility to ensure these
projects run smoothly with minimal disruption, while meeting all your organizational objectives. ITEXPO is the
opportune venue for forging these profitable relationships.
At ITEXPO, you will have the chance
to meet and talk with other enterprises,
service providers, developers, and
resellers to share ideas, exchange business cards, and discuss the virtues of one
solution over another. You will be able
to see all the key players and your peers
in one venue, ensuring you are appropriately equipped to make your communications decisions. As a decision maker
in the communications space, you have
everything to lose by not attending
ITEXPO East 2007 — if it is important
to the IP Communications space, you
will find it in Ft. Lauderdale from
January 24-27, and when it’s time to
head back home, you will have the
knowledge and information that will
enable you to make the best decisions
for your company’s future.
As an added bonus — if sunny
Florida in mid-winter and the world’s
biggest IP Communications event don’t
offer enough incentive — this year’s
attendees will have an opportunity to
win either a new Harley Davidson or a
Toyota FJ Cruiser. See you in Florida! IT
For more information or to register for
Internet Telephony Conference & Expo East
2007, please visit http://www.itexpo.com. If
your company is interested in exhibiting at
the show, please contact Dave Rodriguez:
[email protected] or 203.852.6800
x146.
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 75
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At the recently concluded Internet Telephony Conference
& EXPO, held in San Diego, CA from October 10–13, editors from Internet Telephony, IMS Magazine, SIP Magazine,
TMCnet, and TMC Labs met with exhibitors and tried out
new products, noting the very best of the show.
That Said, demonstrations of exhibitors’ products and services and the sheer volume of new and exciting companies and
applications were the real show in San Diego this year.
The Internet Telephony Conference & EXPO Best of
Show award recognizes innovative products and solutions
that were featured in the Exhibit Hall during the event.
This designation serves to highlight the technological
achievement and creative product features that set these
winners apart from the rest of the crowd. TMC editorial
staff met with vendors over the course of the three-day
event, and convened for several hours to compare notes
and choose the winners.
Judging was based on a company’s overall contributions to
the VoIP/IP Communications industry, with an emphasis on
things like technologic innovation and product feature sets.
Forward-looking products and services like that are designed
to aid in the development of the next generation of products
and services were also awarded.
The following list comprises the award winners for the
Internet Telephony Conference & EXPO West Best of Show.
Congratulations!
COMPANY NAME
WEB SITE
COMPANY NAME
WEB SITE
911 Enable
http://www.911enable.com
Paragon Wireless
http://www.parawireless.com
Actiontec Electronics
http://www.actiontec.com
Quintum Technologies
http://www.quintum.com
Aculab
http://www.aculab.com
ReefPoint Systems
http://www.reefpoint.com
Aperio CI
http://www.aperioCI.com
Samsung Telecommunications America http://www.samsung.com/bcs
AudioCodes
http://www.audiocodes.com
Sangoma Technologies
http://www.sangoma.com
BandTel
http://www.bandtel.com
Seawolf Technologies
http://www.seawolftech.com
ClearOne Communications
http://www.clearone.com
Shunra
http://www.shunra.com
CTI Group
http://www.ctigroup.com
SignalSys, Inc
http://www.signalsys.com
Dash911 Solutions – E911 for VoIP
http://www.dash911.com
Simton Technologies
http://www.simton.com
Dialexia Communications
http://www.dialexia.com
Solegy
http://www.solegy.com
Dirigosoft Corporation
http://www.dirigosoft.com
Spanlink Communications
http://www.spanlink.com
Ditech Networks
http://www.ditechnetworks.com
Sphere Communications
http://www.spherecom.com
Eyeball Networks
http://www.eyeball.com
Switchvox
http://www.switchvox.com
Interactive Intelligence
http://www.inin.com
Sychip
http://www.sychip.com
Inter-Tel
http://www.inter-tel.com
SyncVoice Communications
http://www.syncvoice.com
Iwatsu Voice Networks
http://www.iwatsu.com
Telchemy, Inc
http://www.telchemy.com
Multi-Tech Systems
http://www.multitech.com
ThinkEngine Networks
http://www.thinkengine.com
myJabber
http://www.myjabber.net
Trolltech
http://www.trolltech.com
Netcordia
http://www.netcordia.com
Unibill, LLC
http://www.unibill.us
Ojo
http://www.ojophone.com
VoIP Supply
http://www.voipsupply.com
Packet Island
http://www.packetisland.com
Vonexus
http://www.vonexus.com
Pandora Networks
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
Zoom Technologies
http://www.zoom.com
76 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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The Year in Review…
The Year Ahead
2006 was a pivotal year in the history of IP Communications.
Practically all greenfield installations are now IP-enabled, and
many existing circuit-switched phone systems are being modified
or replaced with systems that can deal with both the PSTN and IP
networks. 2007 will give us more of the same, along with new
technological advances in wireline and wireless communications,
and applications having myriad new features.
With the new IP technology came a
new crop of buzzwords and terms. Web
2.0 was joined by the somewhat more
nebulous Web 3.0. As one online commentator wrote, “Web 3.0 is Web 2.0+...
more of what we have now, but faster
and more ubiquitous.” It was also linked
with another term, the Semantic Web,
according to Dave Linthicum.
(Wikipedia says that, “The Semantic
Web is a project that intends to create a
universal medium for information
exchange by putting documents with
computer-processable meaning [semantics] on the World Wide Web.” It uses
XML, XML Schema, RDF Schema and
OWL.) And SOA, or Service-Oriented
Architecture, was on everyone’s lips
(though not everyone knew why).
Despite this multiplicity of acronyms
and interesting terms, we saw more of
the same in 2006: More Skype users,
more open source (Asterisk-based)
phone systems, more sophisticated wireless devices, more WiFi and dual band
78 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
phones, more broadband, and more
SIP-based systems, thus cementing the
position of this important call
control/signaling protocol.
The public continues to clamor for
broadband, despite the fact that many
U.S. carriers have been slow to respond
by changing their infrastructure, at least
by European and Asian standards.
Call/contact centers began to take IP
Communications seriously, even though
VoIP (define - news - alert) adoption
rates in such centers had just barely
entered double digits toward the end of
2006.
Business-wise, we saw one IP IPO
that fizzled big time (that of Vonage)
and another that did extremely well
but stayed under the public’s radar
(that of Acme Packet). One bellwether
company in this industry, Cisco
Systems, revealed terrific revenues —
see Rich Tehrani’s Publisher’s Outlook
on page 8 of this issue.
Video mania took hold in 2006. The
public eagerly awaits IPTV, the classy,
interactive PayTV version of IP video.
In the meantime, however, it seems that
everybody from well-known motion picture and network TV companies to
teenagers and an assortment of lunatics
have generated zillions of Internet videos
of varying quality. Blogs have been supplanted by video blogs or vlogs. Video is
even going mobile. Indeed, cell phones
are becoming personal mobile multimedia and information stations, as established media companies try to repackage
existing content for new delivery environments and, therefore, new distribution channels. For example, Hearst
Magazines struck a deal with Volantis, a
leading supplier of Intelligent Content
Adaptation™ solutions, to launch
mobile device-savvy versions of Hearst
Magazines’ Cosmopolitan, Seventeen, and
CosmoGIRL!. The magazines will be
mobilized utilizing Volantis’ Mobile
Content Framework™ and will soon be
available on both the Cingular Wireless
and Sprint-Nextel networks.
In related news, America began to fall
in love with mobile broadband and the
AirCard, though existing over-air connections may seem anemic when compared to upcoming WiMAX deploySubscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
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By Richard “Zippy” Grigonis
ments in 2007.
IMS, the IP Multimedia Subsystem,
destined to yield a common service
architecture for both wireless and wireline, and promising the ability to easily
create and deploy a multitude of new
services, stayed mostly in the interoperability laboratories. More extensive trials
and deployments will appear in 2007.
As they do so and the world’s communications infrastructure is renewed, you’ll
see heavy duty computing platforms
appearing in the network based on
AdvancedTCA and MicroTCA form
factors and running switch fabrics such
as 10 gigabit Ethernet, PCI Express, and
Rapid I/O. You’ll even see some workhorse media servers in the form of older
CompactPCI and PCI-bus technology.
Of course, the above verbiage is just
one person’s observations. Yours Truly
decided to take his inquiry to the next
level by talking to a number of wellknown and respected companies in our
industry, gathering together and distilling their opinions on what really happened in 2006 and how IP
Communications will bode in 2007.
8x8
(news - alert) Despite the pall over the
industry cast by the Vonage IPO, many
service providers have been doing rather
well.
Bryan Martin, Chairman and CEO,
8x8 Inc. (http://www.8x8.com) (the
folks who bring you the sophisticated
yet inexpensive Packet8 services) says,
“During 2006, while we continued to
see the adoption of Internet telephony
motivated by price, we also saw consumers and businesses looking to IP
Communications for new services and
applications that were never available to
them before through legacy network
offerings. The incorporation of video
and business service applications as part
of the IP voice experience was prevalent
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throughout the year as customers began
to value Internet telephony for reasons
beyond the phone bill at the end of
each month. 2007 holds a renewed
promise that the industry will use IP
Communications and the Internet as a
means to develop away from the hard,
closed walls of the legacy voice networks.”
Martin adds, “It is my sincere hope
that the regulatory community and lawmakers will also come to realize that we
cannot just find ways to shoehorn past
regulations and policies onto these new
applications, as was done throughout
most of 2006 with E911, universal service, and intercarrier compensation
reform, but to really begin to think in
new ways and use the canvas of the
Internet to draw better, improved solutions for the communication networks,
services and applications that will
become the prevalent means of communication for our society throughout the
21st century.”
Acme Packet
Unlike Vonage, Acme Packet
(http://www.acmepacket.com) had an
IPO success story in 2006. It closed its
initial public offering of 11 million
shares at $9.50 per share, raising about
$110 million. Yours Truly remembers
when (news - alert) Acme Packet’s affable
CEO, Andrew D. Ory, left Boston
Technology and formed Priority Call
Management in 1991, a leading supplier
of enhanced calling and messaging solutions, which later became a division of
Atos Origin. Ory’s move to Acme
Packet helped bring increased success to
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 79
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the company.
Acme Packet’s VP of Marketing and
Product Management, Seamus
Hourihan, says: “When looking back at
2006 and looking ahead at 2007, I see
developments in five areas. First, there’s
Architecture. I think we’re moving from
IMS as dogma to what I call ‘IMS pragmatism’. I like to play with acronyms.
IMS means a lot of things to many different people: To service providers from
a business perspective, IMS stands for
‘Incoming Money Soon’. From a vendor
perspective, it means, ‘Install More
Sh*#’. If you’re on the operations side,
trying to make it work, it means, ‘Inflict
More Suffering’. And in the background
across all of this, it means that the
‘IETF [Socialistic] Mindset Sucks’. As
you can tell, I’m not politically correct,
I’m very irreverent.”
“On the pragmatism side,” says
Hourihan, “as my recent article on IMS
security in IMS Magazine mentioned,
IMS is basically missing security. People
need to be pragmatic about how they
fill those gaps. We’re also seeing pragmatism in terms of some of the other standards organizations taking the 3GPP
architecture, extending it and modifying
it as they see fit. That would include
ETSI TISPAN, the PacketCable group
and MSF [Multiservice Switching
Forum].”
“Again, there are many things missing
in IMS,” says Hourihan. “I’m working
on an article basically entitled ‘Does
IMS Work?’, and that set of concerns
relates to IMS scalability when it’s
deployed to serve many subscribers. It
also includes things like call flows and
the complexity surrounding them; interactions with databases and how often
they occur and if there are there better
ways to do them — perhaps not on a
per-call basis, but more in terms of preallocated permissions and various network elements.”
“We’re moving from this dogma of
‘IMS is God’ to the realization that it’s
not perfect,” says Hourihan. “We’ve
got to be pragmatic about how we
deploy IMS, not only in different types
80 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
of networks — cable versus wireline
versus wireless — but also pragmatic
from the perspective of each individual
service provider in terms of where they
are today and where they’re going to
end up.”
“Second, there’s Services and
Applications,” says Hourihan. “From an
IP Communications perspective, by and
large, we’re still stuck in ‘basic black
phone service’. In fact, as I called you
today, I got angry because of the number of digits I had to enter to connect to
this conference call. On the other hand,
in a Unified Communications IP world,
I could just click on something and it
would get me into the conference. And
it would be a video conference.”
“We’re already seeing among our customer base people who aren’t waiting for
the deployment of full-blown IMS
architectures to do some interesting
stuff,” says Hourihan. “For example, we
have a number of providers, such as
Telefonica, Mobilis, Vodafone Spain,
and Chunghwa Telecom, that are offering fixed mobile convergence [FMC]
services today, in the form of ‘video
telephony’ if you will, across wireless
and wireline environments. We also
have many customers outside the U.S.
offering a collection of rich SIP-based
services, such as interactive video, today
— Telecom Italia being one.”
“What’s interesting to me is that all
of this innovation moving toward Jeff
Pulver’s ‘purple minutes’ concept, is
that none of this activity really is happening in the U.S.,” says Hourihan.
“It’s all outside. I think there are some
cultural and demographic factors indicating where these services are really
taking form. I don’t mean to be politically incorrect in this next comment,
but if you think about the people from
Spain and Italy, well, they love to talk,
they love to see people. Some
Europeans just have a more natural
inclination to embrace some of these
new features offered by IP
Communications, and that’s one of
the major drivers.”
“The U.S. is, quite frankly, in the
dark ages,” says Hourihan. “We’ll eventually start to turn the corner, but it’ll
be slow, propelled a great deal by the
same youth movement that drives
YouTube and MySpace. It’s a matter of
how providers market themselves.”
“Third, is Net Neutrality,” says
Hourihan. “I think this is a non-issue.
We already see increasingly the delivery
of tiered network services and the emergence of federations. In some cases, the
initial goals around federating will be to
save money. For example, cable operators moving to federate and exchange
traffic via IP to save money by keeping
the traffic off of the PSTN. Some of
this begins with peering exchanges,
such as Stealth Communications’ VPF
[Voice Peering Fabric] in New York, a
distributed exchange allowing members
to establish peer-to-peer connections
for VoIP traffic, or XConnect’s peering
service for over 400 VoIP service
providers. The motivation to save
money will change over time, and
instead of just connecting everybody
over the public Internet, providers will
supply trusted secure services and
ensure high quality end-to-end service
as well. For example, how do I know
when I make an IP phone call that the
call actually gets from me to, say, the
customer service agent at the Bank of
America? And to do it over a quality
connection so that when I give them
my social security or account number
over the phone, I don’t have to repeat it
ten times.”
“Fourth, are Regulatory issues, the
regulatory requirements on IP
Communications,” says Hourihan.
“Looking back over the last few years at
FCC regulations in the U.S., we are
moving from what I call a reactive ‘God
forbid’ regulatory environment to something that’s more proactive, but still
driven by ‘God forbid’ scenarios. This
environment started when Janet Jackson
had her wardrobe malfunction at the
Super Bowl. Basically the outcry was,
‘God forbid that my children see that
again on TV’. And so we found ourselves with a new set of decency laws
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applied to broadcast television.”
“The next ‘God forbid’ situation
involved Vonage,” says Hourihan,
“when subscribers died in Texas and
Florida because they couldn’t reach their
respective 911 services. In this regard,
the FCC has moved from the reactive
mode to the proactive mode, demanding customer access to E911 service.
Also, early in 2006 they announced that
all VoIP service providers must provide
lawful intercept capabilities. Why?
Because they’re again being proactive.
‘God forbid’ that Osama Bin Laden uses
Skype to set up his next terrorist attack
in the U.S.”
“There’s something else on the horizon with respect to regulatory, and
that’s the issue of taxation, specifically
state taxation,” says Hourihan.
“PSTN-derived tax revenues provide
universal service and, more importantly, support state funds that finance
such things as schools. As tax revenue
from the PSTN declines, ‘God forbid’
we soon don’t have money to educate
our children. Bottom line: I don’t view
that IP Communications will continue
to be exempt from many aspects of
regulation.”
“Fifth, and finally, there’s
Competition; that is, the competitive
environment both from a vendor perspective as well as a service provider perspective,” says Hourihan. “I think the
trend will be increasing consolidation in
both areas. From the vendor perspective
we’re already seeing the beginnings of
this with jokes about ‘Alca-cent’ and
‘Nokia-mens’. In the IP
Communications area, we have a very
fragmented vendor environment. Acme
Packet partners with 13 telecom equipment makers on a worldwide basis.
None of them are dominant from my
perspective, and we’re starting to see
these 13 collapse to 11. More of this
will occur over time. Our session border
controller marketplace today is populated by about 20 vendors. Clearly, a
mature market won’t have that many
players.”
“On the service provider front I think
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things are more fragmented,” says
Hourihan. “In the U.S. you see the
incumbent telcos such as the AT&Ts
and Verizons, then there’s the cable
companies, and ultimately some type of
third provider with a technology such as
EV-DO or WiMAX, be it a Clearwire
or a Sprint, will emerge as being important. The key for making IP
Communications work will be the facilities. Even in a world of fiber-to-thehome or WiMAX-type bandwidth, IP
Communications will increasingly support voice and video interactivity. That
requires new equipment in the access
network.”
“There will still be Internet-based
services,” says Hourihan. “But again, if
you’re looking for trust and quality of
service [QoS], you’ll be looking to facilities-based providers that allow anonymous subscribers. At Yahoo or Google ‘I
can be a dog on the Internet’, to quote
that famous New Yorker cartoon, along
with, ‘Nobody knows who I am or what
I am’. Some providers will differentiate
themselves in that they will know their
subscribers, at least in terms of who they
are, where they are and what their
income level is.”
Aculab
(news - alert) Aculab (http://www.aculab.com), a well-known maker of hardware and software building blocks for
telecom, builds devices that must stand
at the crossroads of the PSTN and IP
Communications. Aculab’s Sales and
Marketing Director, Chris Gravett, says,
“If anything, 2006 was the year when
we realized that the IP market had
moved beyond the hype. In the second
week of January 2006, we launched our
first true pure IP product, the Prosody
X. That meant that we were able to start
responding to opportunities that were
beginning to appear back in 2005. We
found that we are good at dealing with
real commercial opportunities, and they
are from major companies that have
made the decision to release new platforms and solutions that are IP-friendly
or have the IP capability built in. So
“Some providers will
differentiate themselves
in that they will know
their subscribers, at
least in terms of who
they are, where they
are and what their
income level is.”
we’ve seen companies across the world
willing to invest in the technology and
start planning their own next-generation
releases. 2006 has very much been a
year of intensive development and the
release onto the market of solutions by
our customers.”
“It’s almost unheard of now for a new
opportunity to be only TDM in nature,”
says Gravett. “At a minimum, it has to
be IP-ready, which is where Prosody X
comes into its own. The other thing pertinent to IP Communications during
2006 is that it has become apparent that
voice alone is not a sufficient ‘sell’ for IP
Communications. We’ve come under a
lot of pressure and demand to deliver a
broad range of codecs, particularly
addressing video and mobility opportunities. Security has also become an issue
and, therefore, an opportunity from our
point of view. I’m talking here about
things like Secure RTP.”
“So 2006 has really seen the promise
of the previous five or six years actually
come to fruition,” says Gravett.
“Something that’s happened a bit
more slowly than we anticipated has
been the move to host media processing
and the corresponding move away from
DSP-based media resources,” says
Gravett. “At the end of 2006, the conclusion we reach is that, not surprisingly, there is still going to be a future for
DSP-based resources. However, over the
next couple of years — and particularly
as we move to a pure IP environment
— the SMB area of our traditional market will much more be accommodated
by host media processing. The demand
for wideband, video codecs, and so on
will ensure that there is going to be a
need for higher-powered DSPs and a lot
more of them. In an IP-only environment we see the need for probably
AMC [AdvancedTCA Mezzanine
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 81
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Card]-based DSP farms, both for the
large enterprise and for the telco market. We’re studying that upcoming market at the moment.”
“However, at present we have not
signed off on any development projects
involving AdvancedTCA equipment,”
says Gravett. “We’re very much aware
that we probably should have something
going in this area. I suspect that before
the end of 2006, we will have embarked
on one or more ATCA projects. One
thing that’s been holding us back is that
we would like to be utilizing higher
horsepower DSPs, which are only just
now becoming available, even for development purposes. If we embark on an
AMC development, then it’s not a good
idea to use today’s DSP technology. But
I envisage that we will have development projects underway by end of 2006
and the beginning of 2007. We’re certainly heavily involved in the technical
and market research to bring that
about.”
“One question we have to answer is
whether the density that we’ll likely to
be able to achieve using DSPs will
exceed what can be achieved with host
media processing,” says Gravett. “The
question marks surrounding host media
processing concern not just the density
in terms of processor power, but the
footprint size and heat considerations
when one builds top-end systems. That’s
an area where we’ll spend a lot of time
comparing the pros and cons before we
embark on what will be a big investment for Aculab, the move into the
ATCA arena. My personal belief is that
our entry into the ATCA market is
inevitable. It’ll be sooner than later.”
BEA Systems
Mike McHugh is VP and General
Manager at BEA Systems (news - alert)
(http://www.bea.com). He’s responsible
for driving the WebLogic communications platform for enterprise applications and SOA (Service Oriented
Architecture) — which includes BEA
WebLogic Server® 9.2, BEA WebLogic
Portal® 9.2, BEA WebLogic®
82 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Integration 9.2, BEA Workshop™ for
WebLogic 9.2, and BEA JRockit® 5.0.
“VoIP isn’t ‘the thing’ any more, simply because VoIP has pretty much
become mainstream,” says McHugh.
“This year, it wasn’t so much asking ‘Is
this stuff going to happen?’, it was more
like, ‘How do we leverage it now that
it’s here? What are all the new services?’
You go to expos and there’s hype around
new services. The good news is that this
year we’re beginning to see those services.”
“Here in San Francisco,” says
McHugh, “Comcast is a local cable
provider, and they’re running radio ads
about triple play. ‘Sign up here for your
$69.95 triple play’ and they actually use
the term ‘triple play’. So even the terminology is becoming mainstream.”
“Fixed/Mobile Convergence [FMC]
was good talk but not ‘real’ until all the
players came on board,” says McHugh.
“So you’ve got Sprint/Nextel, AT&T,
BellSouth, Cingular, and some of the
new entrants that are going to make
triple or quad play real. The whole IP
video field also made a big impression
this year, such as Google acquiring
YouTube. It all underscores the arrival of
IP-based capabilities and the fact that
VoIP is old news now. This year we saw
the emergence of the push to identify
what to do with IP Communications
now that we have it. What kind of
increasing richness can we offer in the
more interesting applications as they
become mainstream?”
McHugh elaborates: “This year BEA
started ‘beating the drum’ about how
you go about leveraging IP and how
enterprises and operators are going to
offer services and what’s that going to
look like. We realized we had some ideas
about what it takes to build platforms
that run these things. As IP comes
online, and the Internet and many
forms of communication merge, we see
the emergence of some very familiar
paradigms of what it takes to build
these. At least it’s familiar to us, having
lived through the Web transformation
over the prior decade. Some of the data
and services management paradigms
emerging we think are directly applicable to IP. That includes concepts as ITsounding as SOA — the service oriented-architecture — that enablement of
services reuse and services infrastructure
use. It’s something we very much believe
in and we started beating the drum for
that in 2006 too. Next we’ve got to
deliver on all of this and show with
‘proof points’ how it works.”
“As for 2007, there are two elements
to ‘what’s next’,” says McHugh. “There’s
the infrastructure for building it, and
then there are the services that might
use that infrastructure, both for consumers and the enterprise. You see common applications at the shows, such as
gaming-type applications, and in the
business space they tend to be more person-to-person collaboration-type communications enablement or extensions
to traditional collaboration businesstype applications. We think that the
increasing pace of arrival of these services and the demand for services drives
the value, but, in our view, it will take
some rational infrastructure to pull this
off. If you’re sitting at home surfing or
writing something, you’re not thinking
of the network underlying that IP system. It doesn’t matter if the transport is
cable or DSL or whatever. What matters
to you is that the service is available and
what you can do with it. “
“We’ll see new infrastructure and cost
models that enable quick time-to-market, easy development and deployment,”
says McHugh. “It’s the notion of throwing a lot of services at the wall and seeing what sticks. The cost of failure can’t
be very high, because if the service doesn’t ‘stick’ or find favor with users, then
you’ve got to throw it away and move
on to other services or other combinations of services, until you find something that works for you.”
“We believe that communications will
become highly personalized,” says
McHugh. “When I talk to you, I don’t
want to look up your phone number. I
want to talk to you. That idea could
result in an application where the system
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mode phone or cell phone, or it sends
you an IM because you’re in a meeting.”
“Ultimately, it’s all about presence,”
says McHugh. “What IP address are you
at? What devices are there around you?
How can they be exposed in an application? How are they made transparent to
an application? The guy who built the
service doesn’t want to deal with all
those things. It’s exposed APIs or Web
services that enable session establishment. That kind of easy service development is our play, our vision for moving
into IP and converged services.”
Covad Communications
(news - alert) Perhaps the best-known
of the CLECs, Covad
(http://www.covad.com) has been ‘riding the wave’ of improved IP
Communications quality and a diversification of services that SMBs increasingly find tempting.
Eric Weiss, Covad’s Chief Marketing
Officer, says, “In 2006 Internet telephony and IP Communications really
graduated to Business Class. Some
examples of how we tried to contribute
to that would be that we rolled out and
scaled things such as voice prioritization
and the ability to prioritize real-time
applications over all of the other datatype applications. With the YouTubes of
the world out there taking a lot of
bandwidth, we’ve got to make sure that
the real-time business class applications
such as VoIP still maintain their business ‘grade’. So, we have a technology
and service called VOA [VoiceOptimized Access] that gives you voice
priority over data, and we have a number of features available through our
Covad Dashboard and our Portal that
enable a whole suite of applications
such as Find Me/Follow Me, Unified
Communications, Unified Messaging,
Rich Conferencing, and so forth. We
enable those features bundled with the
voice.”
“This, in turn, speaks to where things
are going in 2007,” says Weiss, “which
is not to market these solutions as
‘VoIP’, but to market them as IP
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Communications. It’s integrated communications, and the fact that it’s called
VoIP just means that IP enables all of
the features; take for example, what we
put in our Dashboard and Portal.”
