BroadSoft (News - Alert), a provider of VoIP application software, and Microsoft, reportedly announced the availability of a hosted unified communications service that helps businesses improve productivity and enhance communications.

 

Unified communications integrates various communication options such as instant messaging, email, phone and video, enabling businesses to integrate communications features with business process software such as customer relationship management, accounting and enterprise resource planning.

 

The combined solution from BroadSoft and Microsoft (News - Alert) provides the advantage of hosted software plus services to businesses, and helps reduce infrastructure costs. It improves the way employees communicate and results in increased productivity across all functional areas.

 

The unified communications offering is built on Microsoft Solution for Hosted Messaging and Collaboration version 4.5 and is integrated with BroadSoft’s BroadWorks business telephony platform.

 

BroadWorks VoIP application software is the company’s flagship product, which empowers wireless, wireline and cable carriers to deliver next-generation voice and multimedia applications and advanced features. BroadSoft’s family of carrier-class software products delivers the scale, open architecture and reliability required by telecommunications companies to serve mission-critical enterprise and residential broadband customers.

 

“Our combined hosted unified communications solution is moving the market to a new era where voice, data and video are seamlessly integrated, which allows service providers to bring to market next-generation communication services to their customers,” said Michael Tessler, chief executive officer and president of BroadSoft.

 

According to Tessler, the new solution integrates telephony and desktop applications without the carrying costs of premise equipment and support; hence, it delivers productivity benefits to all types of businesses. 

 

“Today’s announcement with BroadSoft is another step in Microsoft’s software plus services strategy to provide customers with the power of choice for their cloud computing initiatives,” said Alex Danyluk, industry director of the global telecom business for the Communications Sector at Microsoft.

 

“With a hosted solution, service providers have the opportunity to offer small and medium-sized businesses powerful productivity tools often only available to larger corporations,” Danyluk added.