In an era that is dominated by instant messaging, e-mail, SMS and other instant forms of communication, some people might ask whether fax communication is still relevant. In fact, a large number of business transactions are conducted via fax, usually IP fax, especially when dealing with purchase orders and other transactional documents. Many companies in the healthcare field also rely on fax transmissions due to legal restrictions, and IP fax solutions lead the way in this space.
In addition to the healthcare vertical, other types of businesses rely on faxes as well, including manufacturing, financial services and transportation. Indeed, the market for IP fax servers is expected to have a compound annual growth rate of 10.9 percent, resulting in $360 million market by 2016, according to analysis from Davidson Consulting.
Though fax technology has been around since the mid-19th century, it is only in recent years, with the growth of the IP fax industry, that is has become more efficient, saving paper as well as time and money.
Many companies are opting to use cloud-based IP fax solutions to further reduce costs and complexity. Others businesses are using hybrid solutions that have on-premise fax servers that can integrate with other communications platforms, including e-mail, CRM, ERP, document management, imaging and other platforms while still maintaining cloud telephony.
One company that is at the cutting edge of IP fax technology is Sagemcom. Its XMediusFAX solution provides capabilities such as compatibility with Avaya IP Office 8.0 as well as other major unified communications platforms, including Microsoft (News - Alert) Lync.
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Edited by Brooke Neuman