Weiss elaborates: “So, in 2006 we
graduated to Business Class with those
features, with QoS as per VOA, but I
still think that 2006 was primarily
about the well-funded enterprise users,
the early-adopters and the people either
moving or doing greenfield deployments. That’s what really characterized
IP Communications in 2006. That’s
going to transition in 2007 where we’ll
basically be done with the early
adopters. We’ll stop calling it, marketing
and selling it as VoIP, and instead we’ll
start marketing it as what is really is: as
communications, as collaboration. That
may sound simple and ‘vanilla’, but
that’s what the broader market of SMBs
wants and needs. And we’re going after
that market.”
“Business Class IP Communications
is now a better alternative — even for
the installed base — in terms of cost,
productivity gains, the features, and the
need to replace Y2K PBXs, and not just
for moves, greenfields and early
adopters,” says Weiss. “Our focus on
SMBs drives us toward providing tools
that help people sell more widgets, bill
more hours, see more patients, and so
forth.”
“We found that SMBs don’t tend to
buy technology,” says Weiss, “but they
do want communications to help them.
If they’re a law firm and their top customer calls them, they want to be able
to have that client find them wherever
they are and similarly automatically
block a caller who’s merely trying to sell
them more paper clips. They want to
grow their business, and the only way
they can do it is with advanced tools,
which is what we’ve built into our
offerings.”
“So, that was the primary transition:
from early adopters to practical users
who are not buying technology —
namely, VoIP — they’re actually buying
‘communications’ that helps them get
their job done and grow their business,”
says Weiss.
“Also, in 2006 there was a lot of confusion in the market about ‘who to go
to for what’,” says Weiss. “There was no
category leader in the SMB communications market. Vonage was out there, as
well as Skype, and cable companies, traditional telcos, PBX manufacturers who
even sold in the retail chain, and then
competitive providers such as Covad.
The buyers were pretty confused about
who to approach. That will change in
2007. There will be a clear category
leader, particularly in SMB VoIP and IP
Communications. To be such a category
leader, the company must exist nationwide, so that as SMBs grow and establish branch offices they can be served by
the nationwide option. Second, the category leader must offer services or technology with high QoS. Third, it must
be an innovative company, which generally doesn’t describe phone companies.
Fourth, it must be flexible enough to
address the needs of SMBs. In fact, it
should preferably be someone focused
on SMBs, since it’s difficult to deal with
both SMBs and enterprises, and that
means that you’re not actually focused.
Fifth, it should support both a hosted
model and a model that allows for integration with customer premises PBX
equipment. Both models are valid.”
“There will be category leaders in
each market segment,” says Weiss.
“Obviously, we at Covad think we’ll be
the category leader in SMB VoIP. We’re
already the Number One provider in
hosted PBX solutions and we think
we’re well-positioned. That’s good for us
because there will be a shakeout —
more mergers and acquisitions. It’s hard
to make a transition from wholesale to
direct sales. One very large wholesaler
that just made a very large acquisition
talked recently about how they’re now
moving into the SMB market. That’s
easier said that done. We now have close
to 40 percent of our business derived
from the direct Covad-branded service
for SMBs, and to achieve that took a
great deal of time and effort — we’ve
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 83
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been working on it for two years now.
You have to really make an effort to
transition your business from wholesale
to direct. It’s nontrivial. But we’re over
the hump now.”
“Yet another trend appeared that’s also
interesting,” says Weiss. “It concerns the
channel. In 2006, agents and dealers,
for example, really proved that they
could handle both the telecom and IT
sides of the business. The channel converged just as the technology had converged a couple of years previously. We
have several hundred channel partners
out there and we’re seeing really strong
growth. Our channel partners can deliver on the promise of IP voice and data
and combined services. That really positions us well for growth in 2007.”
Covergence
(news - alert) Rod Hodgman, VP of
Marketing at Covergence
(http://www.covergence.com ) says, “I
expect to see a shift in the VoIP marketplace in 2007 as users begin to move
beyond VoIP to other real-time services.
Today’s VoIP market could be characterized as single service — voice — with
the user experience being delivered over
a 50-year-old TDM phone. But 2007
will mark the beginning of a significant
transformation. Service providers are
testing pre-IMS deployments that deliver multimedia services — voice, video,
IM, and presence — to any device that
supports the SIP protocol. This means
they will face new challenges in the
areas of scaling access, securing the service and managing the environment.”
“At the subscriber edge,” says
Hodgman, “service providers will need
to be able to predictably scale hundreds
of thousands to millions of active endpoints. They will also need to scale
phone registrations and fully encrypted,
validated and authenticated user connections without impacting performance.”
“Security will also get significant
attention in 2007,” says Hodgman.
“The SIP protocol is the standard for
access to real-time services and as it pro84 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
liferates in clients, softphones, handsets
and mobile devices, like all other IP
protocols, it will come under increasing
attack. Service providers will have to
ensure the authenticity, confidentiality,
and integrity of subscriber communications, and they will have to defend
against attacks and compromises such as
DOS attacks, service theft and others.”
Covergence offers a new kind of dedicated appliance for VoIP service
providers and their SIP networks.
Called Eclipse, it connects to SIP-based
VoIP and real-time services (e.g., voice,
video, instant messaging), providing a
unified security and management solution for SIP at the subscriber’s edge of
the carrier’s network. Eclipse sits
between the subscribers and the service
provider and guards the network from
attacks similar to those that are often
seen with other application-layer
Internet protocols, such as HTTP and
SMTP, but are only now starting to
appear with some frequency with SIP.
Eclipse can also handle signaling and
real-time media streams separately.
Aside from security, Eclipse can also
manage inter-service the interactions
and upports application interoperability.
Eclipse transcodes among various vendors’ SIP/SIMPLE dialects and allows
for cross-domain presence visibility and
messaging connectivity. For example,
with Eclipse, providers can achieve
interoperability between IBM Lotus
Sametime and Microsoft’s Live
Communications Server (the latest
incarnation of which is now called the
Office Communications Server). Eclipse
enables message and presence sharing
between such different applications.
Moreover, Eclipse enables administrators
to define security, control and monitoring policies enforceable on all crossdomain collaboration traffic.
“SIP is the prime component of
IMS,” says Hodgman, “and so we’ll be
seeing some actual deployments of IMS
in carriers and service providers next
year and beyond.”
Dialexia Communications
Ahmed Aina is CEO of Montrealbased Dialexia Communications (news alert) (http://www.dialexia.com), which
provides advanced voice and data over
IP switches for small carriers, ITSPs,
phone retail outlets and for VoIP telephone systems for SMBs,” Aina says.
“Over the past year, we have seen that
combined with the globalization of the
economy, the markets, and the deregulation of international communication,
the workmanship of digital network
technologies in IP shows us that the
epoch of telecommunications monopolies has past. The future now belongs to
more open and approachable digital
technologies.”
“The convergence of voice, video, and
data over Internet Protocol is now creating a market for tomorrow’s telecoms
valued at several hundred billions of
dollars,” says Aina. “Barriers to participation have fallen and the big players
are now positioning themselves over the
new IP-based digital telecommunications network. There are higher risks if
they don’t offer added value and clients
are more and more demanding and
require quality service.”
“It is now a question of when IP
telephony will be adopted, since the key
issue today is when to implement and
how to manage the migration to converged networks,” says Aina. “The reasons for rise in demand are: the emergence of business VoIP as a new and
viable solution; the massive growth of
the Chinese telecoms market and developing countries; the purchasing cycle to
replace ‘Year 2000’ or ‘Y2K’ timeexpired equipment; and lower costs of
VoIP calls. All these factors have been
expanding market growth into the next
year.”
“In the past year there have been
world-class achievements in the convergence of voice, video, IM and data,”
says Aina. “VoIP development has
shown steady growth and progress, especially in the demand for Hosted IP
PBXs versus the premises-based IP PBX
market.”
“In 2007 larger enterprises will show
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increasing interest in Hosted options,”
says Aina, “since they can support more
users without an investment in equipment and IT staff. There will also be a
marked growth in the momentum of
on-site IP PBXs, which appeal to small
and medium-sized businesses due to
their advanced features, such as call logs,
voicemail, find me, follow-me, and conferencing. The outcome will be that
companies will continue transitioning
from their legacy TDM systems to fully
embrace VoIP technology. What we
envision in the near future for IP
Communications is a new direction in
enterprises moving from do-it-yourself
software installations on their own hardware, to purchasing pre-loaded IP PBX
appliances. This will become an emerging trend, since configuration, deployment, maintenance and support are
much easier to achieve successfully using
these high-performance, reliable and
easy-to-use turnkey devices.”
“In the past five years there have been
many players, but in 2007 we will see a
big shakeup of the industry, and only
the most robust and solid products and
companies will remain,” says Aina.
Dialogic Corporation
After ten months of searching and
(finally) negotiations between Intel and
Eicon — which resulted in a sale of
assets to Eicon and a name change by
Eicon — the legendary computer
telephony board maker Dialogic
(http://www.dialogic.com) made its
reappearance in 2006. I sincerely hope
they will once again throw the same
kind of spectacular parties for editors
that they did when Howard Bubb ran
the company!
In the meantime, Yours Truly asked
Dialogic’s (news - alert) VP of Product
Management and Planning, Jim Machi,
how IP Communications has progressed
over 2006.
“Very well,” Machi responds. “In fact,
I’m sure there are many consumers out
there using IP Telephony and they don’t
even know it. It’s entered the mainstream. Continued improvements in
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availability, reliability, and redundancy
in both the enterprise and service
provider space coupled with enhanced
voice coders have dramatically improved
users’ quality of service [QoS] and overall experience. Solutions addressing
E911 and Security are abundant.
Increased convergence driven by broadband everywhere has increased potential
consumers. And lastly, the Session
Initiation Protocol [SIP] is and will continue to play an enormous role in IP
telephony networks. Standardization is
the obvious benefit but, more importantly, SIP has moved forward real-time
multimedia: voice, video, and most
importantly Web collaboration solutions.”
“2007 will bring innovation in the
application space as providers need to
‘subsidize’ falling voice revenues,” says
Machi, “so look for more enhanced
services driven by IP such as presence
and collaboration solutions. Hosting
will gain even more ground as more
robust and ‘easier to deploy’ telephony
hosting solutions provide an attractive
alternative to CPE equipment. Providers
will also move toward IMS or IMS-like
platforms realizing reductions in total
cost of ownership.”
Interactive Intelligence
(news - alert) “Large scale product
adoption is always sparked by some disruptive technology or product introduction,” says Joe Staples, Senior VP of
Marketing for Interactive Intelligence
(http://www.inin.com) a company that’s
familiar with disruptive product introductions, as it knocked the computer
telephony industry (and especially the
old PBX, ACD, and VRU vendors) for
a loop way back in 1996 when it
unveiled its Enterprise Interaction
Center (EIC), a comprehensive LANbased communications system that acts
not only as the PBX, but also provides
automatic call distribution (ACD),
interactive voice response (IVR), fax
services, a Java-based workflow engine,
and voicemail integrated with Microsoft
Exchange.
“In 2007 we will see
a big shakeup of the
industry, and only
the most robust and
solid products and
companies will remain.”
“VoIP is that disruptive technology
that, over the past year, has gained significant momentum and caused companies to reevaluate the TDM-based systems that they deployed years ago,” says
Staples. “It has caused them to look at
what else they can do, how they can
compete more effectively, and how they
can improve efficiencies. That reevaluation of their telephony systems, again
initiated by the introduction of VoIP,
has turned into a strong increase in purchases. We’re in a dramatic upward cycle
right now. VoIP, SIP, and the associated
applications have given customers a reason to buy. I also think we are at the
beginning of the cycle and that we will
continue to see strong growth for the
next several years.”
Interactive Intelligence should know.
Their year-over-year revenues were up
46% last quarter.
Inter-Tel
Jeff Ford, CTO and President,
Integrated Systems, of Inter-Tel
(http://www.inter-tel.com), has been
with company since 1983, his senior
year at Arizona State University. He has
seen many trends in telecom come
and go.
“Clearly, the last half of 2005 and
coming into 2006, we saw what Rich
Tehrani called ‘first-generation VoIP’
capabilities,” says Ford, “which is basically VoIP as a new technology — compared with TDM — for transporting
voice. It clearly matured out there in the
marketplace. We’ve gone from dealing
with the early adopters to general and
mature acceptance of the technology
and that first-generation VoIP capability. We continue to see accelerating
adoption of VoIP.”
“Inter-Tel traditionally focuses on the
less than 500 user per site market,” says
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 85
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Ford. “We’re clearly selling to the SMB
space. If you take a look at the deployment of IP in the SMB space, it’s generally 10 or 15 points behind the overall
industry, but it’s tracking and increasing
every day, and the technology has clearly
met mainstream capabilities. When people buy new systems, they’re now
expecting them to be IP-capable. The
majority of SMBs are still purchasing
digital phone capability, but they want
to have an IP-capable system and
they’re deploying some IP features and
capabilities.”
“Over the last couple of years, InterTel has pushed forward with its collaboration and presence capabilities,” says
Ford, “and that has reflected nicely
what’s been happening in the market.
We introduced our Unified
Communicator product in 2003, which
is the hub of our presence management
technology in collaboration and then
we’ve introduced Web conferencing and
desktop video capabilities, integrated
with that same platform over the last
year. We see these capabilities as the
foundation for the beginnings of second-generation VoIP systems that are
just now being introduced. These rely
heavily on presence, collaboration, SIP
and open standards. Instead of just talking about voice transport such as VoIP,
we can now talk about business-enhancing applications enabled by various IP
applications including VoIP. These will
really help drive business value, helping
to increase revenues or decrease costs,
improve efficiencies and improve customer service.”
“We see 2007 as the year that secondgeneration technologies and systems
really take hold and move into the
mainstream on their own,” says Ford,
“where customers are looking for open
standards platforms with integrated
presence management, instant messaging, and other business-enhancing applications.”
Ford elaborates: “After all, everybody
for the past several years has talked
about the fact the real value of VoIP is
not in how you transmit the voice, but
instead are the applications that get IPenabled. We’re biased, I’m sure, but we
86 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
feel that we’ve been delivering many of
those applications over the last several
years and we’ve been leading in the
introduction of presence-based technologies and integrated messaging capabilities, presence management, advanced
call routing based on real-time presence
capabilities, desktop sharing, application
sharing, collaboration, desktop video,
and delivering a richer multimedia
environment with our Unified
Communicator and collaboration technology, along with our Axxess solutions.”
“Our Inter-Tel Axxess 7000 product
will be released very shortly,” says Ford,
“and that has many of those capabilities
built right into the product’s core. The
7000 is at its core a SIP softswitch so it’s
an industry-standard SIP offering that
supports SIP-B [which has the benefits
of SIP with the feature functionality of
MGCP] and B-TXML [Basic Telephony
Extended Markup Language] industry
standards for phone control. The 7000
also has presence capabilities, collaboration, secure IM, and desktop video, all
built right into the offering’s core, as
opposed to being sold as an optional
‘box’. Once again, we feel the 7000
product is out in front in terms of introducing these features. In 2007 we expect
to see market acceptance of these features to such an extent that the public
will expect them to be an integral part
of communications products.”
Juniper Networks
(news - alert) Juniper Networks
(http://www.junipernetworks.com) has
played heavily in the service provider
space and its equipment transports all
sorts of traffic, including IP telephony,
over the world’s networks. Back in
2004, Juniper Networks started to enter
the enterprise space, and one of the key
things they did was to acquire
NetScreen, and subsequently they made
other acquisitions, such as Peribit
Networks, a developer of WAN optimization technology, and application
front-end vendor Redline Networks that
operated in the applications acceleration
space. They also acquired Funk Software
for identity management and access
control capabilities.
Juniper’s Senior Director of Product
Marketing, Stephen Philip, says, “Over
the last year or so, Juniper has maintained its focus on service providers but
it has also embarked on an enterprise
strategy. Most elements of that strategy
are interesting from an overall point of
view, but some elements are interesting
from an IP telephony point of view.
Recently, for example, Juniper has
announced a strategy to go after the
branch office market. We’re also
announcing some development plans
and some initiatives for this space. For
example, we’re rolling out new versions
of the J-series, Juniper’s line of access
routers, in particular the J4350 and
J6350 enterprise routers. Of course,
‘branch office’ means different things to
different people. It ranges among the
micro-branch, telecommuters, and small
office, up to the branch and regional
office.”
“Throughout the summer of 2006 we
also rolled out a new portfolio of security appliances,” says Philip “and as we
roll out the new platforms, we’re leveraging some of the technology between
them. The branch solutions include 11
new Secure Services Gateways [SSGs]
security platforms with integrated
branch routing and full Unified Threat
Management [UTM] capabilities and
the new J4350 and J6350 enterprise
routers that leverage technology from
the Secure Services Gateway 500-series
platforms. Our Secure Services Gateway
Platform is an integrated security appliance with a firewall and VPN connecting back to central headquarters.”
“There’s also some additional management work that we’re doing, in terms
of developing an integrated suite of
management applications to control the
systems in the enterprise space,” says
Philip. “And also some customer service
initiatives to aid enterprise transitions.”
Sanjay Beri, Juniper’s Director of
Product Management, says: “One technology you’ll be hearing a lot more of in
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2007 are ‘Application Accelerator’ WAN
optimization platforms, such as our
Juniper WXC 250. Application accelerators are a scalable approach to accelerating application delivery over the WAN.
It helps businesses improve application
response times, maximize WAN investments, and control and prioritize key
applications. Ultimately, the WXC
WAN optimization capabilities will be
integrated into the J4350 and J6350
routers to provide compression and
caching, TCP and application-specific
acceleration, and visibility and reporting
functions. The integration will be
achieved via a WXC services module to
leverage the core functions of the J4350
and J6350 to provide an integrated set
of QoS, bandwidth management and
multi-path functions. Standalone
branch J-Series and WXC platforms will
continue to be available into 2007.”
NexTone
Nick Turner is VP of Product
Marketing for NexTone (news - alert)
(http://www.nextone.com), makers of
the IntelliConnect™ System that
includes such edge devices as the
NexTone SBC (Session Border
Controller), NexTone MSX
(Multiprotocol Session Exchange platform for interconnecting SIP and
H.323 networks), and the NexTone
IMX (IP Multimedia Exchange platform for interconnecting IP and IMS
networks).
Turner says, “We’ve seen tremendous
growth, in terms of the number of carriers deploying VoIP, the ‘amount’ of
VoIP that they’re handling, and the
increasing awareness of the importance
of SBC-type products in their networks
and service deployments. If you look at
the market numbers, they tend to confirm that the SBC space is the fastestgrowing in the sector. And in the future,
we expect not only continued growth
but perhaps an increase in growth as
SBCs or SBGs — session border gateways, to use the IMS parlance —
becomes more of a known quantity and
necessary element to network design.”
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“The question arises whether SBCs
and SBGs will retain their essential
character or morph into something
else,” says Turner. “If you look at the
MSF GMI [MultiService Forum Global
MSF Interoperability Event] press conference, the participants all highlighted
the fundamental need for a session border gateway to provide security and
interworking at the boundary points of
an IMS network. So its need is becoming ‘better comprehended’ instead of
minimized.”
“The terminology itself will also
probably evolve,” says Turner. “If you
look at the 3GPP or ETSI TISPAN
framework, you see lots of delightful
acronyms: BGF [Border Gateway
Function], BCF [Border Control
Function] and new ones evolving such
as I-SBC [Interconnect Session Border
Controller]. So as we get closer to field
deployments and larger scale deployments, the terminology will evolve as
real world issues challenge the original
design assumptions of IMS. A good
example might be the I-SBC; in an IMS
architecture document, the I-SBC is
made up of functional components such
as IBGF, IBCF and IWF. The clearly
laid out functions are, from ETSI
TISPAN’s perspective, things that can
be consolidated into a single product
implementation. Thus, it is an ‘implementation’ of multiple ETSI TISPAN
functional capabilities. Those acronyms
can be considered as just functions, and
now we’re seeing new product implementations arise that are organizations
of those specific functions and features.
A single product can span a number of
functions.”
“I think that 3GPP and ETSI
TISPAN are clear as to what a function
is versus a product,” says Turner, “and
again, as we get closer to field deployments and larger scale deployments, we
see real-world feedback help drive order
and product implementations.”
“On the OSS [Operations Support
System] side,” says Turner, “the reason
why NexTone developed RSM [Realtime Session Manager, which acts as a
centralized policy manager and enforcement point to manage network
resources and optimize call distribution]
was to deal with the reality of real-time
feedback on network performance at a
traffic or call flow level, not at the
device level, because devices aren’t really
relevant. This occurs in real time so that
when something breaks — and in telecom, things break — the network operators are made aware and can perform
either measured manual intervention or
automated intervention to adapt around
network problems.”
“What the SBC vendors have proved
that there are many difficult performance issues for any type of network element at the network boundary,” says
Turner. “The SBC vendors in this space
have proven an ability to process large
transaction loads, both signaling and
media. They’ve got a good two-year lead
on other types of vendors in those
respects.”
“There are also new architectures
and implementations being discussed
actively,” explains Turner. “For example,
there’s the basic concept of ‘dissociated
architectures’ where an existing signaling entity, such as a softswitch, can
control a media-only SBC. That’s a
credible architecture and NexTone has
adopted that from the beginning. We
adopted and implemented a dissociated
architecture when we shipped our first
product. But this leads us back to the
same performance problems we have in
all types of networks, certainly voice
networks, where calls per second and
busy hour call attempts are an issue.
SBCs or whatever controls them must
deal with that at scale. So we look at
various labs, such as CT-Labs, where
they can measure the performance of
an SBC, and you still see that terrible
legacy come back at us, which is: how
many calls per second can be handled?
Under duress such as a denial-of-service
attack or just in plain sailing on the
network, SBCs in general, and
NexTone in particular, has proven
effective at handling high transaction
loads. We’ll continue to keep pace with
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 87
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future network growth.”
“The other unique attribute of the
SBC space in general and NexTone in
particular, is that we’ve been sweating
out problems in the field that weren’t
anticipated in abstract, whiteboard environments, and which are necessary to
solve in order to deliver a production
network for a carrier,” says Turner.
“Security is increasingly allied with
SBCs instead of separate firewall boxes,”
says Turner. “SBCs have become the
nexus for certain kinds of security
approaches. If we go back a few years,
SBCs were considered a nominal space
with limited time to live. But what happened in 2006 is that SBCs have
become both a known commodity and
an understood and appreciated function
in the network. It’s a core competency
area.”
“The shape, form, and future of SBCs
are open to great debate and discussion,” says Turner. “What will prevail is
the real-world experience aspect —
we’re dealing with a new type of network architecture. When we look at
IMS, it’s a wonderful design and it certainly has its specific benefits, but those
abstract concepts have yet to meet sufficient field-level experience for anyone to
know what will break in specific scenarios. SBCs have been, to put it mildly,
tried and tested. And that’s been the reason for their significant core competency development. They will continue to
flourish in 2007.”
Nortel Networks
(quote - news - alert) Phil Edholm,
Chief Technologist and VP of Network
Architecture at mighty Nortel
(http://www.nortel.com) says, “From
my perspective, 2006 was a significant
year in about three different ways. From
a company perspective, we reached the
turning point where the volume of VoIP
and related forms of IP
Communications are now the majority
of our business. That was a big transition. Obviously, a major occurrence in
the industry has been the adoption of
VoIP and the challenges in some cus88 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
tomer environments of actually finding
the value proposition in the world
beyond the proven TDM environment.
This year, we saw that transition happening.”
“The second major IP Communications
‘impact of the year’ was the ICA
[Innovative Communications Alliance]
announcement,” says Edholm. “In July
2006, Microsoft and Nortel announced
a strategic alliance at technology, marketing, and business levels involving a
shared vision of unified communications. [Editor’s Note: The two companies formed the Innovative
Communications Alliance
(http://www.innovativecommunicationsalliance.com) as a ‘go-to-market’ vehicle.] There’s been a transition happening
of communications moving from being
a separable environment to being part of
a collaborative space. In a collaborative
space, you have to bring three elements
into play: First, management of documents, content, information — the
things that you’re going to collaborate
about; second, the integration of workflow — when you’re going to collaborate and what’s going to bring you
together to collaborate; and third, the
modalities of communication which
may range from instant messaging [IM]
to voice and video in real time, but
including other things too.”
“By bringing these three things
together, one can create an environment
for this transformation around collaboration,” says Edholm. “There’s also the
recognition that this is a new and different marketplace. It’s actually changing
the definition of telephony from a voice
communication system to making it a
part of a larger collaboration environment for knowledge workers, who are
obviously a small percentage of today’s
workforce, but a growing percentage.”
“So, from our perspective, the ICA
announcement with Microsoft is a
recognition by Nortel that this collaborative knowledge worker unified communication environment is going to
become a significant force in the industry,” says Elholm, “and it would have
two impacts: it will have a significant
impact on many companies in terms of
how they build and integrate their
telephony environments over the next
several years, but it will also affect companies that are predominantly staffed by
knowledge workers, such as consulting
companies. This will become the standard paradigm of communication in
those environments.”
“Nortel recognizes this,” says Edholm,
“and Microsoft recognizes that if you
want to build a collaborative suite into
your products that handles document
management, workflow and the extended workflow environment through their
relationship with SAP, then it’s very difficult to do it alone without working
with a company, such as Nortel, that
has expertise in real-time communications. So I think the ICA announcement was in many ways the pivotal
event of 2006 in terms of redefining the
market space from being an IP
Communications marketplace to being
an IP Communications environment
integrated with these other collaborative
tools in a whole new transformation of
the market.”
“The third major area is the path over
which we’re traveling,” says Edholm,
“with our announced direction and
changes in our product portfolio concerning our use of conferencing as the
underlying communications paradigm
of our applications suite. So, instead of
having conferencing being an adjunct to
communications, it becomes the basis of
communications. Instead of me making a
connection between my device and your
device, we actually base the communication on joining via a conference facility.
You could implement that in a call center, for example, where you bring the
customer in and tether them in a conference with a customer service representative. It’s the first presaging of this
next transformation in communications,
where conferencing becomes the fundamental communications paradigm.”
“What we’ve seen this year to back up
that idea is that we at Nortel sold a large
number of VoIP conferencing systems as
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part of our VoIP offer,” says Edholm.
“Those sales resulted in an explosion in
two-party conferences, because people
realize that the probability of a meeting
occurring if I say, ‘I’ll meet you in a
conference’ is much higher than if I say,
‘I’ll call you’, but when I do call you
you’re on the phone and then you call
me back and I’m on the phone and so
the meeting never happens. The conference paradigm is, thus, a way of not
guaranteeing but certainly increasing
the probability of a meeting actually
occurring.”
