HD Voice, SIP Trunking to be a Driving Force in 2010: ITEXPO Speaker

As greater technological advancements make their way into the communications technology sector, businesses and consumers, alike, are finding even better ways to enhance the way they communicate. And one such growing area is high-definition or HD voice services.

 

With an increasing number of HD features being added to IP communications products and services, it’s only a matter of time when the technology will become a market rule, an executive with a SIP-based security solutions provider, told TMCnet.

 

“HD Voice is going to become a force when the cost of ownership is low enough that the Return on Investment can be realized in a short time,” Steven Johnson, president of Ingate Systems, told TMC (News - Alert) CEO Rich Tehrani in an interview, printed in full below. “Consumers have been happy with the status quo for a long time, and we tolerate cell phone calls that can be truly “low definition” voice. When vendors can implement high definition voice quality at prices that are as low as today’s VoIP handsets, then HD Voice will rule the market. “

 

Johnson, who will be speaking at ITEXPO (News - Alert) East 2010 on “SIP Trunking - Issues, Opportunities, and Solutions,” on Jan. 22, also said that SIP Trunking proved its worth in a weak economy. And for 2010, SIP trunking will experience rapid growth.

 

The full exchange follows.

 

 

Steven Johnson (pictured below): Apple is a driving force that has reshaped the smartphone industry. I think it will be interesting to see how the Google phone impacts things, and where RIM falls in all of this. What’s key in that smartphones exemplify what we’ve been talking about with regard to the IP communications industry, and Unified Communications – that people want to communicate in a variety of ways, be it e-mail, phone, SMS etc.

 

 

SJ: HD Voice is going to become a force when the cost of ownership is low enough that the Return on Investment can be realized in a short time. Consumers have been happy with the status quo for a long time, and we tolerate cell phone calls that can be truly “low definition” voice. When vendors can implement high definition voice quality at prices that are as low as today’s VoIP handsets, then HD Voice will rule the market. Until then, and especially in this recession, people are satisfied with the quality they can get.

 

 

There are many to choose from that have the potential to revolutionize business communications. For example, Skype for Business and cable television companies entering the SIP trunking market could be a quantum shift in the delivery of business communications services.

 

Outside of the communications business I am personally a big fan of the ebook readers like Kindle, and I expect some big advances in those devices and the content available for them in 2010.

 

 

SJ: Concerns about the economy continued to drive a lot of decision-making in 2009. For Ingate, that heightened the value proposition of SIP trunking, which represents an investment that reduces costs and also positions the customer well for using SIP-based communications in the future. Also, for service providers, SIP trunks are an opportunity to build business and generate more revenue – at a relatively low cost. That’s one of the reasons why we launched the IX78 E-SBC, to meet this growing demand of service providers eager to leverage SIP trunking.  

 

We believe the value of SIP trunking has been proven, especially given its growth in a depressed economy. Now that things are starting to turn around, decision-makers are still keenly aware of the need to make smart investments. We anticipate that 2010 will be the year SIP trunking experiences exponential, rapid growth. And not only among “traditional” constituencies (end-users and now service providers), but cable companies and others.

SJ: President Obama has been required to establish policies for a variety of issues including the economy, health care and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. What has surprised me is the total lack of bipartisanship that is coming in the policies and decisions surrounding these issues. I am also surprised that he doesn’t have more people in his administration that are from the private sector. 

 

SJ: Anything that fosters innovation and competition.

 

SJ: For the communications industry, it is all about Unified Communications and giving businesses and consumers more features at lower costs.

 

SJ: Ingate’s SIP Trunk Seminars have become a key resource for educational information about SIP trunks. They have grown so much we’re now expanding the program into the SIP Trunk Summit, still a free opportunity for all ITEXPO attendees, but this time around we’re devoting several tracks to case studies. We’re also pulling in even more thought-leadership from the SIP Forum and others, and placing a greater emphasis on how SIP trunking positions customers to leverage global SIP communications moving forward. Security is also a prominent focus. VARs, end-users, carriers and anyone else looking to get more from their IP communications investments would all benefit greatly from the sessions we’re putting together for the SIP Trunk Summit. The complete schedule can be found here: www.ingate.com/SIP_Trunking_seminar_Miami_2010.php

 

 

SJ: Steve Ballmer (News - Alert) caught by TMZ at the local Starbucks using his iPhone in public.