Edholm sums it up: “So, to recap,
these are the three predictors of where
we’re going: The fact that VoIP has
moved from being a kind of data curiosity to the predominant way that real
business telephony is deployed. The second is the whole conferencing arena,
but the single biggest event in the
industry this year was the debut of the
ICA, which heralds the transformation
of IP Communications from a standalone technology to being integrated
into a true application structure through
document management, workflow management and integration, by working
with companies such as Microsoft.
That’s really going to be a major transformation.”
pbxnsip, Inc.
“The past year for selling software
based IP PBXs has seen a lot more successful deployments according to Kevin
Moroz, VP of Sales at pbxnsip (news alert) (http://www.pbxnsip.com), makers
of a virtual PBX that can connect directly
to an ITSP or a customer premises
PSTN gateway.
“The market is yearning and searching for robust, feature rich, easy-to-use
systems,” says Moroz. “We have had
thousands of downloads of our product
this year and obviously expect even
more next year. The lab trials and viability phase is over and now the widespread deployments are taking root. We
are finally seeing multiple sites and
100+ user phone deployments become
more commonplace. The hosted PBX
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market is bubbling up even more as
small companies all want to be the next
Vonage and are deploying systems all
over the world as quickly as possible.
The key to more explosive growth is
keeping SIP highly interoperable. The
market loves to be able to pick and
choose their IP phones and gateways as
well as their own Internet Telephony
Service Providers [ITSPs]. We need to
keep educating the market place and
‘eating our own dog food’ as we say, to
keep the market growing.”
SpectraLink
2006 also saw new inroads by WiFi
phones and the beginnings of dual and
triple mode technology. SpectraLink
(news - alert) (http://www.spectralink.com),
for example, specializes in workplace
WiFi wireless telephony, offering seamless integration of wireless VoIP and traditional telephony platforms.
SpectraLink’s Vice President of
Marketing, Ben Guderian, says,
“Looking at this past year, there were
things certainly occurring specific to the
wireless space. For example, the 802.11e
standard for WiFi quality of service
[QoS] was finally ratified. People were
happy that it was done, though it didn’t
have a huge impact in terms of what
we’re doing since we (and others) had
already dealt with finding ways of doing
high quality IP telephony over wireless.”
“Much of the energy that we put into
this that’s unique to us in the wireless
space has to do with the compatibility
issues involving the various access points
that are out there; this adds a whole
other layer of complexity on top of what
everybody else has to deal with in the
wireless IP telephony world,” says
Guderian.
“The other thing that we’ve moved
toward and that we’ll see a lot more of
in 2007 is more support for many of
the switch platforms that are running
SIP,” says Guderian. “To date,
SpectraLink has primarily focused on
large enterprise customers and much of
what we do goes into TDM switches,
and a lot of the stuff we sell goes
“We need to keep
educating the market
place and ‘eating our
own dog food’ as we
say, to keep the
market growing.”
through our OEM partners that have
their proprietary IP protocols, companies such as Nortel, Avaya, NEC,
Alcatel, and so forth. We even support
the proprietary offerings from vendors
such as Cisco and Mitel.”
“This past year Cisco came out very
strong, talking about support for SIP,
along with others,” says Guderian. “So
we will most likely see a shift — not
overnight but over time — moving
away from proprietary protocols such as
Cisco’s SCCP or Skinny Client Control
Protocol [used between Cisco Call
Manager and Cisco VoIP phones] into
more SIP-based technologies. Of course,
everybody’s going to have their own flavors of SIP-enhanced extensions too.
That’s certainly where we’re seeing
things moving, and we’re taking that
into consideration as we develop new
products.”
“Also, this year we did some prototyping and some demonstrations of some
softphone applications as a means to
show how you could get a third-party
wireless device to work with not only an
IP PBX, but more importantly, with
TDM technologies,” says Guderian. “I
realize that, in the context of Internet
telephony and VoIP, this may appear less
interesting, but it certainly got the
attention of many customers who are
trying to squeeze a few more years of
useful life out of their TDM switches. It
leverages what we do in terms of making the client device more of a thin
client and taking advantage of the server
or gateway we provide to do the PBX
integration.”
“We’re not trying to force anybody to
go in any direction and so what really
drives us is making sure that we’re compatible with what the customers are trying to use, and sometimes that makes us
a bit ‘old school’, because we still mainINTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 89
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tain a great deal of TDM support,” says
Guderian. “The reality is that the markets we serve are still populated with
TDM switches.”
“There are many cell phones and
PDAs out there today that support both
cellular and WiFi,” says Guderian.
“These are the kinds of devices to which
we’re targeting our softphone, but,
interestingly enough, many of these
devices do a very bad job of supporting
voice on the WiFi side. It’s getting better, because everyone’s starting to realize
that WiFi radio might be useful for people wanting to use an IP telephony service — perhaps even Skype — from
home or a hot spot. Generally, those
devices have required a fairly high
knowledge of how everything goes
together in order to make them work
correctly. Again, a lot of the IP telephony things out there today require a bit
more knowledge than the average consumer has to get them to work. And
then you layer on top of that the wireless piece, all kinds of variability, and
issues you must deal with, such as
whether it will work okay on your home
network, corporate network, or a TMobile hot spot. There are a lot of
‘interesting’ things that can happen
because you’re faced with different levels
of security, and different user authentication things are going on. So the issues
go well beyond making the voice stuff
work over WiFi, and then over the
broadband connection; sometimes it has
to do with just getting the device up
and running on the network.”
“In 2007 we’ll see more Voice over
WiFi used in places where the company
is comfortable with it and it’s mission
critical,” says Guderian. “The best
examples of that are the big home
improvement chains, both Lowe’s and
Home Depot have pretty much standardized on the technology. You can add
to that many big hospitals and manufacturing plants. Many of the early
adopters of WiFi and people who
installed wireless LANs to help do other
things, such as barcode scanning, are
way up front in supporting voice on the
90 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
networks. However, Voice over WLAN
is still very much in its early stages as a
consumer play, just because it isn’t really
plug and play yet. In the enterprise, you
need a pretty savvy IT staff today to
make it all work. We make it as plug
and play as possible because we provide
all of that extra PBX integration and so
forth. But what we do doesn’t necessarily translate that well over to the consumer world, at least not yet.”
Sylantro Systems
(news - alert) Sylantro
(http://www.sylantro.com) is a leading
provider of software used by service
providers to deliver hosted VoIP applications and services for business, consumer, and wireless customers.
Syltantro’s Senior VP of Global
Marketing, Ron Raffensperger, says,
“From Sylantro’s standpoint, a couple of
interesting things happened this year.
For example, IMS started to become
real. It’s beginning to move from the labs
into early trials. Also, consumer VoIP
really started to hit the mainstream this
year. We’ve seen huge growth in acceptance from several of our customers.”
“Also, we started to see examples of
seamless mobility this year,” says
Raffensperger, “but I don’t think it will
really get going until next year. Some of
that is sorting out, involving the availability of dual mode handsets, the availability of full PBX functionality on a
mobile phone. You got a hint of them
this year. I think they’ll be major players
next year.”
“Will session border controllers retain
their identity in an IMS world?” asks
Raffensperger, “I think they’ll pretty
much stay the same. There are a few little twists, but generally speaking SBCs
will continue to be a fact of life just
because the carriers need to protect their
networks.”
“There are a number of speed bumps
on the road to IMS,” says Raffensperger.
“We’ll see them in mobile first, because
that’s where IMS was originally defined.
And we’re seeing a lot of them in greenfield installations. We’ve got an installa-
tion in Pakistan with Motorola that’s
being turned up as we speak, and that’s
a great one for IMS because it’s a greenfield — there was no ‘last mile’ because
there was no existing infrastructure.”
“One uncertainty we’ll confront in
2007 is whether or not IMS becomes a
reference architecture,” says
Raffensperger. “Also, the original concept of IMS was that things were going
to be plug and play, and service
providers could go get a switching
CSCF [Call Session Control Function]
from one company, a SCIM [Service
Capability Interaction Module] from
another, a feature server from yet another, and just plug them all together and
everything would work perfectly. What
we’re actually seeing is that the traditional network equipment providers are
going to be the folks that choose and
guarantee what works together, and
you’ll see fewer service providers trying
to pick ‘one from column A and one
from column B’ and so forth. Those
who own the infrastructure will decide
what runs on it. You see that starkly in
the Verizon A-IMS [Advances to IMS]
proposals. It also blows up the whole
Net Neutrality movement. A-IMS has as
its subhead, ‘not on my network you’re
not’!”
“We had a good year,” says
Raffensperger. “The keys things have
been getting some new partners, and
some analysts have mentioned how
Nokia has a new business communications service offering that they’re bringing out that includes Sylantro. It’s been
an exciting year.”
U4EA Technologies
(news - alert) Peter Thompson, Chief
Scientist at U4EA Technologies
(http://www.u4eatech.com), says, “We
have a particular interest in quality of
service [QoS], by which we mean actually architecting and engineering a network so that it delivers reliable services.
One of the things I’ve noticed in the last
year is more interest in QoS in a broader sense. People realize it’s something
they should be concerned about. This is
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a change from the situation a few years
ago, when it was quite difficult to get
people interested in it.”
“Another interesting angle on this has
been the debate over Net Neutrality,”
says Thompson. “At one point it looked
as if the U.S. Congress might legislate
against QoS, which would have been
interesting. Yes, one of the bills on the
table was that it would be illegal to prioritize one type of traffic over another.
The debate became furious, and generated more heat than light. Fortunately,
Congress didn’t pass that bill. People
tend to forget that prioritizing one type
of traffic over another only makes any
difference if the area of the network
you’re dealing with is congested. The big
carrier networks are all full of fiber and
DWDM [Dense Wave Division
Multiplexing] technology and don’t really get congested. So, even if they had
the technology in place to prioritize one
type of traffic over another, it wouldn’t
make any difference. Given the bandwidths that exist, it’s just irrelevant. The
only place it makes any difference is
where links are actually congested,
which could be on the link to the customer — the access link. But it’s not
like the customers are going to be using
the services of Google and somebody
else at the same time on the same link
and then observe that Google is better
because they paid more money to get a
better prioritization. That’s absurd. The
whole thing is a bit of a tempest in a
teacup, from my perspective.”
The other Net Neutrality fear is that
carriers would block competing VoIP
services, which they in fact do on occasion,” says Thompson. “But the act of
completely blocking something is part
of a completely different argument that
has nothing to do with whether or not
the carrier bestows different priority
treatments to the delivery of competing
services.”
“Incidentally, I’m not implying that
simply overprovisioning bandwidth is a
panacea,” says Thompson. “Historically,
people have said that we have more than
enough fiber capacity and we’ll never
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run out of bandwidth. Of course, people said that about 64 Kbps frame relay
connections, and they said it again
when ATM and SONET reached 155
megabits per second. But, to paraphrase
the old adage, ‘applications expand to
steal available bandwidth’. I must admit
I have more faith in the ingenuity of
people to devise new applications that
will exploit the available bandwidth
than I have in the ability of companies
to engineer entire networks to offer
more bandwidth than people can use.
So I do believe there will always be a
need for QoS. There are a lot of people
who would like that need to go away,
but it never will.”
“What’s confusing is that many things
are called QoS,” says Thompson.
“Things like Cisco’s MPLS tend to be
less about traffic prioritization and more
about traffic route control so the packets avoid areas of congestion in the network to begin with. When you’re working on a network core and you do have
plenty of capacity, and you also have
lots of alternate routes available, then it
makes sense to use MPLS to control the
paths that packet streams can take across
the network, so that they don’t overload
any individual links and cause congestion. In core networks, that’s fine. But
when you move out toward the customer, that approach tends to fail: the
capacity of the links decrease, and the
choice of alternate routes becomes
restricted. That’s exactly where some
kind of packet prioritization and congestion management makes sense.”
“Different kinds of QoS thus become
applicable at different communication
layers,” says Thompson. “Our particular
specialty is optimizing the queuing and
scheduling of packets at Layer 3 in the
OSI Communications Model. But at
Layer 4 there are things you can do with
error correction, packet retransmission,
jitter buffering, and that kind of thing,
which goes a long way toward smoothing out any problems left over from the
communications layer below.”
“Part of the trouble with MPLS is
that you don’t tend to get any actual
guaranty of what the ultimate performance of the network will be,” says
Thompson. “You may get some guaranty of bandwidth, but I don’t think many
service providers are at the moment
stepping up to provide any kind of
guarantees about what level of packet
loss, delay or jitter you’ll experience.
They’ll prioritize some of your traffic to
be ‘better’ but they won’t necessarily
give you guarantees as to what they can
deliver. In 2007, however, I think we’ll
see some of that starting to happen.
There will be more gradations of service
— MPLS only has three levels of service
— and we’ll see more actual guarantees
of end-to-end service. Once that starts
to happen, it then opens the door for
the development of services to real
demand, both in terms of stuff like
decent video conferencing or services
bundles for integrated sectors such as
healthcare or whatever.”
“Providers will be able to offer not
just the obvious real-time stuff, but
also this whole business of the ‘next
wave’ of stuff after datacenter consolidation — web services and instances of
remote software execution,” says
Thompson. “That’s fine, just as long as
you can ensure that the network cooperates. Today, some people may experience some difficulty in getting reliable
performance, just as many enterprises
find it difficult to achieve reliable performance when they centralize apps
across a corporate network. By doing
this the enterprise gets more and more
dependent on the network being able
to deliver a predicable level of performance. As long as it can do that, you can
engineer the whole thing to respond
well enough for the users, but the more
that different bits of applications have
to be coordinated across the network in
order to deliver the result, the more
vulnerable you become to having some
packet being lost or some delay being
large, resulting in unacceptable performance to the end user. But that will
change as we see providers deliver SLAs
[Service Level Agreements] with some
real ‘bite’.” IT
Richard Grigonis is Executive Editor of
TMC’s IP Communications Group.
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 91
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Ed Preble
CEO
Affinity VoIP Telecom
In the CEO Spotlight section in Internet Telephony®, we recognize the outstanding work performed by exemplary companies. Each month we bring you the
opinions of the head of companies leading the Internet telephony industry now
and helping to shape the future of the industry. This month, we spoke with Ed
Preble, Chief Executive Officer of Affinity VoIP Telecom. (news - alert)
RG: What is Affinity VoIP Telecom’s
mission?
EP: We are becoming an early stage
global leader of wholesale Voice-over-IP
(VoIP) services and want to position our
company as a viable acquisition target.
To that end, we provide all the essential
services a company needs to start and
maintain a successful VoIP business.
For those who deploy their own
switch and end user interface and sell
VoIP services on a retail basis, we provide domestic, international, and tollfree telephone numbers, PSTN connectivity, E911 call routing, directory
assistance and listing services, CNAM,
codec conversion, and a host of other
à la carte services. This allows our
clients to offer comprehensive service
packages.
We also provide a hosted, private
label, self-administered partition on our
class 5 switch for organizations that
don’t own their own equipment. Many
companies don’t want to make the large
financial and time-consuming commitment of engineering a comprehensive,
full-featured system. By going this
route, a retail seller can literally become
a full-featured phone company
overnight.
RG: What is your vision for Affinity
VoIP Telecom and how is the company
positioned in the next-generation
telecom market?
92 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
EP: I founded the company in 2005
before I had ever heard of Vonage. After
evaluating the business case for the VoIP
market, I came to realize that the limits
for offering the service were not geographic but rather monetary. In other
words, I could offer hosted VoIP telecom services on a global scale, but I
couldn’t afford to market it on a global
scale.
The only way to effectively reach the
largest number of end users and create
the most value for the company was to
sell the services on a wholesale basis to
resellers who had the marketing
resources to sell to end users on a retail
basis. It was at that point that I determined the vision of the company, which
is to be the dominant leader in wholesale VoIP (define - news - alert) services
by being the most recognized, prolific
and widely-used source of wholesale
VoIP services.
This vision has allowed us to pour all
of our financial, engineering and development resources into a customized,
one-of-a-kind partitionable system. This
allows resellers with strong marketing
skills and resources to offer hosted VoIP
telecom services to end users and concentrate on marketing efforts while we
focus on features, dependability and
ease of use.
Our initial goal was to only sell partitions on our switch to private label
resellers. We now generate a large portion of our recurring revenue by selling
à la carte services to other companies
who already have their own switch. In
light of the changing landscape and
industry demand for these services,
we’ve expanded our à la carte offerings
significantly to meet this growing
demand.
Besides the extensive feature set of
our switching equipment, one way we
are positioned to realize our vision is
that we maintain one of the largest instock inventories of immediately provisionable telephone numbers in virtually
every domestic and foreign rate center
available. We have found that obtaining
telephone numbers from the CLECs is a
time-consuming process, taking anywhere from one to four weeks. When
reseller’s customers sign up for VoIP
phone services, they don’t want to wait
that long! Maintaining a massive inventory comes at a high cost. But its value
comes in knowing our clients and their
customers don’t have to wait for telephone numbers.
RG: Now that it appears that growth
and opportunity are the trends in the
VoIP industry, what possible hurdles
do you see that might upset this
momentum?
EP: Government intervention and
regulation is a growing concern.
Regrettably, I see the FCC steadily
reaching its tentacles into the VoIP
business and imposing more and more
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Regrettably, I see the FCC
steadily reaching its tentacles
into the VoIP business and
imposing more and more fees
and regulations on VoIP
providers all the time.
required), multi-party conference calling, VoIP Peering, multi-product and
multi-service billing capabilities, Video
on Demand (VoD), SIP-based instant
messaging, web-based calling (no landline phone required), endpoint remote
auto provisioning and self-serve realtime telephone number acquisition
services.
RG: Describe your view of the future
of the IP telephony industry.
fees and regulations on VoIP providers
all the time. VoIP has enjoyed its present growth because, as part of the
Internet, it had been left alone to develop. The FCC began by claiming
authority over interconnected VoIP
providers when it required them to
implement E911 services in an overly
aggressive time frame. Then it furthered
its claim of authority by imposing costly CALEA rules over interconnect VoIP
providers. This required that a nascent
and poorly financed industry allow the
government to listen in on VoIP calls.
Its third claim of authority caught most
of the industry off guard when it blindsided VoIP providers with a burdensome Universal Service Fund tax that
members of the industry had little
opportunity or ability to prevent. The
Universal Service Fund tax imposes
even higher taxes on the VoIP industry
than upon Local Incumbent Carriers,
Competitive Carriers or even wireless
cellular companies.
VoIP has two main attractions, low
cost and an increased feature set. Part
of that low cost is derived from the fact
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that traditional carriers have had to
charge so many added taxes while VoIP
carriers haven’t had to pass on that overhead. Hopefully, the VoIP industry can
become strong enough to establish a
more powerful presence on Capitol Hill
so the industry can continue to grow
without the burden of government
intervention.
RG: What are some of the technology
areas where Affinity VoIP Telecom is
increasingly focusing, and why are
these areas important to the future
of your company?
EP: Since the continued success of
VoIP depends largely on the user’s ability to benefit from additional features
and services that are not presently
available through traditional PSTN
services, we dedicate a high percentage
of our resources to bringing new features to market as quickly as possible.
Some of the technologies we are introducing now and in the near future
include the following: A Dial Around
service (no Internet connection
EP: I envision VoIP services providers
to be as ubiquitous as ISPs. We’ve
brought down the cost of market entry
to become a global telephone company.
In the coming years, there will be a
multitude of private label VoIP telephone companies to purchase from. As
the competition picks up, we will see
resellers increasing their focus on vertical and local business markets. As the
number of competitors increase, there
will also be a misleading attraction for
companies to compete based on price.
Those who attempt to commoditize
VoIP and compete on price will eventually disintegrate. In order to maintain
price, resellers will need to include
more features for the same price. It’s
just like computing. Each year $1,200
just gets you a more powerful computer. But you don’t see many stores selling
them for less than $500 and still staying in business. IT
If you are interested in purchasing reprints of this
article (in either print or PDF format), please visit
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 93
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
BBUYERS
UYERS’’ G
GUIDE
UIDE INDEX
NDEX
DEVELOPMENT TOOLS ............................104
Hardware ................................................104
1
Boards Video Conferencing
2
Boards Voice/Fax
3
Computers/Fault Tolerant/NEBS
4
Computers/Industrial
5
DSP Chips
6
DSP Resource Boards
7
Internet Telephony Boards
8
Modems
9
Network Interface Cards
10 Video Conferencing Equipment
11 Chassis/Enclosures
12 Computer-less IP Telephony Devices
13 Multimedia Headsets/Phonesets
14 UPS/Power Protection/Management
Software ..................................................104
16 Compression Algorithms
17 Echo Cancellation
18 Embedded Software Tools
19 H.323 Protocol Stack
20 Internet Telephony API
21 Java/Java Telephony
22 MGCP/MEGACO
23 SIP
Testing ....................................................105
24 Simulators
25 Testing Hardware
26 Toolkits
27 Voice Quality Measurement
28 VoIP Testing
SOLUTIONS ..............................................106
29
30
Billing/Convergent Billing
Client Software (Internet Phones)
94 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
31
32
33
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
CTI
Directory Services
Internet ACD
Internetworking
LAN-Based Telephony
Multimedia
Network Management
OSS
Quality of Service
Security
Service Creation Environment
Service Level Management
SS7 Solution
Voice Over Cable
Voice Over DSL
Web-Based Customer Service
APPLICATIONS & SERVICES ....................108
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
Application Sharing/Collaborative Computing
Audio Conferencing
Customer Self-Provisioning
Distance Learning
Fax Broadcasting
Fax On Demand
International Callback
Internet Access To Live Agents (Click to Talk)
Internet Call Waiting
Internet Fax
IP Centrex
IP Multicasting
IP Video Conferencing
Least-Cost Routing
One Number/Follow Me
Prepaid Calling Cards
SOHO
Streaming Audio/Video
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BBUYERS
UYERS’’ G
GUIDE
UIDE IINDEX
NDEX
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
Telecommuting
Unified/Integrated Messaging
Virtual Assistant
Virtual/Distributed Call Center
Virtual Private Networks
Web/Call Center Integration
E911
WIRELESS ..................................................111
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
Handsets/PDAs
Location-Based Services (Mobile e-commerce)
Short Message Service
Third-Generation Wireless (3G)
Wireless Data/Internet/WAP
Wireless Internet Telephony
Wireless LAN
NETWORK EQUIPMENT............................111
81
82
83
84
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
100
Aggregator/Concentrator
Applications Server
Bridges
Carrier Class Gateways
CSU/DSU
Data-Enabled PBX
Edge Access Device
Fax Servers
Firewalls
Gatekeeper
Integrated Access Device
Internet Telephony Appliances
Internet Telephony Gateways
IP-Enabled PBX
IP Phone (SIP, H.323, Ethernet...)
Media Gateway
Multipoint Control Unit
Network PBX
Subscribe FREE online at http://http://www.itmag.com
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
110
Programmable Switches
Remote Access Concentrators
Routers
Softswitch
Signaling Gateway
Enhanced Services Platform
Voice Data Multiplexers
Voice/Data Switch
Wireless Base Station
SERVICE PROVIDERS ..............................114
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
CLEC
Internet Fax Service Provider
Internet Telephony Wholesaler
ISP
ITSP
Next-Gen Telco
Prepaid
APPLICATION SERVICE PROVIDERS ......115
118 Application Infrastructure Provider
119 Independent Software Vendor
120 Collaborative ASP
(Groupware, E-mail, Video Conferencing...)
121 Communications ASP
123 Telephony ASP
125 Voice Portal
OTHER ......................................................115
127
128
129
130
131
133
134
Clearinghouse
Consultant
Developer
Distributor
Interconnect
Reseller
Systems Integrator
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 95
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ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
A
1Number4U (E)
866-824-8245
http://www.1number4u.com
Products/Services: 50,54,63,69,70
devices, Linksys Adapters,
Hitachi-Cable Wireless IP
Phones and many more. ABP
can be reached at (972) 8311600 x121 [email protected]
1SourceVoIP (B, E)
800-777-8197
http://www.1SourceVoIP.com
Products/Services: 59,65,95,113
3Com (A, D)
508-323-5000
http://www.3com.com
Products/Services: 93,95,101,103,41
AccessLine Communications
(B, D)
206-654-1013
http://www.accessline.com
Products/Services: 50,63,67,68,69
+886-3-5770270
http://www.accton.com
Products/Services: 56,78
800-828-9428 x1
http://www.accuratealways.com
Products/Services: 66,72,4,31,40
Acoustic Magic (A)
5101 Buchan,
Montreal, QC H4P 1S4
514-745-2143
http://www.911enable.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 73
911 Enable, a division of
Connexon Telecom, is a leading
provider of VoIP 911 services
for enterprises and VSPs in the
U.S. and Canada. The company
offers FCC and NENA compliant
emergency solutions which
work with VSPs, enterprises,
and IP-PBX hardware manufacturers. 911 Enable’s breakthroughs in subscriber provisioning and extension management are on the cutting edge of
E911, and its key partnership
with TCS ensures a highly
adaptable level of service which
will continue to evolve with the
rapidly changing world of VoIP
communications.
A
Aastra Telecom (A)
905-760-4200
http://www.aastra.com
Products/Services: 60,93,96,36,74
ABP Technology (E)
1850 Crown Drive, #1112
Dallas, TX 75234
972-831-1600
http://www.abptech.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
93,94,96,97,104
ABP Technology is a specialty
distributor that markets VoIP
products through a network of
Professional Resellers and
Channel Partners. ABP is based
in Dallas, Texas with a sales and
tech support organization that
covers the US, Canada, Mexico,
and Latin America. ABP
Technology features a complete
portfolio of VoIP solutions from
snom IP Phones and others
including products such as
AudioCodes media gateways,
Converged Access QoS
732-469-0880
http://www.audiocodes.com/blades
Products/Services: 2,6,7,31
Alcatel (A, C)
Allworx (A)
800-995-2612
http://www.alcatel.com
Products/Services:
49,50,68,23,95
635 Crosskeys Office Park,
Fairport, NY 14450
Contact: Sandra Gault
585-421-3850 x124
http://www.allworx.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
94,95,100,108
Other: VoIP Key & PBX Phone
and Data Network System
Allworx’s VoIP solutions for the
SMB market feature the lowest
installed cost of any system in
the industry. Allworx’ awardwinning offerings combine a
sophisticated phone system,
with a robust data network and
software tools to increase
employee productivity and business revenues. Allworx offerings deliver analog AND VoIP
capabilities that enable customers to transition to VoIP at
their own pace. And the Allworx
system provides the easiest
installation and administration
requirements - which enable
companies to focus on their
business - and not their phone
system.
Accton Technology (A, B)
Accurate Always (A, D)
911 Enable (B, D)
Ai-Logix, Inc (D)
978-440-9384
http://www.AcousticMagic.com
Products/Services: 50,52,61,67
Other: Microphones
Action Solutions (E)
480-924-4550
http://www.actionsolutions.com
Products/Services: 93
Aculab (A)
197 First Avenue, Suite 130
Needham, FL MA 02494
781-433-6000
http://www.aculab.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 2,6,7,23,94
Aculab offers developers a
range of enabling technology
communications hardware and
software for integration into
high performance business
solutions.
Products for use within telco or
enterprise solutions include
digital network access - SIP,
H.323 and SS7 (including monitoring capability) and media
processing resources, in both
IP and PSTN environments.
Support is available to developers for each stage of their product’s lifecycle.
Products include; Prosody (certified for use with the Asterisk
open source IP PBX Business
Edition), Prosody S, a software
only host media processing
product and Prosody X, a highly
configurable IP-based media
processing platform, available
in PCI, cPCI and PCIe formats.
Adaptive Digital Technologies,
Inc. (C, D)
610-825-0182
http://adaptivedigital.com
Products/Services:
16,17,104,123,113
Adomo (C, D)
408-996-7086
http://www.adomo.com
Products/Services: 63,67,68,69,93
ADTRAN, Inc. (A)
256-963-8000
http://www.adtran.com
Products/Services: 86,90,92,96,103
Advanced Communications
Solutions (D)
407-788-9845
Products/Services: 50,61,68
96 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Alliance Systems (A, D)
3501 E. Plano Parkway,
Plano, TX 75074
Contact: Claire Ortega
972-633-3400
http://www.alliancesystems.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
28,93,94,97,110
Alliance Systems, Ltd. designs,
builds, ships, and supports
communications and computing
equipment providing the infrastructure for VoIP, wireless,
security, and other communications applications. Through its
engineering, manufacturing,
and value-added services,
Alliance Systems helps customers optimize their businesses by enhancing profitability
and reducing time to market.
Today, Alliance focuses on
delivering open-standards
servers to OEMs, ISVs, and
service providers throughout
the world. Through strategic
partnerships with Intel,
Microsoft, Cisco, and HP, the
company provides a full range
of products and services that
are specifically designed to
meet today’s mission-critical
communications applications.
Alliance Systems’ head office
is located in Plano, Texas,
USA with European
Headquarters in Bad
Homburg, Germany.
AltiGen Communications, Inc.
(A, D)
510-252-9712
http://www.altigen.com
Products/Services: 72,2,96,36
Other: IP-PBX and IP Contact
Center Solutions
AnswerNet Network (B, D)
800-411-5777
http://www.answernet.com
Products/Services: 53,54,68,70
Other: E-mail Management, Live
Chat, Web Order Entry, Online
Appointment Scheduling
Applied Voice & Speech
Technologies (AVST) (C)
949-699-2300
http://www.avst.com
Products/Services: 63,68,69
ARRIS (A, D)
Allot Communications (D)
7664 Golden Triangle Drive,
Eden Prairie, MN 55344
952-944-3100
http://www.allot.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
106,38,40,42,43
Allot Communications
(http://www.allot.com) is a leading provider of intelligent IP
service optimization solutions.
Designed for carriers, service
providers and enterprises, Allot
solutions apply deep packet
inspection (DPI) technology to
transform broadband pipes
into smart networks. This creates the visibility and control
vital to manage applications
and services, guarantee quality
of service (QoS), contain operating costs and maximize revenue. Allot believes in listening
to customers and provides
them access to its visionaries,
innovators and support engineers.
678-473-8327
http://www.arrisi.com
Products/Services: 81,88,93,37,45
Ascendent Systems (D)
888-507-1777
http://www.ascendentsystems.com
Products/Services: 50,63,68,95,104
Aspect Software (D)
888-412-7728
http://www.aspect.com
Products/Services: 70,103,104,33
Associated Call Centers (B, D)
800-610-5262
http://www.inboundacc.com
Products/Services: 54,56,68,69,72
A: EQUIPMENT VENDOR
B: SERVICE PROVIDER/
CARRIER
C: SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
D: SOLUTIONS PROVIDER
E: RESELLER/DISTRIBUTOR
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
A-C
2099 Gateway Place, Suite 500
San Jose, CA 95131
408-441-1175
http://www.audiocodes.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 2,7,94,97,44
AudioCodes (NASDAQ: AUDC)
provides innovative, reliable
and cost-effective Voice over
Packet technology and Voice
Network products to OEMs, network equipment providers and
system integrators. AudioCodes
offers its customers and partners a diverse range of flexible,
comprehensive media gateway
and media processing technologies, based on VoIPerfectT AudioCodes’ underlying, bestof-breed, core media gateway
architecture. The company is a
market leader in voice compression technology and is a key
originator of the ITU G.723.1
standard for the emerging Voice
over IP market. AudioCodes’
international headquarters and
R&D facilities are located in
Israel, with U.S. headquarters in
San Jose, California.
BorderWare Technologies Inc. (A)
800-585-1696
http://www.axcis.net
Products/Services: 119
Other: Field Service Management
Software
905-804-1855 x245
http://www.borderware.com
Products/Services: 90,41
Other: VoIP Firewall
Bway.net (B)
B
BandTel for Flawless VoIP (B)
949-640-9700
http://www.bandtel.com
Products/Services: 113,115,116,36
800-784-6104
http://www.avaya.com
Products/Services: 68,72,96,95,108
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
C
CallingPlaces, Ltd (B)
Bandwidth.com (B)
919-297-1100
http://www.bandwidth.com/
Products/Services: 113,114
44-2088106609
http://www.callingplaces.com
Products/Services: 55,59,63,64,68
BCE Elix (B, D)
Canecu Trading Inc (D)
501-768-1000
http://www.bceelix.com
Products/Services: 125,31,37,47
Other: Contact center solutions
416-238-2329
Products/Services: 35,38,45,46
408-570-8701
http://www.bea.com/wlcom
Products/Services: 21,23,82,118,119
S
EE THE
INDEX
LOCATED ON
•
•
•
Pages 94 & 95
CapRock Communications (B)
832-668-2300
http://www.caprock.com
Products/Services: 66,71,80
Other: satellite communications
BEA Systems Inc. (C)
•
Avaya Inc. (A, C)
212-982-9800
http://www.bway.net
Products/Services: 95,113,114,115
Other: Hosted PBX
and Excel Switching
Corporation, provides enabling
communications hardware and
software that empowers the creation and delivery of anytime,
anywhere IP-based communications applications. Cantata’s
proven, open standards-based
technology has given rise to
one of the largest, broadest,
and deepest enabling technology product lines in the communications industry. Used extensively by enterprises and service providers alike, Cantata’s
products enable innovative
services and solutions with
applications ranging from voice
and video, messaging, IP call
centers, fax document management and compliance, prepaid,
and speech-enabled services.
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
AudioCodes (A)
Axcis.Net Software (C)
Cantata Technology (A)
410 First Ave,
Needham, MA 02494
781-449-4100
http://www.cantata.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
2,106,97,101,105
Cantata Technology, established
in 2006 through the combination of Brooktrout Technology
Carrius Technologies, Inc. (C)
214-572-7800
http://www.carriustech.com
Products/Services: 106,101
Other: Network Layer Service
Delivery Platform
Castle CRM (C, E)
866-330-6470
http://www.acastle.com
Products/Services:
128,129,133,134,118
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 97
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
C-E
Catalog Retail Marketing Int’l, Inc.
(CRMI) (B)
802-334-1000 x203
http://www.crmi.cc
Products/Services: 56,72
Other: CRMI provides inbound call
center services (Voice/web/e-mail)
Centillium Communications, Inc.
(A, D)
Comtico (A, E)
+45 7027 9299
http://www.comtico.com
Products/Services: 88,92,93,94,96
Comwave Telecom Inc. (B, D)
416-663-9700 x303
http://www.comwave.net
Products/Services: 62,123,116,29,45
510-771-3700
http://www.centillium.com
Products/Services: 5,97,46
Other: VoIP System-On-Chip
Contek Networks, Inc. (A)
Check Point Software
Technologies (C)
Converged Access Inc. (A)
650-628-2000
http://www.checkpoint.com
Products/Services: 71,90,41
510-342-5700
http://www.conteknet.com
Products/Services: 94,96
978-742-1400 x404
http://www.convergedaccess.com
Products/Services: 92,107,40,41,46
services direct the communication flow of these companies to
help businesses “Make Contact.
Better.” By providing affordable
mission critical communications solutions, Dirigosoft is
changing the way businesses
handle customer contact. Our
flagship product, Dirigo iQueue,
offers an integrated PBX/ACD
system that’s feature-rich, flexible and more affordable than
competing products. Now every
business can benefit from a
commercial-grade communications system that’s easy to configure and easy to use - without
having to make a major investment.
Converged Access Inc. (A)
Cicero Networks (C)
+353 1 6636510
http://www.ciceronetworks.com
Products/Services: 45,46,79
Other: wVOIP Solutions
ClearOne Communications (A)
800-707-6994
http://www.clearone.com
Products/Services: 50,52,65,67,17
978-742-1400
http://www.convergedaccess.com
Products/Services: 90,92,40,41,46
S
EE THE
INDEX
•
Convergin (A)
+972-9-951 7771
http://www.convergin.com
Products/Services: 105,108,79
Other: wireless convergence server,
SCIM
LOCATED ON
•
•
•
Pages 94 & 95
Diversified Technology (A, D)
Clearpath Communications, LLC
(B)
248-724-4444
http://www.clearpath1.com
Products/Services: 59,63,128,113
CosmoCom, Inc. (C)
631-940-4200
http://www.cosmocom.com
Products/Services: 62,70,72,33
Other: Unified Customer
Communications IP Contact Center
Codima Technologies (C, D)
610-579-9435
http://www.codimatech.com
Products/Services: 24,27,28,38
Cognitronics (A, D)
203-830-3523
http://www.cognitronics.com
Products/Services: 22,23,82,106
Other: Media Servers
Crystal Group Inc. (A, D)
319-378-1636
http://www.crystalpc.com
Products/Services: 11,3,4,134
Other: IP Telephony Developer
Platform
D
Common Voices, Inc (C)
Datasoftnet (E)
617-286-1600
http://www.commonvoices.com
Products/Services: 50,58,63,68,42
314-258-2902
http://www.datasoftnet.com
Products/Services: 28
CommPartners (D)
DiamondWare, Ltd. (C)
702-367-8647 x1017
http://www.commpartners.us
Products/Services: 111,113,39,47
Other: IP-Based Wholesale
Solutions
480-380-1122
http://www.dw.com
Products/Services: 50,20,129,79
Other: Converged Enterprise
Communications Solution, Low
Latency Windows/PDA Softphone
Digerati Networks (B, E)
CommuniGate Systems (D)
655 Redwood Hwy, Ste 275
Mill Valley, CA 94941
Contact: Ali Liptrot
415-383-7164
http://www.communigate.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
50,56,59,68,23
CommuniGate Systems creates
and distributes CommuniGate
Pro - the most scalable and
modern Internet Communications application server on
the market today. The comprehensive solutions will enable
service providers to enhance
revenues and allow organizations to consolidate voice and
data Internet Communications.
From email and calendaring, to
instant messaging, VoIP,
Conferencing Server and IP
PBX, CommuniGate Pro supports it all from one proven,
reliable platform.
210-614-7240
http://www.digerati-networks.com
Products/Services: 113
Digium, Inc. (A, D)
256-428-6000
http://www.digium.com
Products/Services: 2
Other: Asterisk, the Open Source
PBX
Dirigosoft Corporation (A, D)
443 Congress St, Ste 400
Portland, ME 04101-3546
Contact: Craig Shambaugh
877-870-1234
http://www.dirigosoft.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
67,69,70,95,36
Dirigosoft develops and provides world-class business
communications solutions for
small- and medium-sized businesses. Our products and
98 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
800-443-2667
http://www.dtims.com
Products/Services: 11,3,4,106,94
Doretel Communications, Inc.
(A, D)
404-755-5721
http://www.doretel.com
Products/Services: 105,104,29,44
Other: Cisco Registered Partner,
Quintum VoIP Products
E
Echo by BenchmarkPortal (B)
805-614-0123 x62
http://www.echoinformation.com
Other: After Call Customer
Satisfaction Solution
Electric Cloud, Inc. (C)
650-968-2950
http://www.electric-cloud.com
Products/Services: 119
Elma Electronic (A)
44350 S. Grimmer Blvd.,
Fremont, CA 94538
Contact: Justin Moll
510-490-7388 x516
http://www.elma.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 11,134
Elma Electronic is a global
designer and manufacturer of
products for housing electronic
systems. The company provides
everything from components
such as modular enclosures,
cabinets and backplanes up to
complete standard or custom
system platforms. Elma also
manufactures precision rotary
switches. The company offers a
fast, flexible response to customer needs and extensive
practical knowledge in tailoring
solutions to specific applications.
Founded in 1960, the Elma
Group has production facilities
and sales offices worldwide
serving the mil/aero, industrial,
research, telecom, medical, and
commercial markets. With vast
expertise in Eurocard-based
platforms, standard architectures include AdvancedTCA,
CompactPCI, MicroTCA, VME,
VME64x, VPX, VXI, VXS, and more.
Empire Communications (A, D)
707-545-8300
http://www.empirecomm.com
Products/Services: 67,68,72,95,131
Empirix, Inc. (A, C)
781-266-3285
http://www.empirix.com
Products/Services: 23,25,27,28,40
Encore Networks (A)
703-318-4366
http://www.encorenetworks.com
Products/Services: 71,92,103,105,41
Efonica (B)
420 Lexington Avenue, Suite 1718
New York, NY 10170
Contact: Karen Black
212-201-2400
http://efonica.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 115
Efonica offers next-generation
VoIP calling solutions for consumers and corporations
around the world. Built on
patent-pending technology,
Efonica products and services
are designed to work with dialup, wireless, and broadband
Internet connections, and from
many calling devices, not just
PCs. You can even use your regular telephone! Save up to 80%
on international calls, even
when calling from your mobile
phone! With Efonica, you’ll
enjoy advanced calling features,
multiple access methods, and
sophisticated voicemail services. Join Efonica and add the
Internet Area Code to your
phone number today. For more
information, visit
http://www.efonica.com.
ENGATE Technology Corporation
(D)
408-494-8310
http://www.engate.com
Products/Services: 41
Other: connection management, reputation based security, protocol level
security
Enteractive Distribution Co. (E)
860-236-8600
http://www.enteractive.com
Products/Services: 130,133
Envision (C, D)
206-225-0800 x500
http://www.envisioninc.com
Products/Services: 119
Other: Business Intelligence, Quality
Monitoring, Workforce Management
and eLearning
Epygi Technologies (A)
972-692-1166 x38
http://www.epygi.com
Products/Services: 50,82,94,95,103
EyeBill (C, D)
877 649 5622
http://www.eyebill.net
Products/Services: 62,64,21,119,29
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Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
F-I
FacetCorp (A, D)
800-235-9901
http://www.facetcorp.com
Products/Services: 68,95,100,104,36
and solutions are widely used
in markets globally with CE,
FCC, ISO certificates. With complete product line, outstanding
quality, quick response on customized changes, real time support, and competitive price,
GoHigh will be your first choice
for VoIP products and solutions.
Falcon Electric, Inc. (A)
800-842-6940
http://www.falconups.com
Products/Services: 14
FaxBack, Inc. (C, D)
503-597-5355
http://www.faxback.com
Products/Services: 53,54,58,89,119
Forum Communications
International (A, D)
972-680-0700 x1581
http://www.forum-com.com
Products/Services: 49,50,52,67
Other: Emergency
Response/Collaboration
Freeway Communications (B, E)
213-225-2200 x101
http://freeway.com
Products/Services:
59,104,134,115,29
G
Gallery IP Telephony (A, D)
972 9 7486787
http://www.g-ipt.com
General Telecom (D)
646-328-5800
http://www.gentel.net
Products/Services: 62,123,38
Other: Full-Service TDM And IP
Network Management D
Givex Corporation (B)
877-478-7733
http://www.givex.com
Products/Services: 134,47
Other: Gift Cards, Loyalty Cards,
Stored Value, Coupons, Payment
Systems
GlobalTouch Telecom (B)
11845 W. Olympic Blvd.,
Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064
800-254-3107
http://www.globaltouchtelecom.com
[email protected]
GlobalTouch Telecom offers
proprietary, vertically-integrated
VoIP platforms, of which every
aspect of the technology is built
from the ground up, creating a
one-stop single vendor VoIP
solution. The product comprises
an all-inclusive, private-label
offering for Carriers, MSOs,
Resellers, PTTs, ILECs, ISPs,
CLECs and marketing companies. The platform is completely
customizable, and can be rolled
out in 60 days or less. The ASP
product enables low
CAPEX/OPEX offerings for
enterprise and residential
deployments. Since
GlobalTouch develops, owns
and operates all aspects of its
technology, it has the flexibility
to create, leverage and market
its own innovations and applications without having to resell
3rd-party technology.
GM Voices, Inc. (B, D)
770-752-4500
http://www.gmvoices.com
Products/Services: 69,123,125,113
Other: Voice Branding, Speech
Recognition, International Telephony,
Corporate Storytelling
Go Tek Inc. (D)
416-817-6888
http://www.softswitch.ca
Products/Services: 61,29,39,45,46
GL Communications, Inc. (D)
207A Perry Parkway, Suite One
Gaithersburg, MD 20877
Contact: Shelley Sharma
301-670-4784 x114
http://www.gl.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
24,25,26,27,28
GL is a global provider of test &
measurement tools for VoIP,
TDM, & Wireless networks.
Unlike conventional testing
tools, our test platforms provide
visualization, capture, storage,
portability, remote-access, and
scripting. TDM products include
T1, E1, T3, OC-3, STM-1, & analog 4-wire/ 2-wire interface solutions. VoIP products generate /
analyze thousands of calls
simultaneously with voice, digits, tones, noise, & fax traffic
types using G.711, G.729, AMR,
EVRC, & GSM codecs. Wireless
products perform protocol
analysis & voice quality assessment on GSM, CDMA, UMTS, &
CDMA 2000 networks. Echo
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GoHigh Data Networks
Technology Co., Ltd. (A)
No. 40 Xueyuan Road Haidian
District,
Beijing, 00 100083
Contact: Lisa Yao
+8610-62302956
http://www.datangnetwork.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 84,96,97,104
Other: ATA
GoHigh Company
(http://www.datangnetwork.com)
, as a public company and one
of top telecom products manufacturers from China, is dedicating to provide best products
and solutions in the VoIP field.
GoHigh focuses on VoIP carrier
operation system as well as
enterprise products, providing
Softswitch, Billing system, IPPBX, Media Gateway, Analog
FXS/FXO gateway, ATA and IP
Phones. All these VoIP products
A: EQUIPMENT VENDOR
B: SERVICE PROVIDER/
CARRIER
C: SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
D: SOLUTIONS PROVIDER
E: RESELLER/DISTRIBUTOR
Hewlett-Packard Company (A)
281-370-0670
http://www.hp.com/go/infrastructure
Products/Services: 14
High Tech High Touch Solutions,
Inc. (B)
425-398-9292
http://www.HTHTS.com
Products/Services: 128,129,134
Other: Help Desk & Call Center
Conferences and Services (HD Prof.
& Gov. Customer Sprt.
HigherGround, Inc. (C, D)
818-591-3133 x249
http://www.highergroundinc.com
Products/Services: 29,31,40
Other: Call Recording Solution
I
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
F
Canceller & Network
Surveillance testing solutions
provide the broadest range of
simulation & analysis for TDM,
VoIP, ATM, & Wireless networks,
including compliance testing
per G.168 & G.160. GL is headquartered in the US with worldwide branch offices.
gr8fone.net (B, D)
919898008655
http://gr8fone.net
Products/Services:
118,112,113,115,46
I.S. Associates, Inc. (C, D)
Grandstream Networks, Inc.
(A, C)
1297 Beacon Street, 2d Floor
Brookline, MA 02446
Contact: Marianne Rocco
617-566-9300
http://www.grandstream.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
23,93,94,96,97
Grandstream Networks, Inc. is
an award-winning designer and
manufacturer of next generation
IP voice & video products for
broadband networks.
Grandstream’s products deliver
superb sound and picture quality, rich telephony features, full
compliance with industry standards, and broad interoperability with most service providers
and 3rd party SIP based VoIP
products. Grandstream is consistently recognized in the VoIP
industry for their innovation,
affordability and superior value
in their products. Grandstream
Networks is a private company
headquartered in Brookline, MA
with offices in Los Angeles,
Dallas and China. For more
information, please visit
http://www.grandstream.com.
H
HEAD acoustics GmbH (C, D)
+49-2407-5770
http://www.head-acoustics.de
Products/Services:
24,25,27,28,128
1260 Rankin Suite G,
Troy, MI 48083
Contact: Matt Marshall
800-583-3440 x142
http://www.isassoc.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
51,119,29,38,39
Founded in 1987 and headquartered in the Detroit Michigan
suburb of Troy, I.S. Associates,
Inc. (ISA) is a software and
services provider specializing in
communications billing and
customer care, call accounting,
and telemanagement solutions.
ISA has achieved international
recognition for its flagship
product, TeleCount, which is
used by hundreds of customers
worldwide.
i3 Networks (B)
9766 Whithorn Dr., Suite A
Houston, TX 77095
281-500-8510
http://www.i3net.us
[email protected]
i3 Networks is a leading
provider of wholesale network
elements and managed switch
services. Through our next generation switching network, i3 is
able to offer innovative solutions to service providers looking for individual network components or an end-to-end solution all with old-fashioned customer service. We also provide
E911 and CALEA compliance
solutions allowing providers to
simplify their networks and
start making money faster.
Acting as a bridge between the
IP and TDM worlds, our network
is protocol agnostic. We are
capable of supporting T1, ISDN
PRI, SIP, MGCP, and NCS
(Packet Cable).
Hermon Labs (A)
972-4-628-8001
http://www.hermonlabs.com
Products/Services:
25,27,28,129
iKnowWare (C)
512-215-4305
http://www.iKnowWare.com
Products/Services: 49,50,68,72,,,
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 99
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
I-N
Incognito Software (C, D)
LumenVox LLC (C)
604-688-4332 x860
http://www.incognito.com
Products/Services: 93,134,35,38,39
877-977-0707 xSales
http://www.LumenVox.com
Products/Services: 129,119,125
Ingate Systems (A)
603-883-6569
http://www.ingate.com
Products/Services: 23,90,93,41
Other: SIP Firewalls and SIParators,
NAT traversal, remote connectivity,
SIP Trunking
M
M5 Networks (B)
646-230-5000
http://www.m5net.com
Products/Services:
59,95,123,115,36
Intelenet Global Services (B, D)
972-712-7426
http://www.intelenetglobal.com
IntelliNet Technologies, Inc. (C, D)
321-726-0686
http://www.intellinet-tech.com
Products/Services: 20,105,44,75,77
International Systems Research
Co. (C, D)
650-570-6960
http://www.isrus.com
Products/Services: 23,134,30,78,79
Intertex Data (A)
508-385-6335
http://intertexdata.com
Products/Services: 8,90,94,95,103
Intrado (D)
MaraStar Communications (B, C)
610-902-0080 x125
http://www.marastar.com
Products/Services: 52
MERA Systems, Inc. (A, C)
866-644-3051 x5973
http://www.mera-systems.com
Products/Services: 84,95,104
Other: Session Border Controller
Meru Networks (A)
MichTel Communications, LLC
(B, D)
877-856-7504
http://www.intrado.com
Other: E9-1-1 Solutions
iotum (C)
Microtronix Systems Ltd (A)
613-482-9099
iotum.com
Products/Services: 63,69,121,123
519-649-4900
microtronix.ca
Products/Services: 27,28,96
Other: TIA810-A/B, TIA920
IVR Technologies, Inc. (C)
213-634-1522
http://www.ivr.com
Products/Services: 51,55,63,64,29
971-249-1322
http://www.ivrusa.com
Products/Services: 129,133,134
Ixia (A)
818-871-1800
http://www.ixiacom.com
Products/Services: 25,27,28,38,40
J
JDSU (A)
866-228-3762
http://www.jdsu.com
Products/Services: 25,27,28,38,40
K
Kentrox (A, B)
503-350-6001
http://www.kentrox.com
Products/Services: 71,90,103,38,40
L
Level 3 Communications (B)
877-2LE-VEL3
http://www.Level3.com
Products/Services: 111,113,116
MINACOM (A, C)
260 Queen St.,
Montreal, QC H3C 2N8
Contact: Charles Coutu
514-879-9111 x228
http://www.minacom.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 27,28,38,40
Other: Single-End VoIP Probes
Minacom builds Service Level
Test Systems for Telcos, Cable
MSOs, VoIP Providers.
Minacom’s automated test systems help maintain the integrity and quality of large-scale
multi-service deployments,
including Voice, VoIP, IPTV, Fax,
FoIP, Video Conferencing and
Internet Services.
Minacom systems are Webcontrolled by a centralized
server platform that integrates
years of operational experience into test setups, test
strategies and result analysis
rules used by over 80 operators worldwide including AT&T,
Comcast, France Telecom,
Liberty Global, Primus,
Orange, Clearwire, VSNL and
Bellsouth, as well as
softswitch manufacturers such
as Siemens, Cedar Point and
Ericsson.
Mindspeed Technologies, Inc. (D)
Linksys, a Division of Cisco
Systems (A)
408-853-7682
http://www.linksys.com
Products/Services: 93,94,96,95,103
Minerva Networks
408-567-9400
http://www.minervanetworks.com
Other: IPTV Services
Motorola Embedded
Communications Computing
Group (D)
602-437-3623
http://www.motorola.com/computing
Products/Services: 11,3,97,118
Other: Communications Server
408-215-5357
http://www.merunetworks.com
Products/Services: 80
Other: WLAN Access Points, WLAN
Controllers, Radio Switch family
248-771-5000
http://www.michtel.com
Products/Services:
111,113,114,115,116
IVR USA (D)
A: EQUIPMENT VENDOR
B: SERVICE PROVIDER/
CARRIER
C: SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
D: SOLUTIONS PROVIDER
E: RESELLER/DISTRIBUTOR
949-579-3650
http://www.mindspeed.com
Products/Services: 5,45,46,79
Other: Comcerto carrier-class VoIP
processing solutions
100 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
NEC Unified Solutions Inc., is a
leader in integrated communications solutions for the enterprise. We deliver an innovative
suite of products; applications
and services that help customers achieve their business
goals. This includes a broad
range of communications services and solution choices, flexible product platforms and applications, and an open migration
path to protect investments.
NEC Unified Solutions is a relationship-driven company,
approaching each challenge
and opportunity with the highest levels of commitment and
consideration for our customers
long-term benefit. NEC Unified
Solutions has the unique ability
to optimizes a customers communications infrastructure and
technology investments, and
deliver excellence through its
Professional and Managed services like network assessments;
remote monitoring and management; systems integration and
network security.
Multi-Tech Systems, Inc. (A)
2205 Woodale Dr.,
Mounds View, MN 55112
Contact: Chip Harleman
800-328-9717 x5176
http://www.multitech.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
12,8,94,103,77
Multi-Tech’s telephony solutions add functionality to an
existing phone system while
protecting the investments
you’ve already made in your
data and voice infrastructure.
The MultiVOIP Voice over IP
gateways provide distributed IP
telephony and toll bypass savings to remote offices of multilocation businesses. The
FaxFinder fax servers distribute
faxes to the desktop of local
LAN users or over a WAN to
remote offices and field sales
people. The TalkAnytime webbased click-to-talk media server
allows you to voice-enable your
web site. And, the CallFinder
cellular gateways route fixed
line calls through lower cost
wireless networks providing a
substantial savings in telephone costs.
N
Netcentrex Converged IP
Communications, Comverse
(C, D)
5 Rue St Georges
75009 Paris, France
+33 (0)1 58 71 33 33
http://www.netcentrex.net
[email protected]netcentrex.net
Products/Services:
46, 59, 82, 104
Other: Triple/Quad Play
Netcentrex develops unique
next generation network (NGN)
voice and video solutions that
optimize network infrastructure
and enable telecom operators
and service providers to deliver
voice-video-data and fixedmobile converged services for
both the consumer and enterprise markets. Solutions
include IP telephony, video
telephony, Quad Play, triple
Play, secured IP Trunking, IP
centrex, voice/video VPN, voice
mail, video mail, contact center,
and IVR. Netcentrex Converged
IP Communications is a business line in the Comverse
organization.
Natural Convergence (C)
613-280-2000
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
Products/Services: 59,21,82,119
Other: Hosted VoIP Applications
Software
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc. (D)
6535 N. State Highway 161,
Irving, TX 75039-2402
Contact: Amy Dittman
214-262-6384
http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
28,95,134,40,80
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N-S
P
415-389-1409
http://www.netcordia.com
Products/Services: 38
NetIQ (C)
713-418-5759
http://www.netiq.com/voip
Products/Services: 27,28
888-999-5946
http://www.netscout.com
Products/Services: 38,39,40,43
Other: Application Performance
Management
Q
416-518-4344
http://www.rams-group.com
Products/Services: 29,39
PacketStorm Communications (A)
Quintum Technologies, Inc. (A)
732-254-2434 x206
http://www.packetstorm.com
Products/Services: 24,25,27,28
732-460-9000 x238
http://www.quintum.com
Products/Services: 58,91,94,97
Other: Session Border Controllers,
Call Routing Servers
Pactolus Communications
Software (C)
NetScout Systems (D)
RAMS Group (B, D)
508-616-0900
http://www.Pactolus.com
Products/Services: 50,64,68,82,42
Red Hawk/CDT (A)
800-989-4295 x235
http://www.power-sense.com
Products/Services: 129
Other: Power over Ethernet Hubs
Rhino Equipment Corp. (A)
R
480-940-1826 x6311
http://www.rhinoequipment.com
Products/Services: 87,94,95,107
Other: Channelbanks
Network Instruments (A, C)
RNK Telecom (B, D)
952-932-9899
http://www.networkinstruments.com
Products/Services: 25,28,38,80
781-613-6000
http://www.rnktel.com
Products/Services: 64,65,111
Other: VoIP Wholesaler
New Global Telecom (D)
303-278-0700
http://www.ngt.com
Products/Services: 113,38
Other: Comprehensive Wholesale
VoIP for Bs
Newport Networks Limited (A)
+44 (0) 1291 635830
http://www.newport-networks.com
Products/Services: 59,62,23,131
Other: Session Border Controller
NexTone Communications (C, D)
240-912-1310
http://www.nextone.com
Products/Services: 104,38,40
Other: Session Border Control
S
EE THE
INDEX
•
LOCATED ON
•
•
•
Pages 94 & 95
NMS Communications (A, D)
800-533-6120
http://www.nmscommunications.com
Products/Services: 1,2,7,20,44
Pandora Networks (B, D)
1195 Park Avenue, Ste 201
Emeryville, CA 94608
Contact: Stephen Baumer
800-805-0558
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
49,59,68,70,115
Pandora Networks presents
Worksmart, the leading On
Demand IP Communications
solution designed for the SMB.
Worksmart is the only On
Demand communications service that provides integrated
communications services
including; virtual IP-PBX and
ACD, private and public instant
messaging, web based presentation and, collaboration,
audio/video/IM/web conferencing, web based contact center
from a browser and thin client
to any office or employee worldwide. Worksmart is built on an
open-source, SIP and standards-based architecture that is
designed with scalability, extensibility and flexibility to integrate with legacy and existing
billing, PBX, collaboration, messaging applications. The service
is sold exclusively via service
providers and resellers.
Noble Systems Corporation (C)
Pangea Communications Corp.
(B, D)
888-866-2538 x300
http://www.noblesys.com
Products/Services: 70,72,37
503-221-2121
http://www.pangea-comm.com
Products/Services: 53,58,68,112
Nortel Networks (A)
pbxnsip inc. (A)
800-4NO-RTEL
http://www.nortelnetworks.com
Products/Services: 68,71,70,72,23
978-364-0072 x111
http://www.pbxnsip.com
Products/Services: 93,95
Nuvio (B)
PIKA Technologies Inc. (A)
816-444-4422
http://www.nuvio.com
Products/Services:
59,63,70,123,113
613-591-1555 x388
http://www.pikatechnologies.com
Products/Services: 2,6,7,17,23
O
Pipeline Telecom Inc. (B, D)
321-409-9971 x11
http://www.pipelinetelecom.com
Products/Services: 64,106,113,74
On2 Technologies, Inc. (C)
518-724-3872
http://on2.com
Products/Services: 16
Other: Video for VoIP
Polycom, Inc. (A)
OPC Marketing, Inc. (A, C)
Pronexus Inc. (D)
972-267-3279 x202
http://www.opc-marketing.com
Products/Services:
20,87,89,121,119
613-271-8989
http://www.pronexus.com
Products/Services: 119,123,125,31
Other: IVR development tools
Orative (C)
Psytechnics (C, D)
408-625-3100
http://www.orative.com
Products/Services: 68,30,32,79
978-392-1244
http://www.psytechnics.com
Products/Services: 26,27,28,40
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800-POL-YCOM
http://www.polycom.com
Products/Services: 10,83,91,96,98
RADCOM, Ltd. (A, D)
6 Forest Avenue,
Paramus, NJ 07652
Contact: Elizabeth Giordano
201-518-0033 x320
http://www.RADCOM.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
24,25,27,28,43
RADCOM, (NASDAQ/TASE:
RDCM), is an award-winning
innovator specializing in
voice/data/video over IP, as well
as next-generation cellular network technologies. Its marketleading, high-performance,
analysis, simulation, monitoring
and troubleshooting solutions
are used by ILECs, cable and
cellular operators for early
stage fault detection, pre-emptive maintenance, and network
and service optimization.
RADCOM’s proven strength is
its flexibility and responsiveness in an environment of rapidly changing technology and
customer requirements, evolving industry standards and frequent new product introductions. The company has a
strong and dedicated organizational network that includes
over 70 distributors in 50 countries worldwide and 9 manufacturer’s representatives across
North America.
RadiSys Corporation (A, D)
5445 NE Dawson Creek Drive,
Hillsboro, OR 97124
800-950-0044
http://www.radisys.com
[email protected]
RadiSys (Nasdaq: RSYS) is a
leading provider of advanced
solutions for the communications networking and commercial systems markets. Through
intimate customer collaboration
and combining innovative technologies and industry leading
architecture, RadiSys helps
OEMs, systems integrators and
solution providers bring better
products to market faster and
more economically. RadiSys
products include AdvancedTCA
solutions, media servers,
embedded boards and turn-key
systems which are used in
today’s complex computing,
processing and network intensive applications.
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
Netcordia (A)
S
Samsung BCS (D)
1301 East Lookout Drive,
Richardson, TX 75082
Contact: Kim Waldrop
972-761-7000
http://www.samsung.com/bcs
[email protected]
Products/Services: 95,100,31
Samsung Business
Communication Systems (BCS),
a Dallas-based division of
Samsung Telecommunications
America, is the distribution arm
for the company’s line of business communications solutions. Targeting small- to medium-sized businesses, Samsung
BCS offers telephony-based
customer premise equipment
(CPE) with dynamic architecture
that can accommodate tremendous growth at low incremental
costs to meet a variety of communications needs. Samsung’s
business communications systems combine traditional voice
and data capabilities with wireline and wireless technologies
providing fully integrated, converged communications platforms and applications. In addition to CPE, Samsung BCS also
offers a comprehensive line of
voice processing equipment,
CTI applications and wireless
solutions.
SBE (A)
925-355-2000
http://www.sbei.com
Products/Services: 6,9,97
SES AMERICOM (B, D)
609-987-4555
Products/Services: 60,71,78,79
Other: Satellite Communications
Sevis Systems (A, C)
770-536-2425
http://www.sevis.com
Products/Services: 105,44,76,77
Other: Fraud Solution
Shenzhen Koncept Technology
Development Co.,Ltd (D)
(86)755 82197307 x823
http://www.konceptusa.com
Products/Services: 23,29,39,45
Other: VOIP
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 101
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
S-T
ShoreTel (A, C)
408-331-3369
http://www.shoretel.com
Products/Services: 22,96,95,100,36
Siemens Communications (B)
800-765-6123
http://www.communications.usa.siem
ens.com/home.html
Products/Services: 61,66,120,29,37
SMART NETWORK SOLUTIONS
(D, E)
305-808-7361
http://www.smartisvoip.com
Products/Services: 104,130,134,29
Other: Integration of projects in IP
communications
SMC Networks (A)
949-679-8000
http://www.smc.com
Products/Services: 8,9,103,110
capital expenditure and integration overhead, resulting in
reduced risk, faster time-to-market and a higher return on
investment. By integrating solutions for VoIP, content distribution and intelligent session
management with standardsbased telecommunications middleware, ServicePDQ makes the
overall processes of launching
new services and applications
easier. The result is unprecedented openness and flexibility,
lower total cost of ownership,
faster time-to-market, and
reduced risk from managing a
rapidly-evolving set of technologies. Solegy’s pre-built applications include SOHO Broadband,
VoiceVPN, Wholesale Peering,
Calling Cards and Callback and
can easily integrate with third
party applications. All Solegy
solutions can be white-labeled
and include real-time billing,
operator-grade session management, and a comprehensive
back-office environment.
snom technology AG (A)
Gradestr. 46,
Berlin, 00 12347
Contact: Dylan D’souza
++49-(0)30-39833 x113
http://www.snom.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 23,28,96,41
Other: Manufacturer SIP
VoIP Phones
snom technology AG develops
and manufactures Voice-over-IP
(VoIP) telephones and related
equipment based on the IETF
open standard, SIP (Session
Initiation Protocol). Recognized
for its high quality, customizable and cost-effective business
solutions, snom is also differentiated by the company’s tenyear history in the VoIP industry, and its dedication to high
security standards. All of
snom’s software exists in the
firmware on the phones - making it easier for users to download updates and new features.
snom customers benefit from
the interoperability and flexibility that the snom telephones
offer, including plug and play
integration and universal compatibility with any SIP-based
telephony platform.
Softel Communications Inc (C, D)
877-525-1987
http://www.softel.com
Products/Services: 69,72,20,83,129
Solegy LLC (C, D)
121 Varick St., Suite 201,
New York, NY 10013
Contact: Jaime Martelino
212-801-2506
http://www.solegy.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
20,106,104,123,29
Solegy offers hosted solutions
for VoIP and IMS. Service PDQ,
Solegy’s managed service
deployment platform enables
service providers, network operators and content developers to
launch broadband communications services with minimal
Stampede Technologies (C, D)
937-291-5035
http://www.stampede.com
Products/Services: 102
STBS (B, D)
301-585-1200 x117
http://www.stbs.com
Products/Services: 51,64,68,29
Stratus Technologies (A, D)
978-461-7000
http://stratustelecom.com
Products/Services: 3,84,106,95,105
SyChip (C, D)
972-202-8847
http://www.sychip.com
Products/Services: 18,20,23,79,80
SysMaster Corporation (A, D)
877-900-3993
http://www.sysmaster.com
Products/Services: 66,94,95,29
Other: VoIP, IPTV, WiFi Solutions
T
SOYO Group, Inc. (A, D)
Tadiran America (A, C)
909-292-2500 x2503
http://www.soyogroup.com
Products/Services:
64,94,23,323,,103,36
866-595-4900
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
Products/Services: 70,94,95,100,36
Target Distributing (A, E)
800-873-5528 x1120
http://www.targetd.com
Products/Services: 13,10,93,94,130
Spanlink Communications
(C, D)
605 Highway 169 North,
Minneapolis, MN 55441-6422
Contact: Kristen Jacobsen
763-971-2000
http://www.spanlink.com
[email protected]
Products/Services:
70,95,129,134,31
Spanlink Communications is a
leading provider of customer
interaction solutions that leverage VoIP technology. With nearly 20 years experience, Spanlink
develops and markets customer
interaction, workforce optimization, and system management
and reporting products, all of
which exploit the benefits of
VoIP network infrastructures.
Spanlink applies expert planning, migration and support
services to tailor each customer’s solution and support
plan to its business needs for
transformational business
improvements in productivity,
efficiency and customer satisfaction.
S
•
•
•
Pages 94 & 95
SpectraLink (A, D)
303-583-5342
http://www.spectralink.com
Products/Services: 96,110,74,79
Sphere Communications Inc.
(C, D)
847-793-9600 x300
http://www.spherecom.com
Products/Services: 23,100,104,36
Other: IP PBX & Unified
Communications
102 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
2100 Golf Road, Suite 460
Rolling Meadows, IL 60008
847-472-5300
http://www.teleformix.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 118
ECHO is a browser-based digital recording, quality monitoring
and CRM platform. ECHO
includes an open SOA architecture and delivers unique business enablement capabilities.
ECHO delivers an integrated
open infrastructure integrating
with Avaya and Cisco voice
solutions seamlessly. ECHOs
unlimited scalability will grow
with your business without the
fear of system constraints,
therefore optimizing your
investment.
ECHO Quality management
incorporates synchronized
voice and screen recordings,
providing advanced business
intelligence across the entire
call center environment. ECHO
screen capture module compliments a robust suite of quality
assurance and analytics modules. The synchronized voice
and screen file footprint
requires only 1-2Mb in size for
the average four-minute conversation. With over the shoulder
screen clarity, supervisors can
streamline agent performance
evaluations while providing customers Best-in-Class service.
Tekno Telecom, L.L.C. (A)
Telesis A.S. (A)
630-579-9800 x203
http://www.teknotelecom.com
Products/Services: 29,38,39,40,44
+90 312 3840394
http://www.stillink.com
Products/Services: 94,97,105,44
Tektronix, Inc. (A)
TeleVoce Inc (A, C)
503-627-7111
http://www.tektronix.com
Products/Services: 25,28,38
408-627-4044
http://www.televoce.com
Products/Services: 57,65,94,96,129
Telacquire Marketing Group Inc.
(B)
Telkonet, Inc. (A, D)
604-677-7780
http://www.telacquire.com
Products/Services: 128,133
240-912-1800
http://www.telkonet.com
Products/Services: 118
TelStrat (C)
Telanetix (A)
858-362-2250
http://www.telanetix.com
Products/Services: 50,61,10,40
Other: Telepresence
972-543-3500
http://www.TelStrat.com
Products/Services: 67,70,102,36
Other: VoIP Call Recording/Logging
Teltronics, Inc. (A, D)
Telchemy Incorporated (C, D)
941-753-5000 x7315
http://www.teltronics.com
Products/Services: 50,68,72,96,95
The Telecom Directory (B, D)
INDEX
LOCATED ON
888-628-5521
http://www.tekelec.com
Products/Services:
59,82,97,105,104
770-614-6944
http://www.telchemy.com
Products/Services: 18,27,38,40,43
EE THE
•
Tekelec (A)
Teleformix (B, D)
Telco Systems,
a BATM Company (A)
800-221-2849 x2250
http://www.telco.com
Products/Services: 81,88,92,107
Other: VoIP Gateway,VoIP IAD,
VDSL, IP/Ethernet Switches /
Demarc, TDM, Fiber Transport
TeleBright (C, D)
888-519-1472
http://www.telebright.com
Products/Services: 20,128,38,75
404-797-6633
http://www.TheTelecomDirectory.com
Products/Services:
128,111,113,114,115
TiVi (C, D)
+371 7881005
http://www.tivi.com
Products/Services: 66,23,77,79
Other: VoIP on smartphones
(Symbian and Windows Mobile) over
3G, EV-DO, GPRS and WiFi
TMONE (B, E)
TELECORP PRODUCTS., INC
(C, D)
248-960-6642
http://www.telecorpproducts.com
Products/Services: 129
877-868-2586
http://www.TMone.com
Other: Customer Acquisition, Lead
Generation, Lists Services, & Project
Managment
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
T-Z
310-327-9700
http://www.tmpg.com
Products/Services: 119
manufacturers, carriers, service
providers, and large enterprise
users build and deploy reliable,
standards compliant, and interoperable communications systems.
TransNexus (C)
Toshiba America Information
Systems, Telecom Systems
Div. (A)
9740 Irvine Blvd.,
Irvine, CA 92618-1697
Contact: Jon Nelson
949-583-3700
http://www.telecom.toshiba.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 68,10,96,95
Other: Wireless IP Phones,
FeatureFlex, digital phones,
softphones, Client Software
Toshiba America Information
Systems Inc.,
Telecommunication Systems
Division offers business communication solutions for SMB
enterprises and regional locations. Toshiba’s award-winning
products deliver Voice over IP,
networking, mobility, and the
ability to customize applications. Toshiba’s flagship solution is the Strata CIXT, an IP
communication system that
supports up to 672 ports, offers
FeatureFlex customization
capabilities and can be TDMenabled. Toshiba also offers
Strata CTX28 small office system, voice processing, video,
and IP, soft IP, and digital telephones. Its business solutions
also include Toshiba notebooks
and tablet PCs, security cameras and more, helping enterprises maximize their business
efficiency in communications
and mobility.
TOUBATEL (A, B)
+33172100204
http://www.toubatel.com
Products/Services: 50,56,59,125
Touchstone Technologies Inc.
(C, D)
228 N York Road, Suite D
Hatboro, PA 19040
Contact: Neil Urban
215-672-6550
http://www.touchstone-inc.com
[email protected]
Products/Services: 24,25,27,28
Touchstone Technologies has
been providing essential communications testing solutions to
industry leaders and innovators
since 1989. Representing the
second and third generation of
testing solutions for the converging telephone, voice, video
and IP markets, our current
offering of test tool products
are unsurpassed in their combination of power, portability, and
affordability. Specializing in
delivering exceptional value in
state-of-the-art voice and video
test and measurement products, Touchstone offers scalable
call generation and monitoring
tools designed for complete
lifecycle testing of networks
and network devices. Our products help leading equipment
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
404-526-6060
http://www.transnexus.com
Products/Services: 62,104,127,39
Other: GKTMP Route Server
Traxi Technologies, LLC (C, D)
212-812-9450 x114
http://www.traxitech.com
Products/Services: 129,119,29,31
Other: Call Recording/CRM
Integration
force management, self-service
IVR, intelligent routing (ACD),
integration with your database/
CRM, automated customer satisfaction surveys. Already
invested in a phone system
supports both traditional TDM
or VOIP systems. Unified reporting, monitoring and recording
available across all locations.
Pay by-the-month. Scale capacity up or down to meet seasonal
fluctuations or business spikes.
Unique, visual, drag-and-drop
programming tool, for custom
development.
Unex Technology Corp. (A)
+886-3-5256262 x201
http://www.unex.com.tw
Products/Services:
12,23,323,,36,79,80
A: EQUIPMENT VENDOR
B: SERVICE PROVIDER/
CARRIER
C: SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
D: SOLUTIONS PROVIDER
E: RESELLER/DISTRIBUTOR
V
Voxbone (B)
VegaStream (A)
858-824-6388
http://www.vegastream.com
Products/Services: 94
VeriSign (B)
Trenton Technology, Inc. (A)
770-287-3100
http://www.TrentonTechnology.com
Products/Services: 3,4
Other: Backplanes, Single Board
Computers, CompactPCI
Trinity Convergence (C)
919-433-7000
http://www.trinityconvergence.com
Products/Services: 16,17,18,20,23
TriVium Systems, Inc (C)
877-439-9338 x320
http://www.triviumsys.com
Products/Services: 29,31,40
Other: Call Accounting, Call
Recording & Traffic Analysis
U
650-961-7500
http://www.verisign.com
Products/Services: 116,29,44,76,77
Vertical Communications (A)
617-354-0600
http://www.vertical.com
Products/Services:
82,87,96,95,100
508-248-9896
http://www.viziqor.com
Products/Services: 129,131,29,39
Other: Revenue Assurance
VoiceStamps.com (B, D)
469-272-4688 x1
http://www.voicestamps.com
Products/Services: 69,123,117,29
Other: Call Recording, Verbal
Contracts, TPV, Pay by Phone
U4EA Technologies (A, C)
VoIP Inc. (B)
+441173736758
http://www.u4eatech.com
Products/Services: 88,92,97,103,40
407-389-3232
http://www.voipincorporated.com
Products/Services:
56,23,111,113,116
VoIPshield Systems (C)
650-413-7103
http://www.ubiquitysoftware.com
Products/Services: 50,20,21,23,42
613-224-4443 x317
http://www.voipshield.com
Products/Services: 41
+32 22 18 55 39
http://www.voxbone.com
Products/Services: 131,111,113,116
Other: Origination Services
W
WebPhone (B, C)
866-320-3077
http://www.webphone.com
Products/Services: 59,64,20,23,117
WildPackets (C)
Viziqor Solutions (C, D)
Ubiquity Software Corporation
(C, D)
Business VoIP
Based in Celebration, FL, VoX
Communications is a proven
provider of wholesale and retail
Voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP) services. Using its own
nationwide VoIP network, VoX
offers scalable and reliable
broadband voice, origination
and termination services to
cable, wireless and wireline
operators, as well as enhanced
broadband telephone service to
the small business and residential marketplaces. VoX provides
a feature-rich, low-cost and
high-quality alternative to traditional wireline phone service.
Find out how VoX can help you
drive new revenue, attract more
customers and improve customer retention. Visit
http://www.voxcorp.net for more
information.
ALPHABETICAL LISTINGS
TMPG (C)
925-937-3200
http://www.wildpackets.com
Products/Services: 27,28,38,80
Other: Distributed Network Analysis
Solutions
WiredRed Software (C)
858-715-0970
http://www.wiredred.com
Products/Services: 49,50,52,61,67
Witness Systems (C, D)
770-754-8651
http://www.witness.com
Products/Services: 72,40,47
X
Xelor Software (C)
603-327-0400
http://www.xelorsoftware.com
Products/Services: 40
Other: VoIP QoS Software
Vonexus Inc. (D)
888-817-5904
http://www.vonexus.com
Products/Services: 68,23,95,47,79
Z
zCONNEX GROUP (B, D)
800-715-9990
http://www.zconnex.com
Products/Services: 56,70,121,33,40
UCN, Inc. (B)
14870 Pony Express Rd.,
Salt Lake City, UT 84065
Contact: [email protected]
888-UCN-0002
http://www.ucn.net
[email protected]
Products/Services:
70,72,121,31,33
Improve the quality of your customer contact experience without adding complexity to your
IT infrastructure. With inContact
from UCN, manage multi-site or
at-home workers under a unified set of contact handling and
management features work-
Zoom Technologies, Inc. (A, B)
617-535-9383
http://www.zoom.com
Products/Services: 7,8,93,96
Other: Analog Telephone Adapters
VoX Communications (B)
610 Sycamore Street, Suite 120
Celebration, FL 34747
Contact: Kim Martin
813-217-9777
http://www.voxcorp.net
[email protected]
Products/Services:
104,113,45,46
Other: Residential and
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 103
Go To Table of Contents | Go To Ad Index
HARDWARE
Stratus Technologies
Ai-Logix, Inc
Telanetix
NMS Communications
978-461-7000
http://stratustelecom.com
732-469-0880
http://www.audiocodes.com/blades
858-362-2250
http://www.telanetix.com
800-533-6120
http://www.nmscommunications.com
Trenton Technology, Inc.
AudioCodes
770-287-3100
http://www.TrentonTechnology.com
Toshiba America Information
Systems, Telecom Systems Div.
4. Computers/Industrial
408-441-1175
http://www.audiocodes.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Accurate Always
NMS Communications
800-828-9428 x1
http://www.accuratealways.com
800-533-6120
http://www.nmscommunications.com
Crystal Group Inc.
PIKA Technologies Inc.
319-378-1636
http://www.crystalpc.com
613-591-1555 x388
http://www.pikatechnologies.com
Diversified Technology
Zoom Technologies, Inc.
800-443-2667
http://www.dtims.com
617-535-9383
http://www.zoom.com
Trenton Technology, Inc.
8. Modems
1. Boards Video Conferencing
2. Boards Voice/Fax
Aculab
781-433-6000
http://www.aculab.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Ai-Logix, Inc
732-469-0880
http://www.audiocodes.com/blades
AltiGen Communications, Inc.
510-252-9712
http://www.altigen.com
AudioCodes
408-441-1175
http://www.audiocodes.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Cantata Technology
781-449-4100
http://www.cantata.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Digium, Inc.
770-287-3100
http://www.TrentonTechnology.com
Intertex Data
5. DSP Chips
508-385-6335
ihttp://ntertexdata.com
Centillium Communications, Inc.
Multi-Tech Systems, Inc.
510-771-3700
http://www.centillium.com
Mindspeed Technologies, Inc.
949-579-3650
http://www.mindspeed.com
800-328-9717 x5176
http://www.multitech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
781-433-6000
http://www.aculab.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
617-535-9383
http://www.zoom.com
PIKA Technologies Inc.
602-437-3623
http://www.motorola.com/computing
Multi-Tech Systems, Inc.
NMS Communications
732-469-0880
http://www.audiocodes.com/blades
Motorola Embedded
Communications Computing
Group
12. Computer-less IP
Telephony Devices
Zoom Technologies, Inc.
Ai-Logix, Inc
510-490-7388 x516
http://www.elma.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
SMC Networks
Aculab
3. Computers/Fault
Tolerant/NEBS
800-443-2667
http://www.dtims.com
Elma Electronic
949-679-8000
http://www.smc.com
613-591-1555 x388
http://www.pikatechnologies.com
319-378-1636
http://www.crystalpc.com
Diversified Technology
6. DSP Resource Boards
PIKA Technologies Inc.
11. Chassis/Enclosures
Crystal Group Inc.
256-428-6000
http://www.digium.com
800-533-6120
http://www.nmscommunications.com
949-583-3700
http://www.telecom.toshiba.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
9. Network Interface Cards
SBE
800-328-9717 x5176
http://www.multitech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Unex Technology Corp.
+886-3-5256262 x201
http://www.unex.com.tw
925-355-2000
http://www.sbei.com
13. Multimedia
Headsets/Phonesets
SMC Networks
Target Distributing
Crystal Group Inc.
613-591-1555 x388
http://www.pikatechnologies.com
319-378-1636
http://www.crystalpc.com
SBE
Diversified Technology
925-355-2000
http://www.sbei.com
10. Video Conferencing
Equipment
14. UPS/Power
Protection/Management
800-443-2667
http://www.dtims.com
7. Internet Telephony Boards
Polycom, Inc.
Falcon Electric, Inc.
Aculab
800-POL-YCOM
http://www.polycom.com
800-842-6940
http://www.falconups.com
Target Distributing
Hewlett-Packard Company
800-873-5528 x1120
http://www.targetd.com
281-370-0670
http://www.hp.com/go/infrastructure
Motorola Embedded
Communications Computing
Group
602-437-3623
http://www.motorola.com/computing
781-433-6000
http://www.aculab.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
949-679-8000
http://www.smc.com
800-873-5528 x1120
http://www.targetd.com
SOFTWARE
ClearOne Communications
Telchemy Incorporated
OPC Marketing, Inc.
Adaptive Digital Technologies, Inc.
800-707-6994
http://www.clearone.com
770-614-6944
http://www.telchemy.com
972-267-3279 x202
http://www.opc-marketing.com
610-825-0182
http://adaptivedigital.com
PIKA Technologies Inc.
Trinity Convergence
Softel Communications Inc
On2 Technologies, Inc.
613-591-1555 x388
http://www.pikatechnologies.com
919-433-7000
http://www.trinityconvergence.com
877-525-1987
http://www.softel.com
518-724-3872
http://on2.com
20. Internet Telephony API
Solegy LLC
Trinity Convergence
DiamondWare, Ltd.
Trinity Convergence
919-433-7000
http://www.trinityconvergence.com
480-380-1122
http://www.dw.com
212-801-2506
http://www.solegy.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
18. Embedded Software
Tools
IntelliNet Technologies, Inc.
SyChip
17. Echo Cancellation
321-726-0686
http://www.intellinet-tech.com
972-202-8847
http://www.sychip.com
Adaptive Digital Technologies, Inc.
SyChip
NMS Communications
TeleBright
610-825-0182
http://adaptivedigital.com
972-202-8847
http://www.sychip.com
800-533-6120
http://www.nmscommunications.com
888-519-1472
http://www.telebright.com
16. Compression Algorithms
919-433-7000
http://www.trinityconvergence.com
104 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
Trinity Convergence
919-433-7000
http://www.trinityconvergence.com
Ubiquity Software Corporation
650-413-7103
http://www.ubiquitysoftware.com
23. SIP
Aculab
781-433-6000
http://www.aculab.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
WebPhone
866-320-3077
http://www.webphone.com
21. Java/Java Telephony
BEA Systems Inc.
408-570-8701
http://www.bea.com/wlcom
EyeBill
877 649 5622
http://www.eyebill.net
Ubiquity Software Corporation
650-413-7103
http://www.ubiquitysoftware.com
22. MGCP/MEGACO
Cognitronics
203-830-3523
http://www.cognitronics.com
ShoreTel
408-331-3369
http://www.shoretel.com
snom technology AG
603-883-6569
http://www.ingate.com
++49-(0)30-39833 x113
http://www.snom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
International Systems Research
Co.
650-570-6960
http://www.isrus.com
Sphere Communications Inc.
847-793-9600 x300
http://www.spherecom.com
Alcatel
800-995-2612
http://www.alcatel.com
SyChip
972-202-8847
http://www.sychip.com
BEA Systems Inc.
TiVi
408-570-8701
http://www.bea.com/wlcom
Located On Pages
94 & 95
Cognitronics
203-830-3523
http://www.cognitronics.com
Newport Networks Limited
Natural Convergence
613-280-2000
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
Ingate Systems
CommuniGate Systems
415-383-7164
http://www.communigate.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
+44 (0) 1291 635830
http://www.newport-networks.com
Nortel Networks
800-4NO-RTEL
http://www.nortelnetworks.com
Empirix, Inc.
+371 7881005
http://www.tivi.com
Trinity Convergence
919-433-7000
http://www.trinityconvergence.com
Ubiquity Software Corporation
650-413-7103
http://www.ubiquitysoftware.com
VoIP Inc.
407-389-3232
http://www.voipincorporated.com
PIKA Technologies Inc.
781-266-3285
http://www.empirix.com
613-591-1555 x388
http://www.pikatechnologies.com
Grandstream Networks, Inc.
617-566-9300
http://www.grandstream.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Vonexus Inc.
888-817-5904
http://www.vonexus.com
Shenzhen Koncept Technology
Development Co.,Ltd
WebPhone
(86)755 82197307 x823
http://www.konceptusa.com
866-320-3077
http://www.webphone.com
TESTING
24. Simulators
Hermon Labs
Codima Technologies
972-4-628-8001
http://www.hermonlabs.com
610-579-9435
http://www.codimatech.com
Ixia
GL Communications, Inc.
301-670-4784 x114
http://www.gl.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
HEAD acoustics GmbH
818-871-1800
http://www.ixiacom.com
JDSU
PacketStorm Communications
27. Voice Quality
Measurement
732-254-2434 x206
http://www.packetstorm.com
Codima Technologies
610-579-9435
http://www.codimatech.com
Psytechnics
978-392-1244
http://www.psytechnics.com
Empirix, Inc.
866-228-3762
http://www.jdsu.com
781-266-3285
http://www.empirix.com
Network Instruments
GL Communications, Inc.
RADCOM, Ltd.
+49-2407-5770
http://www.head-acoustics.de
952-932-9899
http://www.networkinstruments.com
PacketStorm Communications
PacketStorm Communications
301-670-4784 x114
http://www.gl.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
732-254-2434 x206
http://www.packetstorm.com
732-254-2434 x206
http://www.packetstorm.com
HEAD acoustics GmbH
RADCOM, Ltd.
RADCOM, Ltd.
+49-2407-5770
http://www.head-acoustics.de
201-518-0033 x320
http://www.RADCOM.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Telchemy Incorporated
770-614-6944
http://www.telchemy.com
Touchstone Technologies Inc.
215-672-6550
http://www.touchstone-inc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
201-518-0033 x320
http://www.RADCOM.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
201-518-0033 x320
http://www.RADCOM.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Touchstone Technologies Inc.
Tektronix, Inc.
Ixia
215-672-6550
http://www.touchstone-inc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
503-627-7111
http://www.tektronix.com
818-871-1800
http://www.ixiacom.com
925-937-3200
http://www.wildpackets.com
Touchstone Technologies Inc.
JDSU
28. VoIP Testing
866-228-3762
http://www.jdsu.com
Alliance Systems
Microtronix Systems Ltd
972-633-3400
http://www.alliancesystems.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
25. Testing Hardware
Empirix, Inc.
215-672-6550
http://www.touchstone-inc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Hermon Labs
972-4-628-8001
http://www.hermonlabs.com
WildPackets
781-266-3285
http://www.empirix.com
26. Toolkits
519-649-4900
http://microtronix.ca
GL Communications, Inc.
GL Communications, Inc.
MINACOM
301-670-4784 x114
http://www.gl.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
301-670-4784 x114
http://www.gl.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
514-879-9111 x228
http://www.minacom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
HEAD acoustics GmbH
Psytechnics
NetIQ
+49-2407-5770
http://www.head-acoustics.de
978-392-1244
http://www.psytechnics.com
713-418-5759
http://www.netiq.com/voip
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
Tell the vendors
you saw it in
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 105
Codima Technologies
Hermon Labs
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc.
RADCOM, Ltd.
610-579-9435
http://www.codimatech.com
972-4-628-8001
http://www.hermonlabs.com
Datasoftnet
Ixia
214-262-6384
http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
201-518-0033 x320
http://www.RADCOM.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
314-258-2902
http://www.datasoftnet.com
818-871-1800
http://www.ixiacom.com
NetIQ
snom technology AG
Empirix, Inc.
JDSU
713-418-5759
http://www.netiq.com/voip
781-266-3285
http://www.empirix.com
866-228-3762
http://www.jdsu.com
Network Instruments
GL Communications, Inc.
Microtronix Systems Ltd
952-932-9899
http://www.networkinstruments.com
301-670-4784 x114
http://www.gl.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
519-649-4900
http://microtronix.ca
PacketStorm Communications
MINACOM
732-254-2434 x206
http://www.packetstorm.com
HEAD acoustics GmbH
+49-2407-5770
http://www.head-acoustics.de
514-879-9111 x228
http://www.minacom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Psytechnics
978-392-1244
http://www.psytechnics.com
++49-(0)30-39833 x113
http://www.snom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Tektronix, Inc.
503-627-7111
http://www.tektronix.com
Touchstone Technologies Inc.
215-672-6550
http://www.touchstone-inc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
WildPackets
925-937-3200
http://www.wildpackets.com
SOLUTIONS
SysMaster Corporation
Spanlink Communications
BandTel for Flawless VoIP
Comwave Telecom Inc.
877-900-3993
http://www.sysmaster.com
949-640-9700
http://www.bandtel.com
416-663-9700 x303
http://www.comwave.net
Tekno Telecom, L.L.C.
763-971-2000
http://www.spanlink.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
630-579-9800 x203
http://www.teknotelecom.com
Traxi Technologies, LLC
Traxi Technologies, LLC
212-812-9450 x114
http://www.traxitech.com
212-812-9450 x114
http://www.traxitech.com
TriVium Systems, Inc
TriVium Systems, Inc
877-439-9338 x320
http://www.triviumsys.com
877-439-9338 x320
http://www.triviumsys.com
UCN, Inc.
29. Billing/Convergent Billing
Doretel Communications, Inc.
404-755-5721
http://www.doretel.com
EyeBill
877 649 5622
http://www.eyebill.net
Freeway Communications
213-225-2200 x101
http://freeway.com
Go Tek Inc.
416-817-6888
http://www.softswitch.ca
VeriSign
650-961-7500
http://www.verisign.com
Viziqor Solutions
508-248-9896
http://www.viziqor.com
HigherGround, Inc.
818-591-3133 x249
http://www.highergroundinc.com
VoiceStamps.com
469-272-4688 x1
http://www.voicestamps.com
I.S. Associates, Inc.
800-583-3440 x142
http://www.isassoc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
30. Client Software
(Internet Phones)
888-UCN-0002
http://www.ucn.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Orative
800-235-9901
http://www.facetcorp.com
408-625-3100
http://www.orative.com
M5 Networks
33. Internet ACD
646-230-5000
http://www.m5net.com
Aspect Software
650-570-6960
http://www.isrus.com
CosmoCom, Inc.
213-634-1522
http://www.ivr.com
Orative
631-940-4200
http://www.cosmocom.com
RAMS Group
408-625-3100
http://www.orative.com
UCN, Inc.
416-518-4344
http://www.rams-group.com
31. CTI
Accurate Always
888-UCN-0002
http://www.ucn.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
800-828-9428 x1
http://www.accuratealways.com
zCONNEX GROUP
Ai-Logix, Inc
800-715-9990
http://www.zconnex.com
732-469-0880
http://www.audiocodes.com/blades
35. Internetworking
BCE Elix
Canecu Trading Inc
(86)755 82197307 x823
http://www.konceptusa.com
Siemens Communications
800-765-6123
http://www.communications.usa.siem
ens.com/home.html
SMART NETWORK
SOLUTIONS
305-808-7361
http://www.smartisvoip.com
Solegy LLC
212-801-2506
http://www.solegy.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
STBS
301-585-1200 x117
http://www.stbs.com
501-768-1000
http://www.bceelix.com
HigherGround, Inc.
818-591-3133 x249
http://www.highergroundinc.com
Located On Pages
94 & 95
FacetCorp
International Systems Research Co.
Shenzhen Koncept Technology
Development Co.,Ltd
877-870-1234
http://www.dirigosoft.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
32. Directory Services
888-412-7728
http://www.aspect.com
IVR Technologies, Inc.
Dirigosoft Corporation
ShoreTel
408-331-3369
http://www.shoretel.com
SOYO Group, Inc.
909-292-2500 x2503
http://www.soyogroup.com
Sphere Communications Inc.
847-793-9600 x300
http://www.spherecom.com
Tadiran America
866-595-4900
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
TelStrat
972-543-3500
http://www.TelStrat.com
Unex Technology Corp.
416-238-2329
+886-3-5256262 x201
http://www.unex.com.tw
Incognito Software
37. Multimedia
604-688-4332 x860
http://www.incognito.com
ARRIS
Pronexus Inc.
36. LAN-Based Telephony
678-473-8327
http://www.arrisi.com
613-271-8989
http://www.pronexus.com
Aastra Telecom
BCE Elix
Samsung BCS
905-760-4200
http://www.aastra.com
501-768-1000
http://www.bceelix.com
AltiGen Communications, Inc.
Noble Systems Corporation
510-252-9712
http://www.altigen.com
888-866-2538 x300
http://www.noblesys.com
972-761-7000
http://www.samsung.com/bcs
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
106 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
Siemens Communications
800-765-6123
http://www.communications.usa.siem
ens.com/home.html
38. Network Management
Allot Communications
952-944-3100
http://www.allot.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Canecu Trading Inc
416-238-2329
Codima Technologies
610-579-9435
http://www.codimatech.com
General Telecom
646-328-5800
http://www.gentel.net
I.S. Associates, Inc.
800-583-3440 x142
http://www.isassoc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Incognito Software
604-688-4332 x860
http://www.incognito.com
Ixia
818-871-1800
http://www.ixiacom.com
JDSU
866-228-3762
http://www.jdsu.com
Kentrox
503-350-6001
http://www.kentrox.com
39. OSS
CommPartners
702-367-8647 x1017
http://www.commpartners.us
Go Tek Inc.
416-817-6888
http://www.softswitch.ca
I.S. Associates, Inc.
800-583-3440 x142
http://www.isassoc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
604-688-4332 x860
http://www.incognito.com
NetScout Systems
888-999-5946
http://www.netscout.com
RAMS Group
630-579-9800 x203
http://www.teknotelecom.com
404-526-6060
http://www.transnexus.com
Psytechnics
Pactolus Communications
Software
978-392-1244
http://www.psytechnics.com
Tekno Telecom, L.L.C.
630-579-9800 x203
http://www.teknotelecom.com
508-248-9896
http://www.viziqor.com
508-616-0900
http://www.Pactolus.com
Ubiquity Software Corporation
650-413-7103
http://www.ubiquitysoftware.com
Telanetix
858-362-2250
http://www.telanetix.com
43. Service Level
Management
770-614-6944
http://www.telchemy.com
Allot Communications
952-944-3100
http://www.allot.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
877-439-9338 x320
http://www.triviumsys.com
NetScout Systems
U4EA Technologies
888-999-5946
http://www.netscout.com
+441173736758
http://www.u4eatech.com
RADCOM, Ltd.
201-518-0033 x320
http://www.RADCOM.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
770-754-8651
http://www.witness.com
Xelor Software
Viziqor Solutions
603-327-0400
http://www.xelorsoftware.com
zCONNEX GROUP
Telchemy Incorporated
770-614-6944
http://www.telchemy.com
800-715-9990
http://www.zconnex.com
44. SS7 Solution
800-828-9428 x1
http://www.accuratealways.com
41. Security
Allot Communications
508-323-5000
http://www.3com.com
408-441-1175
http://www.audiocodes.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
BorderWare Technologies Inc.
Doretel Communications, Inc.
NetScout Systems
952-944-3100
http://www.allot.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
888-999-5946
http://www.netscout.com
Converged Access Inc.
Network Instruments
978-742-1400 x404
http://www.convergedaccess.com
952-932-9899
http://www.networkinstruments.com
Converged Access Inc.
New Global Telecom
978-742-1400
http://www.convergedaccess.com
303-278-0700
http://www.ngt.com
Empirix, Inc.
NexTone Communications
781-266-3285
http://www.empirix.com
240-912-1310
http://www.nextone.com
HigherGround, Inc.
Tekno Telecom, L.L.C.
818-591-3133 x249
http://www.highergroundinc.com
630-579-9800 x203
http://www.teknotelecom.com
Ixia
Tektronix, Inc.
818-871-1800
http://www.ixiacom.com
503-627-7111
http://www.tektronix.com
JDSU
Telchemy Incorporated
866-228-3762
http://www.jdsu.com
770-614-6944
http://www.telchemy.com
Kentrox
TeleBright
503-350-6001
http://www.kentrox.com
888-519-1472
http://www.telebright.com
MINACOM
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
617-286-1600
http://www.commonvoices.com
Witness Systems
TransNexus
Accurate Always
925-937-3200
http://www.wildpackets.com
Common Voices, Inc
240-912-1310
http://www.nextone.com
TriVium Systems, Inc
514-879-9111 x228
http://www.minacom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
WildPackets
NexTone Communications
Shenzhen Koncept Technology
Development Co.,Ltd
Tekno Telecom, L.L.C.
Allot Communications
888-999-5946
http://www.netscout.com
Telchemy Incorporated
(86)755 82197307 x823
http://www.konceptusa.com
42. Service Creation
Environment
952-944-3100
http://www.allot.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
NetScout Systems
416-518-4344
http://www.rams-group.com
40. Quality of Service
415-389-1409
http://www.netcordia.com
214-262-6384
http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Incognito Software
MINACOM
Netcordia
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc.
514-879-9111 x228
http://www.minacom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
AudioCodes
3Com
905-804-1855 x245
http://www.borderware.com
Check Point Software
Technologies
404-755-5721
http://www.doretel.com
IntelliNet Technologies, Inc.
321-726-0686
http://www.intellinet-tech.com
650-628-2000
http://www.checkpoint.com
NMS Communications
Converged Access Inc.
978-742-1400
http://www.convergedaccess.com
800-533-6120
http://www.nmscommunications.com
Sevis Systems
Converged Access Inc.
978-742-1400 x404
http://www.convergedaccess.com
770-536-2425
http://www.sevis.com
Tekno Telecom, L.L.C.
Encore Networks
703-318-4366
http://www.encorenetworks.com
ENGATE Technology Corporation
408-494-8310
http://www.engate.com
630-579-9800 x203
http://www.teknotelecom.com
Telesis A.S.
+90 312 3840394
http://www.stillink.com
VeriSign
Ingate Systems
650-961-7500
http://www.verisign.com
603-883-6569
http://www.ingate.com
snom technology AG
++49-(0)30-39833 x113
http://www.snom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
45. Voice Over Cable
ARRIS
678-473-8327
http://www.arrisi.com
VoIPshield Systems
613-224-4443 x317
http://www.voipshield.com
Canecu Trading Inc
416-238-2329
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 107
Cicero Networks
+353 1 6636510
http://www.ciceronetworks.com
Comwave Telecom Inc.
416-663-9700 x303
http://www.comwave.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Go Tek Inc.
46. Voice Over DSL
gr8fone.net
Canecu Trading Inc
919898008655
http://gr8fone.net
501-768-1000
http://www.bceelix.com
Mindspeed Technologies, Inc.
CommPartners
949-579-3650
http://www.mindspeed.com
702-367-8647 x1017
http://www.commpartners.us
Netcentrex Converged IP
Communications, Comverse
Givex Corporation
416-817-6888
http://www.softswitch.ca
47. Web-Based Customer
Service
BCE Elix
416-238-2329
Go Tek Inc.
416-817-6888
http://www.softswitch.ca
Centillium Communications, Inc.
510-771-3700
http://www.centillium.com
Mindspeed Technologies, Inc.
949-579-3650
http://www.mindspeed.com
Cicero Networks
Shenzhen Koncept Technology
Development Co.,Ltd
Converged Access Inc.
+33 (0)1 58 71 33 33
http://www.netcentrex.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
(86)755 82197307 x823
http://www.konceptusa.com
978-742-1400
http://www.convergedaccess.com
VoX Communications
VoX Communications
Converged Access Inc.
813-217-9777
http://www.voxcorp.net
978-742-1400 x404
http://www.convergedaccess.com
+353 1 6636510
http://www.ciceronetworks.com
813-217-9777
http://www.voxcorp.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
877-478-7733
http://www.givex.com
Vonexus Inc.
888-817-5904
http://www.vonexus.com
Witness Systems
770-754-8651
http://www.witness.com
APPLICATIONS & SERVICES
49. Application
Sharing/Collaborative
Computing
Alcatel
800-995-2612
http://www.alcatel.com
Forum Communications
International
CommuniGate Systems
415-383-7164
http://www.communigate.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
DiamondWare, Ltd.
480-380-1122
http://www.dw.com
Epygi Technologies
972-680-0700 x1581
http://www.forum-com.com
972-692-1166 x38
http://www.epygi.com
iKnowWare
Forum Communications
International
512-215-4305
http://www.iKnowWare.com
Pandora Networks
800-805-0558
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
WiredRed Software
858-715-0970
http://www.wiredred.com
972-680-0700 x1581
http://www.forum-com.com
iKnowWare
512-215-4305
http://www.iKnowWare.com
ClearOne Communications
800-707-6994
http://www.clearone.com
Forum Communications
International
972-680-0700 x1581
http://www.forum-com.com
MaraStar Communications
610-902-0080 x125
http://www.marastar.com
WiredRed Software
858-715-0970
http://www.wiredred.com
508-616-0900
http://www.Pactolus.com
AnswerNet Network
50. Audio Conferencing
1Number4U
Teltronics, Inc.
941-753-5000 x7315
http://www.teltronics.com
AccessLine Communications
TOUBATEL
206-654-1013
http://www.accessline.com
+33172100204
http://www.toubatel.com
Ubiquity Software Corporation
978-440-9384
http://www.AcousticMagic.com
650-413-7103
http://www.ubiquitysoftware.com
Advanced Communications
Solutions
WiredRed Software
407-788-9845
978-440-9384
http://www.AcousticMagic.com
53. Fax Broadcasting
858-362-2250
http://www.telanetix.com
Acoustic Magic
Acoustic Magic
Pactolus Communications
Software
Telanetix
866-824-8245
http://www.1number4u.com
52. Distance Learning
858-715-0970
http://www.wiredred.com
800-411-5777
http://www.answernet.com
FaxBack, Inc.
503-597-5355
http://www.faxback.com
Pangea Communications Corp.
503-221-2121
http://www.pangea-comm.com
54. Fax On Demand
1Number4U
56. Internet Access To Live
Agents (Click to Talk)
Accton Technology
+886-3-5770270
http://www.accton.com
Associated Call Centers
800-610-5262
http://www.inboundacc.com
Catalog Retail Marketing Int’l, Inc.
(CRMI)
802-334-1000 x203
http://www.crmi.cc
CommuniGate Systems
415-383-7164
http://www.communigate.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
TOUBATEL
+33172100204
http://www.toubatel.com
VoIP Inc.
407-389-3232
http://www.voipincorporated.com
zCONNEX GROUP
800-715-9990
http://www.zconnex.com
57. Internet Call Waiting
TeleVoce Inc
408-627-4044
http://www.televoce.com
866-824-8245
http://www.1number4u.com
58. Internet Fax
AnswerNet Network
Common Voices, Inc
800-411-5777
http://www.answernet.com
617-286-1600
http://www.commonvoices.com
Associated Call Centers
FaxBack, Inc.
800-610-5262
http://www.inboundacc.com
503-597-5355
http://www.faxback.com
I.S. Associates, Inc.
FaxBack, Inc.
Pangea Communications Corp.
800-583-3440 x142
http://www.isassoc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
503-597-5355
http://www.faxback.com
503-221-2121
http://www.pangea-comm.com
55. International Callback
Quintum Technologies, Inc.
IVR Technologies, Inc.
CallingPlaces, Ltd
732-460-9000 x238
http://www.quintum.com
213-634-1522
http://www.ivr.com
44-2088106609
http://www.callingplaces.com
59. IP Centrex
Common Voices, Inc
STBS
IVR Technologies, Inc.
1SourceVoIP
617-286-1600
http://www.commonvoices.com
301-585-1200 x117
http://www.stbs.com
213-634-1522
http://www.ivr.com
800-777-8197
http://www.1SourceVoIP.com
Alcatel
800-995-2612
http://www.alcatel.com
Ascendent Systems
888-507-1777
http://www.ascendentsystems.com
ClearOne Communications
800-707-6994
http://www.clearone.com
51. Customer SelfProvisioning
108 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
CallingPlaces, Ltd
44-2088106609
http://www.callingplaces.com
Clearpath Communications, LLC
248-724-4444
http://www.clearpath1.com
CommuniGate Systems
415-383-7164
http://www.communigate.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
62. Least-Cost Routing
Comwave Telecom Inc.
416-663-9700 x303
http://www.comwave.net
CosmoCom, Inc.
631-940-4200
http://www.cosmocom.com
Freeway Communications
213-225-2200 x101
http://freeway.com
M5 Networks
646-230-5000
http://www.m5net.com
Natural Convergence
613-280-2000
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
Netcentrex Converged IP
Communications, Comverse
+33 (0)1 58 71 33 33
http://www.netcentrex.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Newport Networks Limited
+44 (0) 1291 635830
http://www.newport-networks.com
Located On Pages
94 & 95
EyeBill
Pandora Networks
800-805-0558
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Tekelec
888-628-5521
http://www.tekelec.com
TOUBATEL
707-545-8300
http://www.empirecomm.com
Pactolus Communications
Software
Forum Communications
International
508-616-0900
http://www.Pactolus.com
972-680-0700 x1581
http://www.forum-com.com
Pipeline Telecom Inc.
TelStrat
321-409-9971 x11
http://www.pipelinetelecom.com
972-543-3500
http://www.TelStrat.com
RNK Telecom
WiredRed Software
781-613-6000
http://www.rnktel.com
858-715-0970
http://www.wiredred.com
SOYO Group, Inc.
68. Unified/Integrated
Messaging
909-292-2500 x2503
http://www.soyogroup.com
AccessLine Communications
STBS
877 649 5622
http://www.eyebill.net
General Telecom
WebPhone
206-654-1013
http://www.accessline.com
Adomo
408-996-7086
http://www.adomo.com
646-328-5800
http://www.gentel.net
866-320-3077
http://www.webphone.com
Newport Networks Limited
65. SOHO
+44 (0) 1291 635830
http://www.newport-networks.com
1SourceVoIP
TransNexus
800-777-8197
http://www.1SourceVoIP.com
404-526-6060
http://www.transnexus.com
63. One Number/Follow Me
1Number4U
866-824-8245
http://www.1number4u.com
AccessLine Communications
206-654-1013
http://www.accessline.com
Advanced Communications
Solutions
407-788-9845
ClearOne Communications
800-707-6994
http://www.clearone.com
RNK Telecom
949-699-2300
http://www.avst.com
408-627-4044
http://www.televoce.com
Ascendent Systems
888-507-1777
http://www.ascendentsystems.com
Accurate Always
949-699-2300
http://www.avst.com
Ascendent Systems
60. IP Multicasting
888-507-1777
http://www.ascendentsystems.com
Aastra Telecom
AnswerNet Network
TeleVoce Inc
408-996-7086
http://www.adomo.com
WebPhone
800-995-2612
http://www.alcatel.com
Applied Voice & Speech
Technologies (AVST)
781-613-6000
http://www.rnktel.com
66. Streaming Audio/Video
Applied Voice & Speech
Technologies (AVST)
Alcatel
800-411-5777
http://www.answernet.com
Adomo
+33172100204
http://www.toubatel.com
866-320-3077
http://www.webphone.com
Empire Communications
213-634-1522
http://www.ivr.com
301-585-1200 x117
http://www.stbs.com
Nuvio
816-444-4422
http://www.nuvio.com
IVR Technologies, Inc.
Associated Call Centers
800-828-9428 x1
http://www.accuratealways.com
800-610-5262
http://www.inboundacc.com
Avaya Inc.
CapRock Communications
832-668-2300
http://www.caprock.com
800-784-6104
http://www.avaya.com
CallingPlaces, Ltd
Siemens Communications
44-2088106609
http://www.callingplaces.com
CallingPlaces, Ltd
800-765-6123
http://www.communications.usa.siem
ens.com/home.html
905-760-4200
http://www.aastra.com
44-2088106609
http://www.callingplaces.com
SysMaster Corporation
617-286-1600
http://www.commonvoices.com
SES AMERICOM
Clearpath Communications, LLC
877-900-3993
http://www.sysmaster.com
CommuniGate Systems
609-987-4555
248-724-4444
http://www.clearpath1.com
TiVi
61. IP Video Conferencing
Common Voices, Inc
+371 7881005
http://www.tivi.com
415-383-7164
http://www.communigate.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Acoustic Magic
617-286-1600
http://www.commonvoices.com
978-440-9384
http://www.AcousticMagic.com
Advanced Communications
Solutions
407-788-9845
Go Tek Inc.
416-817-6888
http://www.softswitch.ca
iotum
613-482-9099
http://iotum.com
IVR Technologies, Inc.
213-634-1522
http://www.ivr.com
Nuvio
Empire Communications
67. Telecommuting
AccessLine Communications
206-654-1013
http://www.accessline.com
800-235-9901
http://www.facetcorp.com
Acoustic Magic
978-440-9384
http://www.AcousticMagic.com
Adomo
64. Prepaid Calling Cards
ClearOne Communications
Telanetix
CallingPlaces, Ltd
800-707-6994
http://www.clearone.com
858-362-2250
http://www.telanetix.com
44-2088106609
http://www.callingplaces.com
Dirigosoft Corporation
WiredRed Software
EyeBill
858-715-0970
http://www.wiredred.com
877 649 5622
http://www.eyebill.net
800-765-6123
http://www.communications.usa.siem
ens.com/home.html
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
707-545-8300
http://www.empirecomm.com
FacetCorp
816-444-4422
http://www.nuvio.com
Siemens Communications
Common Voices, Inc
408-996-7086
http://www.adomo.com
iKnowWare
512-215-4305
http://www.iKnowWare.com
Nortel Networks
800-4NO-RTEL
http://www.nortelnetworks.com
Orative
408-625-3100
http://www.orative.com
877-870-1234
http://www.dirigosoft.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Pactolus Communications
Software
508-616-0900
http://www.Pactolus.com
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 109
Pandora Networks
iotum
Tadiran America
Avaya Inc.
800-805-0558
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
613-482-9099
http://iotum.com
866-595-4900
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
800-784-6104
http://www.avaya.com
Catalog Retail Marketing Int’l, Inc.
(CRMI)
Softel Communications Inc
TelStrat
Pangea Communications Corp.
877-525-1987
http://www.softel.com
972-543-3500
http://www.TelStrat.com
503-221-2121
http://www.pangea-comm.com
VoiceStamps.com
UCN, Inc.
STBS
469-272-4688 x1
http://www.voicestamps.com
888-UCN-0002
http://www.ucn.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
301-585-1200 x117
http://www.stbs.com
Teltronics, Inc.
941-753-5000 x7315
http://www.teltronics.com
Toshiba America Information
Systems, Telecom Systems Div.
70. Virtual/Distributed Call
Center
1Number4U
866-824-8245
http://www.1number4u.com
802-334-1000 x203
http://www.crmi.cc
CosmoCom, Inc.
631-940-4200
http://www.cosmocom.com
Empire Communications
zCONNEX GROUP
800-715-9990
http://www.zconnex.com
707-545-8300
http://www.empirecomm.com
iKnowWare
949-583-3700
http://www.telecom.toshiba.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
AnswerNet Network
71. Virtual Private Networks
512-215-4305
http://www.iKnowWare.com
800-411-5777
http://www.answernet.com
CapRock Communications
Noble Systems Corporation
832-668-2300
http://www.caprock.com
888-866-2538 x300
http://www.noblesys.com
Vonexus Inc.
888-412-7728
http://www.aspect.com
Check Point Software
Technologies
Nortel Networks
888-817-5904
http://www.vonexus.com
69. Virtual Assistant
1Number4U
866-824-8245
http://www.1number4u.com
AccessLine Communications
206-654-1013
http://www.accessline.com
Adomo
408-996-7086
http://www.adomo.com
Aspect Software
CosmoCom, Inc.
631-940-4200
http://www.cosmocom.com
Dirigosoft Corporation
877-870-1234
http://www.dirigosoft.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Noble Systems Corporation
888-866-2538 x300
http://www.noblesys.com
Nortel Networks
Applied Voice & Speech
Technologies (AVST)
800-4NO-RTEL
http://www.nortelnetworks.com
949-699-2300
http://www.avst.com
Nuvio
650-628-2000
http://www.checkpoint.com
800-4NO-RTEL
http://www.nortelnetworks.com
Softel Communications Inc
Encore Networks
703-318-4366
http://www.encorenetworks.com
877-525-1987
http://www.softel.com
Teltronics, Inc.
Kentrox
503-350-6001
http://www.kentrox.com
941-753-5000 x7315
http://www.teltronics.com
UCN, Inc.
Nortel Networks
800-4NO-RTEL
http://www.nortelnetworks.com
888-UCN-0002
http://www.ucn.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
SES AMERICOM
609-987-4555
Witness Systems
770-754-8651
http://www.witness.com
Associated Call Centers
816-444-4422
http://www.nuvio.com
72. Web/Call Center
Integration
800-610-5262
http://www.inboundacc.com
Pandora Networks
Accurate Always
911 Enable
800-805-0558
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
800-828-9428 x1
http://www.accuratealways.com
514-745-2143
http://www.911enable.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Dirigosoft Corporation
877-870-1234
http://www.dirigosoft.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
GM Voices, Inc.
770-752-4500
http://www.gmvoices.com
Spanlink Communications
763-971-2000
http://www.spanlink.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
110 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
AltiGen Communications, Inc.
73. E911
510-252-9712
http://www.altigen.com
Associated Call Centers
800-610-5262
http://www.inboundacc.com
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
WIRELESS
Multi-Tech Systems, Inc.
Convergin
TiVi
+972-9-951 7771
http://www.convergin.com
+371 7881005
http://www.tivi.com
905-760-4200
http://www.aastra.com
800-328-9717 x5176
http://www.multitech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
DiamondWare, Ltd.
Unex Technology Corp.
Pipeline Telecom Inc.
Sevis Systems
74. Handsets/PDAs
Aastra Telecom
321-409-9971 x11
http://www.pipelinetelecom.com
770-536-2425
http://www.sevis.com
SpectraLink
TiVi
303-583-5342
http://www.spectralink.com
+371 7881005
http://www.tivi.com
75. Location-Based Services
(Mobile e-commerce)
VeriSign
+886-3-5256262 x201
http://www.unex.com.tw
International Systems Research
Co.
Vonexus Inc.
650-570-6960
http://www.isrus.com
650-961-7500
http://www.verisign.com
949-579-3650
http://www.mindspeed.com
Orative
78. Wireless
Data/Internet/WAP
76. Short Message Service
Sevis Systems
CapRock Communications
832-668-2300
http://www.caprock.com
Meru Networks
408-625-3100
http://www.orative.com
408-215-5357
http://www.merunetworks.com
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc.
TeleBright
888-519-1472
http://www.telebright.com
888-817-5904
http://www.vonexus.com
80. Wireless LAN
Mindspeed Technologies, Inc.
IntelliNet Technologies, Inc.
321-726-0686
http://www.intellinet-tech.com
480-380-1122
http://www.dw.com
214-262-6384
http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Accton Technology
+886-3-5770270
http://www.accton.com
International Systems Research
Co.
770-536-2425
http://www.sevis.com
650-570-6960
http://www.isrus.com
VeriSign
SES AMERICOM
Located On Pages
94 & 95
Network Instruments
952-932-9899
http://www.networkinstruments.com
SyChip
SES AMERICOM
609-987-4555
972-202-8847
http://www.sychip.com
SpectraLink
Unex Technology Corp.
303-583-5342
http://www.spectralink.com
+886-3-5256262 x201
www.unex.com.tw
650-961-7500
http://www.verisign.com
609-987-4555
77. Third-Generation
Wireless (3G)
79. Wireless Internet
Telephony
IntelliNet Technologies, Inc.
Cicero Networks
SyChip
321-726-0686
http://www.intellinet-tech.com
+353 1 6636510
http://www.ciceronetworks.com
972-202-8847
http://www.sychip.com
WildPackets
925-937-3200
http://www.wildpackets.com
NETWORK EQUIPMENT
81. Aggregator/Concentrator
Tekelec
87. Data-Enabled PBX
90. Firewalls
OPC Marketing, Inc.
ADTRAN, Inc.
ARRIS
888-628-5521
http://www.tekelec.com
678-473-8327
http://www.arrisi.com
Vertical Communications
972-267-3279 x202
http://www.opc-marketing.com
617-354-0600
http://www.vertical.com
Rhino Equipment Corp.
800-221-2849 x2250
http://www.telco.com
83. Bridges
480-940-1826 x6311
http://www.rhinoequipment.com
Polycom, Inc.
Vertical Communications
82. Applications Server
800-POL-YCOM
http://www.polycom.com
617-354-0600
http://www.vertical.com
BEA Systems Inc.
Softel Communications Inc
88. Edge Access Device
877-525-1987
http://www.softel.com
ARRIS
Telco Systems,
a BATM Company
408-570-8701
http://www.bea.com/wlcom
Cognitronics
203-830-3523
http://www.cognitronics.com
Epygi Technologies
84. Carrier Class Gateways
GoHigh Data Networks
Technology Co., Ltd.
Natural Convergence
+8610-62302956
http://www.datangnetwork.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
613-280-2000
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
MERA Systems, Inc.
972-692-1166 x38
http://www.epygi.com
Netcentrex Converged IP
Communications, Comverse
+33 (0)1 58 71 33 33
http://www.netcentrex.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
866-644-3051 x5973
http://www.mera-systems.com
Stratus Technologies
978-461-7000
http://stratustelecom.com
256-963-8000
http://www.adtran.com
BorderWare Technologies Inc.
905-804-1855 x245
http://www.borderware.com
Check Point Software
Technologies
650-628-2000
http://www.checkpoint.com
Converged Access Inc.
978-742-1400
http://www.convergedaccess.com
678-473-8327
http://www.arrisi.com
Ingate Systems
Comtico
603-883-6569
http://www.ingate.com
+45 7027 9299
http://www.comtico.com
Telco Systems, a BATM Company
800-221-2849 x2250
http://www.telco.com
Intertex Data
508-385-6335
http://intertexdata.com
Kentrox
U4EA Technologies
503-350-6001
http://www.kentrox.com
+441173736758
http://www.u4eatech.com
89. Fax Servers
91. Gatekeeper
FaxBack, Inc.
Polycom, Inc.
86. CSU/DSU
503-597-5355
http://www.faxback.com
800-POL-YCOM
http://www.polycom.com
Pactolus Communications
Software
ADTRAN, Inc.
OPC Marketing, Inc.
Quintum Technologies, Inc.
508-616-0900
http://www.Pactolus.com
256-963-8000
http://www.adtran.com
972-267-3279 x202
http://www.opc-marketing.com
732-460-9000 x238
http://www.quintum.com
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 111
92. Integrated Access Device
ADTRAN, Inc.
256-963-8000
http://www.adtran.com
Comtico
+45 7027 9299
http://www.comtico.com
Zoom Technologies, Inc.
Target Distributing
Samsung BCS
617-535-9383
http://www.zoom.com
800-873-5528 x1120
http://www.targetd.com
94. Internet Telephony
Gateways
Telesis A.S.
972-761-7000
http://www.samsung.com/bcs
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
+90 312 3840394
http://www.stillink.com
ShoreTel
ABP Technology
TeleVoce Inc
408-331-3369
http://www.shoretel.com
408-627-4044
http://www.televoce.com
Spanlink Communications
978-742-1400
http://www.convergedaccess.com
972-831-1600
http://www.abptech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Converged Access Inc.
Aculab
Converged Access Inc.
858-824-6388
http://www.vegastream.com
763-971-2000
http://www.spanlink.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
95. IP-Enabled PBX
Stratus Technologies
VegaStream
Encore Networks
781-433-6000
http://www.aculab.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
703-318-4366
http://www.encorenetworks.com
Alliance Systems
Telco Systems, a BATM Company
800-221-2849 x2250
http://www.telco.com
972-633-3400
http://www.alliancesystems.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
U4EA Technologies
Allworx
Alcatel
585-421-3850 x124
http://www.allworx.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Allworx
SysMaster Corporation
585-421-3850 x124
http://www.allworx.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
877-900-3993
http://www.sysmaster.com
978-742-1400 x404
http://www.convergedaccess.com
+441173736758
http://www.u4eatech.com
93. Internet Telephony
Appliances
3Com
508-323-5000
http://www.3com.com
Aastra Telecom
905-760-4200
http://www.aastra.com
ABP Technology
972-831-1600
http://www.abptech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Action Solutions
480-924-4550
http://www.actionsolutions.com
Adomo
408-996-7086
http://www.adomo.com
Alliance Systems
972-633-3400
http://www.alliancesystems.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
ARRIS
AudioCodes
408-441-1175
http://www.audiocodes.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Comtico
+45 7027 9299
http://www.comtico.com
510-342-5700
http://www.conteknet.com
Diversified Technology
800-443-2667
http://www.dtims.com
Epygi Technologies
972-692-1166 x38
http://www.epygi.com
Grandstream Networks, Inc.
617-566-9300
http://www.grandstream.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Intertex Data
508-385-6335
http://intertexdata.com
Comtico
Linksys, a Division of Cisco
Systems
Grandstream Networks, Inc.
617-566-9300
http://www.grandstream.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Incognito Software
604-688-4332 x860
http://www.incognito.com
Ingate Systems
603-883-6569
http://www.ingate.com
Linksys, a Division of Cisco
Systems
408-853-7682
http://www.linksys.com
408-853-7682
http://www.linksys.com
Multi-Tech Systems, Inc.
800-328-9717 x5176
http://www.multitech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
978-461-7000
http://stratustelecom.com
800-777-8197
http://www.1SourceVoIP.com
3Com
508-323-5000
http://www.3com.com
800-995-2612
http://www.alcatel.com
Located On Pages
94 & 95
Tadiran America
Ascendent Systems
866-595-4900
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
888-507-1777
http://www.ascendentsystems.com
Teltronics, Inc.
Avaya Inc.
941-753-5000 x7315
http://www.teltronics.com
800-784-6104
http://www.avaya.com
Contek Networks, Inc.
678-473-8327
http://www.arrisi.com
+45 7027 9299
http://www.comtico.com
1SourceVoIP
Bway.net
212-982-9800
http://www.bway.net
Toshiba America Information
Systems, Telecom Systems Div.
949-583-3700
http://www.telecom.toshiba.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Dirigosoft Corporation
877-870-1234
http://www.dirigosoft.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Vertical Communications
Empire Communications
888-817-5904
http://www.vonexus.com
707-545-8300
http://www.empirecomm.com
Epygi Technologies
972-692-1166 x38
http://www.epygi.com
FacetCorp
800-235-9901
http://www.facetcorp.com
Intertex Data
508-385-6335
http://intertexdata.com
Linksys, a Division of Cisco
Systems
408-853-7682
http://www.linksys.com
M5 Networks
617-354-0600
http://www.vertical.com
Vonexus Inc.
96. IP Phone (SIP, H.323,
Ethernet)
Aastra Telecom
905-760-4200
http://www.aastra.com
ABP Technology
972-831-1600
http://www.abptech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
ADTRAN, Inc.
256-963-8000
http://www.adtran.com
AltiGen Communications, Inc.
Quintum Technologies, Inc.
646-230-5000
http://www.m5net.com
510-252-9712
http://www.altigen.com
732-460-9000 x238
http://www.quintum.com
MERA Systems, Inc.
Avaya Inc.
Rhino Equipment Corp.
866-644-3051 x5973
http://www.mera-systems.com
800-784-6104
http://www.avaya.com
480-940-1826 x6311
http://www.rhinoequipment.com
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc.
Comtico
214-262-6384
http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Contek Networks, Inc.
SOYO Group, Inc.
909-292-2500 x2503
http://www.soyogroup.com
pbxnsip inc.
SysMaster Corporation
978-364-0072 x111
http://www.pbxnsip.com
877-900-3993
http://www.sysmaster.com
Target Distributing
Tadiran America
800-873-5528 x1120
http://www.targetd.com
866-595-4900
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
112 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
pbxnsip inc.
978-364-0072 x111
http://www.pbxnsip.com
Rhino Equipment Corp.
480-940-1826 x6311
http://www.rhinoequipment.com
+45 7027 9299
http://www.comtico.com
510-342-5700
http://www.conteknet.com
GoHigh Data Networks
Technology Co., Ltd.
+8610-62302956
http://www.datangnetwork.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
Grandstream Networks, Inc.
Cantata Technology
Cantata Technology
Doretel Communications, Inc.
617-566-9300
http://www.grandstream.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
781-449-4100
http://www.cantata.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
781-449-4100
http://www.cantata.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
404-755-5721
http://www.doretel.com
Linksys, a Division of Cisco
Systems
Centillium Communications, Inc.
Carrius Technologies, Inc.
800-235-9901
http://www.facetcorp.com
510-771-3700
http://www.centillium.com
214-572-7800
http://www.carriustech.com
Freeway Communications
GoHigh Data Networks
Technology Co., Ltd.
102. Remote Access
Concentrators
408-853-7682
http://www.linksys.com
Microtronix Systems Ltd
519-649-4900
http://microtronix.ca
Polycom, Inc.
+8610-62302956
http://www.datangnetwork.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
800-POL-YCOM
http://www.polycom.com
Grandstream Networks, Inc.
ShoreTel
408-331-3369
http://www.shoretel.com
snom technology AG
++49-(0)30-39833 x113
http://www.snom.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
617-566-9300
http://www.grandstream.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Motorola Embedded
Communications Computing
Group
602-437-3623
http://www.motorola.com/computing
SpectraLink
Quintum Technologies, Inc.
303-583-5342
http://www.spectralink.com
732-460-9000 x238
http://www.quintum.com
TeleVoce Inc
SBE
408-627-4044
http://www.televoce.com
925-355-2000
http://www.sbei.com
Teltronics, Inc.
Tekelec
941-753-5000 x7315
http://www.teltronics.com
888-628-5521
http://www.tekelec.com
Toshiba America Information
Systems, Telecom Systems Div.
Telesis A.S.
949-583-3700
http://www.telecom.toshiba.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
+90 312 3840394
http://www.stillink.com
U4EA Technologies
+441173736758
http://www.u4eatech.com
Vertical Communications
617-354-0600
http://www.vertical.com
Zoom Technologies, Inc.
617-535-9383
http://www.zoom.com
97. Media Gateway
ABP Technology
972-831-1600
http://www.abptech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Alliance Systems
972-633-3400
http://www.alliancesystems.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
AudioCodes
408-441-1175
http://www.audiocodes.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
213-225-2200 x101
http://freeway.com
GoHigh Data Networks
Technology Co., Ltd.
Stampede Technologies
TelStrat
+8610-62302956
http://www.datangnetwork.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
972-543-3500
http://www.TelStrat.com
MERA Systems, Inc.
103. Routers
866-644-3051 x5973
http://www.mera-systems.com
937-291-5035
http://www.stampede.com
Netcentrex Converged IP
Communications, Comverse
3Com
508-323-5000
http://www.3com.com
+33 (0)1 58 71 33 33
http://www.netcentrex.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
ADTRAN, Inc.
256-963-8000
http://www.adtran.com
NexTone Communications
240-912-1310
http://www.nextone.com
Aspect Software
888-412-7728
http://www.aspect.com
SMART NETWORK SOLUTIONS
Encore Networks
703-318-4366
http://www.encorenetworks.com
305-808-7361
http://www.smartisvoip.com
Solegy LLC
212-801-2506
http://www.solegy.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Epygi Technologies
972-692-1166 x38
http://www.epygi.com
Intertex Data
Sphere Communications Inc.
508-385-6335
http://intertexdata.com
847-793-9600 x300
http://www.spherecom.com
Kentrox
Tekelec
98. Multipoint Control Unit
503-350-6001
http://www.kentrox.com
Polycom, Inc.
Linksys, a Division of Cisco
Systems
TransNexus
408-853-7682
http://www.linksys.com
404-526-6060
http://www.transnexus.com
Multi-Tech Systems, Inc.
VoX Communications
800-POL-YCOM
http://www.polycom.com
100. Network PBX
Allworx
585-421-3850 x124
http://www.allworx.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
888-628-5521
http://www.tekelec.com
800-328-9717 x5176
http://www.multitech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
SMC Networks
FacetCorp
800-235-9901
http://www.facetcorp.com
Samsung BCS
972-761-7000
http://www.samsung.com/bcs
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
408-331-3369
http://www.shoretel.com
847-793-9600 x300
http://www.spherecom.com
Tadiran America
813-217-9777
http://www.voxcorp.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
949-679-8000
http://www.smc.com
105. Signaling Gateway
SOYO Group, Inc.
781-449-4100
http://www.cantata.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Cantata Technology
909-292-2500 x2503
http://www.soyogroup.com
U4EA Technologies
Convergin
+441173736758
http://www.u4eatech.com
+972-9-951 7771
http://www.convergin.com
ShoreTel
Sphere Communications Inc.
104. Softswitch
Doretel Communications, Inc.
ABP Technology
972-831-1600
http://www.abptech.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
404-755-5721
http://www.doretel.com
Encore Networks
703-318-4366
http://www.encorenetworks.com
866-595-4900
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
Adaptive Digital Technologies,
Inc.
Vertical Communications
610-825-0182
http://adaptivedigital.com
321-726-0686
http://www.intellinet-tech.com
617-354-0600
http://www.vertical.com
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
FacetCorp
IntelliNet Technologies, Inc.
Ascendent Systems
Sevis Systems
101. Programmable Switches
888-507-1777
http://www.ascendentsystems.com
770-536-2425
http://www.sevis.com
3Com
Aspect Software
Stratus Technologies
508-323-5000
http://www.3com.com
888-412-7728
http://www.aspect.com
978-461-7000
http://stratustelecom.com
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 113
Tekelec
Carrius Technologies, Inc.
888-628-5521
http://www.tekelec.com
214-572-7800
http://www.carriustech.com
Telesis A.S.
Cognitronics
+90 312 3840394
http://www.stillink.com
203-830-3523
http://www.cognitronics.com
Diversified Technology
106. Enhanced Services
Platform
Allot Communications
952-944-3100
http://www.allot.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Cantata Technology
781-449-4100
http://www.cantata.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
800-443-2667
http://www.dtims.com
Pipeline Telecom Inc.
321-409-9971 x11
http://www.pipelinetelecom.com
Solegy LLC
212-801-2506
http://www.solegy.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Stratus Technologies
978-461-7000
http://stratustelecom.com
107. Voice Data Multiplexers
Avaya Inc.
Converged Access Inc.
800-784-6104
http://www.avaya.com
978-742-1400 x404
http://www.convergedaccess.com
Convergin
Rhino Equipment Corp.
480-940-1826 x6311
http://www.rhinoequipment.com
Telco Systems, a BATM Company
+972-9-951 7771
http://www.convergin.com
110. Wireless Base Station
Alliance Systems
800-221-2849 x2250
http://www.telco.com
972-633-3400
http://www.alliancesystems.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
108. Voice/Data Switch
SMC Networks
Allworx
949-679-8000
http://www.smc.com
585-421-3850 x124
http://www.allworx.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
SpectraLink
303-583-5342
http://www.spectralink.com
SERVICE PROVIDERS
BandTel for Flawless VoIP
VoIP Inc.
M5 Networks
CommPartners
949-640-9700
http://www.bandtel.com
407-389-3232
http://www.voipincorporated.com
646-230-5000
http://www.m5net.com
702-367-8647 x1017
http://www.commpartners.us
Bandwidth.com
VoX Communications
MichTel Communications, LLC
919-297-1100
http://www.bandwidth.com/
Bway.net
813-217-9777
http://www.voxcorp.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Pandora Networks
212-982-9800
http://www.bway.net
Voxbone
Clearpath Communications, LLC
+32 22 18 55 39
http://www.voxbone.com
248-724-4444
http://www.clearpath1.com
114. ISP
CommPartners
Bandwidth.com
111. CLEC
Level 3 Communications
877-2LE-VEL3
http://www.Level3.com
MichTel Communications, LLC
248-771-5000
http://www.michtel.com
RNK Telecom
781-613-6000
http://www.rnktel.com
The Telecom Directory
404-797-6633
http://www.TheTelecomDirectory.com
VoIP Inc.
407-389-3232
http://www.voipincorporated.com
Voxbone
702-367-8647 x1017
http://www.commpartners.us
Digerati Networks
210-614-7240
http://www.digerati-networks.com
GM Voices, Inc.
770-752-4500
http://www.gmvoices.com
919-297-1100
http://www.bandwidth.com/
Bway.net
212-982-9800
http://www.bway.net
MichTel Communications, LLC
248-771-5000
http://www.michtel.com
gr8fone.net
The Telecom Directory
919898008655
http://gr8fone.net
404-797-6633
http://www.TheTelecomDirectory.com
112. Internet Fax Service
Provider
Level 3 Communications
115. ITSP
The Telecom Directory
404-797-6633
http://www.TheTelecomDirectory.com
116. Next-Gen Telco
BandTel for Flawless VoIP
949-640-9700
http://www.bandtel.com
Comwave Telecom Inc.
416-663-9700 x303
http://www.comwave.net
877-2LE-VEL3
http://www.Level3.com
MichTel Communications, LLC
877-2LE-VEL3
http://www.Level3.com
gr8fone.net
MichTel Communications, LLC
248-771-5000
http://www.michtel.com
Pangea Communications Corp.
503-221-2121
http://www.pangea-comm.com
New Global Telecom
113. Internet Telephony
Wholesaler
Nuvio
303-278-0700
http://www.ngt.com
BandTel for Flawless VoIP
949-640-9700
http://www.bandtel.com
Bway.net
212-982-9800
http://www.bway.net
Efonica
816-444-4422
http://www.nuvio.com
212-201-2400
http://efonica.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Pipeline Telecom Inc.
Freeway Communications
1SourceVoIP
800-777-8197
http://www.1SourceVoIP.com
800-805-0558
http://www.pandoranetworks.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Level 3 Communications
+32 22 18 55 39
http://www.voxbone.com
919898008655
http://gr8fone.net
248-771-5000
http://www.michtel.com
321-409-9971 x11
http://www.pipelinetelecom.com
213-225-2200 x101
http://freeway.com
248-771-5000
http://www.michtel.com
VeriSign
650-961-7500
http://www.verisign.com
VoIP Inc.
407-389-3232
http://www.voipincorporated.com
Voxbone
+32 22 18 55 39
http://www.voxbone.com
117. Prepaid
VoiceStamps.com
469-272-4688 x1
http://www.voicestamps.com
Adaptive Digital Technologies,
Inc.
The Telecom Directory
gr8fone.net
WebPhone
610-825-0182
http://adaptivedigital.com
404-797-6633
http://www.TheTelecomDirectory.com
919898008655
http://gr8fone.net
866-320-3077
http://www.webphone.com
Please tell the vendors you saw it in...
114 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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APPLICATION SERVICE PROVIDERS
118. Application
Infrastructure Provider
BEA Systems Inc.
408-570-8701
http://www.bea.com/wlcom
Castle CRM
866-330-6470
http://www.acastle.com
gr8fone.net
919898008655
http://gr8fone.net
EyeBill
120. Collaborative ASP
(groupware, e-mail, video
conferencing)
877 649 5622
http://www.eyebill.net
FaxBack, Inc.
Siemens Communications
503-597-5355
http://www.faxback.com
800-765-6123
http://www.communications.usa.siem
ens.com/home.html
I.S. Associates, Inc.
800-583-3440 x142
http://www.isassoc.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Motorola Embedded
Communications Computing
Group
Teleformix
847-472-5300
http://www.teleformix.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Telkonet, Inc.
877-977-0707 xSales
http://www.LumenVox.com
240-912-1800
http://www.telkonet.com
Natural Convergence
119. Independent Software
Vendor
Axcis.Net Software
800-585-1696
http://www.axcis.net
BEA Systems Inc.
408-570-8701
http://www.bea.com/wlcom
Electric Cloud, Inc.
650-968-2950
http://www.electric-cloud.com
Envision
206-225-0800 x500
http://www.envisioninc.com
646-230-5000
http://www.m5net.com
Nuvio
iotum
Pronexus Inc.
613-482-9099
http://iotum.com
613-271-8989
http://www.pronexus.com
UCN, Inc.
LumenVox LLC
M5 Networks
816-444-4422
http://www.nuvio.com
972-267-3279 x202
http://www.opc-marketing.com
Located On Pages
94 & 95
613-482-9099
iotum.com
121. Communications ASP
OPC Marketing, Inc.
602-437-3623
http://www.motorola.com/computing
iotum
888-UCN-0002
http://www.ucn.net
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
zCONNEX GROUP
Solegy LLC
212-801-2506
http://www.solegy.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
VoiceStamps.com
469-272-4688 x1
http://www.voicestamps.com
125. Voice Portal
800-715-9990
http://www.zconnex.com
BCE Elix
123. Telephony ASP
501-768-1000
http://www.bceelix.com
OPC Marketing, Inc.
Adaptive Digital Technologies,
Inc.
GM Voices, Inc.
972-267-3279 x202
http://www.opc-marketing.com
610-825-0182
http://adaptivedigital.com
770-752-4500
http://www.gmvoices.com
Pronexus Inc.
Comwave Telecom Inc.
LumenVox LLC
613-271-8989
http://www.pronexus.com
416-663-9700 x303
http://www.comwave.net
877-977-0707 xSales
http://www.LumenVox.com
TMPG
General Telecom
Pronexus Inc.
310-327-9700
http://www.tmpg.com
646-328-5800
http://www.gentel.net
613-271-8989
http://www.pronexus.com
Traxi Technologies, LLC
GM Voices, Inc.
TOUBATEL
212-812-9450 x114
http://www.traxitech.com
770-752-4500
http://www.gmvoices.com
+33172100204
http://www.toubatel.com
613-280-2000
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
OTHER
127. Clearinghouse
TransNexus
404-526-6060
http://www.transnexus.com
The Telecom Directory
Softel Communications Inc
SMART NETWORK SOLUTIONS
404-797-6633
http://www.TheTelecomDirectory.com
877-525-1987
http://www.softel.com
305-808-7361
http://www.smartisvoip.com
129. Developer
Spanlink Communications
Target Distributing
128. Consultant
866-330-6470
http://www.acastle.com
763-971-2000
http://www.spanlink.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Castle CRM
DiamondWare, Ltd.
TELECORP PRODUCTS., INC
Castle CRM
866-330-6470
http://www.acastle.com
Clearpath Communications, LLC
248-724-4444
http://www.clearpath1.com
HEAD acoustics GmbH
+49-2407-5770
http://www.head-acoustics.de
High Tech High Touch Solutions,
Inc.
425-398-9292
http://www.HTHTS.com
480-380-1122
http://www.dw.com
Hermon Labs
972-4-628-8001
http://www.hermonlabs.com
248-960-6642
http://www.telecorpproducts.com
TeleVoce Inc
800-873-5528 x1120
http://www.targetd.com
131. Interconnect
Empire Communications
707-545-8300
http://www.empirecomm.com
408-627-4044
http://www.televoce.com
Newport Networks Limited
High Tech High Touch Solutions,
Inc.
Traxi Technologies, LLC
425-398-9292
http://www.HTHTS.com
212-812-9450 x114
http://www.traxitech.com
Viziqor Solutions
IVR USA
Viziqor Solutions
971-249-1322
http://www.ivrusa.com
+44 (0) 1291 635830
http://www.newport-networks.com
508-248-9896
http://www.viziqor.com
Voxbone
508-248-9896
http://www.viziqor.com
+32 22 18 55 39
http://www.voxbone.com
Telacquire Marketing Group Inc.
LumenVox LLC
604-677-7780
http://www.telacquire.com
877-977-0707 xSales
http://www.LumenVox.com
130. Distributor
133. Reseller
TeleBright
Red Hawk/CDT
Enteractive Distribution Co.
Castle CRM
888-519-1472
http://www.telebright.com
800-989-4295 x235
http://www.power-sense.com
860-236-8600
http://www.enteractive.com
866-330-6470
http://www.acastle.com
Subscribe FREE online at http://www.itmag.com
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 115
Enteractive Distribution Co.
AltiGen Communications, Inc.
Digium, Inc.
Meru Networks
860-236-8600
http://www.enteractive.com
256-428-6000
http://www.digium.com
Asterisk, the Open Source PBX
IVR USA
510-252-9712
http://www.altigen.com
IP-PBX and IP Contact Center
Solutions
408-215-5357
http://www.merunetworks.com
WLAN Access Points, WLAN
Controllers, Radio Switch family
971-249-1322
http://www.ivrusa.com
AnswerNet Network
Telacquire Marketing Group Inc.
604-677-7780
http://www.telacquire.com
134. Systems Integrator
800-411-5777
http://www.answernet.com
E-mail Management, Live Chat, Web
Order Entry, Online Appointment
Scheduling
Axcis.Net Software
866-330-6470
http://www.acastle.com
800-585-1696
http://www.axcis.net
Field Service Management Software
Crystal Group Inc.
BCE Elix
Castle CRM
319-378-1636
http://www.crystalpc.com
Elma Electronic
501-768-1000
http://www.bceelix.com
Contact center solutions
510-490-7388 x516
http://www.elma.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
BorderWare Technologies Inc.
Freeway Communications
Bway.net
213-225-2200 x101
http://freeway.com
212-982-9800
http://www.bway.net
Hosted PBX
905-804-1855 x245
http://www.borderware.com
VoIP Firewall
Givex Corporation
877-478-7733
http://www.givex.com
High Tech High Touch Solutions,
Inc.
425-398-9292
http://www.HTHTS.com
Incognito Software
604-688-4332 x860
http://www.incognito.com
International Systems Research
Co.
650-570-6960
http://www.isrus.com
IVR USA
971-249-1322
http://www.ivrusa.com
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc.
214-262-6384
http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
CapRock Communications
832-668-2300
http://www.caprock.com
satellite communications
Carrius Technologies, Inc.
214-572-7800
http://www.carriustech.com
Network Layer Service Delivery
Platform
Catalog Retail Marketing Int’l, Inc.
(CRMI)
802-334-1000 x203
http://www.crmi.cc
CRMI provides inbound call center
services (Voice/web/e-mail)
Centillium Communications, Inc.
510-771-3700
http://www.centillium.com
VoIP System-On-Chip
Cicero Networks
SMART NETWORK SOLUTIONS
+353 1 6636510
http://www.ciceronetworks.com
wVOIP Solutions
305-808-7361
http://www.smartisvoip.com
Cognitronics
Spanlink Communications
763-971-2000
http://www.spanlink.com
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
203-830-3523
http://www.cognitronics.com
Media Servers
CommPartners
702-367-8647 x1017
http://www.commpartners.us
IP-Based Wholesale Solutions
Doretel Communications, Inc.
404-755-5721
http://www.doretel.com
Cisco Registered Partner, Quintum
VoIP Products
Microtronix Systems Ltd
Echo by BenchmarkPortal
MINACOM
805-614-0123 x62
http://www.echoinformation.com
After Call Customer Satisfaction
Solution
514-879-9111 x228
http://www.minacom.com
Single-End VoIP Probes
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
ENGATE Technology Corporation
408-494-8310
http://www.engate.com
connection management, reputation
based security, protocol level security
Located On Pages
94 & 95
206-225-0800 x500
http://www.envisioninc.com
Business Intelligence, Quality
Monitoring, Workforce Management
and eLearning
OTHER
Acoustic Magic
978-440-9384
http://www.AcousticMagic.com
Microphones
Crystal Group Inc.
Allworx
DiamondWare, Ltd.
585-421-3850 x124
http://www.allworx.com
VoIP Key & PBX Phone and Data
Network System
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
319-378-1636
http://www.crystalpc.com
IP Telephony Developer Platform
480-380-1122
http://www.dw.com
Converged Enterprise
Communications Solution, Low
Latency Windows/PDA Softphone
116 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
949-579-3650
http://www.mindspeed.com
Comcerto carrier-class VoIP
processing solutions
Minerva Networks
408-567-9400
http://www.minervanetworks.com
IPTV Services
Forum Communications
International
Motorola Embedded
Communications Computing
Group
972-680-0700 x1581
http://www.forum-com.com
Emergency Response/Collaboration
602-437-3623
http://www.motorola.com/computing
Communications Server
General Telecom
Natural Convergence
646-328-5800
http://www.gentel.net
Full-Service TDM And IP Network
Management Solutions Provider
613-280-2000
http://www.naturalconvergence.com
Hosted VoIP Applications
Software
Givex Corporation
Netcentrex Converged IP
Communications, Comverse
877-478-7733
http://www.givex.com
Gift Cards, Loyalty Cards, Stored
Value, Coupons, Payment Systems
GM Voices, Inc.
770-752-4500
http://www.gmvoices.com
Voice Branding, Speech
Recognition, International Telephony,
Corporate Storytelling
GoHigh Data Networks
Technology Co., Ltd.
+8610-62302956
http://www.datangnetwork.com
ATA
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
+33 (0)1 58 71 33 33
http://www.netcentrex.net
Triple/Quad Play
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
NetScout Systems
888-999-5946
http://www.netscout.com
Application Performance
Management
New Global Telecom
303-278-0700
http://www.ngt.com
Comprehensive Wholesale VoIP
for Service Providers
Newport Networks Limited
High Tech High Touch Solutions,
Inc.
425-398-9292
http://www.HTHTS.com
Help Desk & Call Center
Conferences and Services (HD Prof.
& Gov. Customer Sprt.
+44 (0) 1291 635830
http://www.newport-networks.com
Session Border Controller
NexTone Communications
240-912-1310
http://www.nextone.com
Session Border Control
HigherGround, Inc.
818-591-3133 x249
http://www.highergroundinc.com
Call Recording Solution
CosmoCom, Inc.
631-940-4200
http://www.cosmocom.com
Unified Customer Communications
IP Contact Center
Mindspeed Technologies, Inc.
Envision
Convergin
+972-9-951 7771
http://www.convergin.com
wireless convergence server, SCIM
519-649-4900
http;//microtronix.ca
TIA810-A/B, TIA920
On2 Technologies, Inc.
518-724-3872
http://on2.com
Video for VoIP
Ingate Systems
603-883-6569
http://www.ingate.com
SIP Firewalls and SIParators, NAT
traversal, remote connectivity, SIP
Trunking
Intrado
Pronexus Inc.
613-271-8989
http://www.pronexus.com
IVR development tools
Quintum Technologies, Inc.
877-856-7504
http://www.intrado.com
E9-1-1 Solutions
732-460-9000 x238
http://www.quintum.com
Session Border Controllers,
Call Routing Servers
MERA Systems, Inc.
Red Hawk/CDT
866-644-3051 x5973
http://www.mera-systems.com
Session Border Controller
800-989-4295 x235
http://www.power-sense.com
Power over Ethernet Hubs
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Rhino Equipment Corp.
Traxi Technologies, LLC
Xelor Software
Zoom Technologies, Inc.
480-940-1826 x6311
http://www.rhinoequipment.com
Channelbanks
212-812-9450 x114
http://www.traxitech.com
Call Recording/CRM Integration
603-327-0400
http://www.xelorsoftware.com
VoIP QoS Software
617-535-9383
http://www.zoom.com
Analog Telephone Adapters
RNK Telecom
Trenton Technology, Inc.
770-287-3100
http://www.TrentonTechnology.com
Backplanes, Single Board
Computers, CompactPCI
781-613-6000
http://www.rnktel.com
VoIP Wholesaler
SES AMERICOM
609-987-4555
Satellite Communications
Sevis Systems
770-536-2425
http://www.sevis.com
Fraud Solution
TriVium Systems, Inc
877-439-9338 x320
http://www.triviumsys.com
Call Accounting, Call Recording &
Traffic Analysis
Viziqor Solutions
Shenzhen Koncept Technology
Development Co.,Ltd
(86)755 82197307 x823
http://www.konceptusa.com
VOIP
SMART NETWORK SOLUTIONS
305-808-7361
http://www.smartisvoip.com
Integration of projects in IP communications
snom technology AG
++49-(0)30-39833 x113
http://www.snom.com
Manufacturer SIP VoIP Phones
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Sphere Communications Inc.
847-793-9600 x300
http://www.spherecom.com
IP PBX & Unified Communications
508-248-9896
http://www.viziqor.com
Revenue Assurance
VoiceStamps.com
469-272-4688 x1
http://www.voicestamps.com
Call Recording, Verbal Contracts,
TPV, Pay by Phone
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premium advertisers,
please visit
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VoX Communications
813-217-9777
http://www.voxcorp.net
Residential and Business VoIP
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
Voxbone
+32 22 18 55 39
http://www.voxbone.com
Origination Services
WildPackets
925-937-3200
http://www.wildpackets.com
Distributed Network Analysis Solutions
Please tell the vendors
you saw it in
INTERNET
TELEPHONY®
2007 Buyers’ Guide
www.itmag.com
SysMaster Corporation
877-900-3993
http://www.sysmaster.com
VoIP, IPTV, WiFi Solutions
Telanetix
858-362-2250
http://www.telanetix.com
Telepresence
Telco Systems,
a BATM Company
800-221-2849 x2250
http://www.telco.com
VoIP Gateway,VoIP IAD, VDSL,
IP/Ethernet Switches / Demarc,
TDM, Fiber Transport
TelStrat
972-543-3500
http://www.TelStrat.com
VoIP Call Recording/Logging
TiVi
+371 7881005
http://www.tivi.com
VoIP on smartphones
(Symbian and Windows Mobile)
over 3G, EV-DO, GPRS and WiFi
TMONE
877-868-2586
http://www.TMone.com
Customer Acquisition, Lead
Generation, Lists Services, &
Project Managment
Toshiba America Information
Systems, Telecom Systems Div.
949-583-3700
http://www.telecom.toshiba.com
Wireless IP Phones, FeatureFlex,
digital phones, softphones,
Client Software
(See our enhanced listing in the
alphabetical section.)
TransNexus
404-526-6060
http://www.transnexus.com
GKTMP Route Server
INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 117
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able of
contents
Index
VoIP MARKETPLACE
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premium advertisers,
please visit
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118 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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ADVERTISING INDEX
Advertiser/
Web Address
Page
Number
Advertiser/
Web Address
Page
Number
Advertiser/
Web Address
Page
Number
911 Enable ...............................................19
I.S. Associates..........................................41
PointOne ................................................118
http://www.911enable.com
http://www.isassoc.com
http://www.pointone.com
ABP International .....................................53
i3 Networks ..............................................73
http://www.i3net.us
Profitec Billing .........................................37
http://www.abptech.com
AdTran..............................................Cover 3
iAgentNetwork..........................................77
http://www.profitecinc.com
http://www.adtran.com
http://www.iagentnetwork.com
Affinity VoIP Telecom...............Cover 4, 118
IMS Expo..................................................45
http://www.quintum.com
http://www.affinityvoiptelecom.com
http://www.imsforum.org
Allworx....................................................2-3
IMS Forum ...............................................39
http://www.allworx.com
CDR-Data ...............................................118
http://www.cdr-data.com
Communications Developer
Conference ...............................................69
http://www.voipdeveloper.com
http://www.imsforum.org
http://www.samsung.com/bcs
http://www.itexpo.com
Seawolf Technologies...............................55
http://www.seawolftech.com
Iwatsu ......................................................57
http://www.iwatsu.com
Snom Technology ............................63, 118
JPS Communications...............................25
Dialogic ....................................................11
http://www.dialogic.com
Dirigosoft ...................................................5
http://www.dirigosoft.com
Fusion Telecom ......................................110
http://www.fusiontel.com
GL Communications.................................65
http://www.snom.com
Solegy Systems........................................97
Kontron ....................................................17
http://www.kontron.com
http://www.communitechservices.com
Samsung..........................................Cover 2
IT Expo East......................Between 48 & 49
http://www.jps.com
CommuniTech Services............................35
RadiSys............................................15, 118
http://www.radisys.com
Communigate Systems ............................21
http://www.communigate.com
Quintum Technologies..............................49
http://www.solegy.com
Synnex .....................................................23
Minacom ..................................................29
http://www.synnex.com
http://www.minacom.com
Tadiran America ...............................33, 118
MultiTech Systems ...................................31
http://www.tadiranamerica.com
http://www.multitech.com
Nortel Networks .......................................43
http://www.nortel.com
Packet8.....................................9, 46-47, 59
http://www.packet8.net
pbxnsip ....................................................51
Teleformix ................................................27
http://www.teleformix.com
Touchstone Technologies .......................117
http://www.touchstone-inc.com
USA Datanet........................................60-61
http://www.pbxnsip.com
http://www.usadatanet.com
GlobalTouch Telecom .........................7, 118
Pipeline Telecom ......................................65
Vox Communications ...............................13
http://www.globaltouchtelecom.com
http://www.pipelinetelecom.com
http://www.voxcorp.net
http://www.gl.com
®
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INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006 119
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By Greg Galitzine
VoIP Goes Viral
As I mentioned in a recent entry on my TMCnet.com blog, I’m a huge fan of
mainstream televised commercials for VoIP services and triple play bundles,
and so on. The reasons are fairly obvious, in that it’s an industry that I’ve been
following for close to a decade now, and there’s a certain sense of satisfaction
knowing that a product category that was derided as a hobbyist’s plaything is
now regarded as a major industry-changing force.
I should admit that I’m sort of a ‘commercial junkie’ who
and conferencing server. . . do you see where this is going?
watches the Super Bowl as much for the ads as the game, and
Any person can install this on their home computer, with a
used to relish those Dick Clark specials featuring international domain of their choosing, and become SIP enabled with
commercials. One of my all-time favorites — and one of the
access to their IP Communications anywhere in the world.
most popular commercials — featured a group of small chilThat means a small company, or home user can flip open
dren sitting together in a tub, until a stream of bubbles perco- their laptop and connect to a WiFi network at the airport,
lates to the top, resulting in a group of small children sitting
read email, IM, and receive phone calls, all with their one
in a tub as far apart as possible from a single child who, well,
SIP-based email address.
you know the commercial I’m talking about.
Small business users will have a wide choice of clients (SIP
These days, if you want to see an international commercial, phones, soft clients, IM clients, browsers, etc.) and they will
or perhaps even an international VoIP commercial, you need
be able to send and receive all IP Communications via a single
simply surf on over to YouTube, where a search yields some
account, which is identified by their email address.
interesting results. For example, I was not aware that
Communications will be open to every other SIP-based appliAustralian companies had cornered the market on VoIP comcation, and will remain vendor agnostic.
mercials, as evidenced by creative content from Koala
The Community Edition will ship with a Flash-based user
Broadband and a company called Engin. Brazil returned a
interface that can do email, IM, and audio calls, a softphone,
huge number of results too, although apparently VoIP in Sao
and will offer out-of-the-package compatibility with many
Paolo can cost as much as $49.95 U.S. . . . kind of defeats the SIP phones, like Polycom, Linksys, and others.
purpose, no? Then again, I do hear that the lucky Brazilians
CommuniGate Pro might eventually be deployed via the
have access to up to 8 MB/s of broadband, so maybe the price home entertainment environment on devices such as cable
reflects that as well. Or maybe it’s to offset the cost of hiring
and DSL modems as these devices begin to empower the
all those beautiful people to star in their commercials?
home or family domain for all IP Communications.
The purpose of this article however, is not to espouse my
I’m not usually that gung-ho over individual products, but
affection for the advertising industry’s efforts, but rather to
every once in a while I see something that looks like it might
point to the fact that VoIP (define - news - alert) service
be a winner out of the gate. This might be one of those times.
providers are beginning to ply their trade within the booming I’d still like to download the product and put it to the test in
online viral video market, best represented by YouTube.
my home environment, so I will reserve final judgment, but I
So, it seems that even the world’s best marketers, armed
have to admit, I came away from a recent meeting — indeed
with a service built upon a
several conversations spread
major cost advantage, are reachacross six months — with
ing out for tools such as
CommuniGate execs with a very
Every once in a while I see
YouTube and other online viral
positive feeling.
Getting back to the whole
marketing techniques. And
something that looks like it
viral marketing point,
there’s absolutely nothing wrong
CommuniGate is offering this
might be a winner out of the gate.
with it.
software as a free download for a
One company that might be
T
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i
s
m
i
g
h
t
b
e
o
n
e
o
f
t
h
o
s
e
t
i
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e
s
.
limit of five users. The free
on the verge of engaging in a litdownload is available now, but
tle viral marketing is
starting at the end of November,
CommuniGate Systems. The
CommuniGate will begin a
company is about to release a version of its CommuniGate
major effort promoting this solution. So surf on over to
Pro product that has been scaled down to serve up to five
CommuniGate’s site (http://www.communigate.com) and
users. The CGP Community Edition is designed for small
check out CGP Community Edition. IT
companies and home users, however it will offer all the beneGreg Galitzine is Group Editorial Director for TMC’s IP
fits that larger enterprises have come to expect: a full email
Communications Group.
server, SIP and Presence Server, IM Server, voice mail, PBX,
120 INTERNET TELEPHONY® December 2006
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