Cisco Introduces The Cisco XR 12000 Series Routers

Cisco Systems introduced the Cisco XR 12000 Series routers, which represents the combination of the Cisco Internetworking Operating System (IOS) XR software with the capabilities of the Cisco 12000 Series routers in a strategy designed to foster network convergence and extend investment protection for service providers. As with the Cisco CRS-1 Carrier Routing System, the Cisco XR 12000 Series is powered by Cisco IOS XR software, the industry’s first fully modular, self-healing operating system designed specifically for carrier-class routing platforms that can scale and distribute processing. Cisco IOS XR software allows customers flexibility in terms of adding new features or patches via In Service Software Upgrades (ISSU), built-in reliability, and uptime.

Offering key features such as secure virtualization, continuous system operation, and multiservice scale, the Cisco XR 12000 provides intelligent routing solutions scaling from 2.5 gigabits-per-second (gpbs) to nX 10 gbps per slot. With its unique ServiceFlex design and Service Separation Architecture, the Cisco XR 12000 Series allows service providers to isolate public and private services through the secure virtualization of a single router into separate physical and logical routing domains.

Continuous system operation is based on the self-healing and self-defending capabilities of the IOS XR software, which is designed for always-on operation while scaling capacity and adding new services or features. And with distributed processing intelligence and robust quality of service and multicast mechanisms, the Cisco XR 12000 Series allows providers to scale service attach points like FR/ATM, L2/L3 VPN and customer attach points such as queues and access control lists, while simultaneously scaling performance. Also, Cisco’s new Interface Flexibility (I-Flex) design for Shared Port Adapters (SPAs) and SPA Interface Processors (SIPs) provides broad interface options for the Cisco XR 12000 Series.

DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz), Germany’s national research and education network that provides high-performance infrastructure for the German educational and research communities, has been evaluating the Cisco XR 12000.
“The modular design of the software in the Cisco XR 12000 dramatically enhances our ability to maintain service levels and performance,” said Hubert Waibel, head of the Network Operating Center at DFN. “We are pleased with the progress Cisco is making to continually respond to our needs and add important features and capabilities that we can implement while maintaining high performance and complete stability.”

Cisco is providing a full toolkit of conversion tools, product literature, training, as well as commercial upgrade kits to assist customers who wish to migrate now or over the next few years to the Cisco XR 12000 Series. This provides investment protection and a seamless transition for more than 25,000 Cisco 12000 routers deployed globally.
The Cisco XR 12000 Series is expected to be available this month. The base configuration for the Cisco XR 12000 starts at a list price of $45,500. Upgrade options for the Cisco 12000 routers start at a list price of $12,500.

www.cisco.com

Laurel Networks Delivers “Drop-in” IP Video Routing Solution

Laurel Networks, Inc. announced a new “drop-in” IP Video Routing Solution designed to meet the needs of DSL access providers who want to begin offering video services. Based on Laurel’s ST200 broadband services router, the IP Video Routing Solution enables highly-reliable broadcast IPTV and VoD (Video on Demand) services alongside high-speed Internet and voice services. Laurel’s drop-in Video Routing Solution not only allows instant delivery of video over existing ATM-based DSL aggregation networks, it supports subscriber management and gigabit Ethernet port density to allow transition to higher-speed, Ethernet-based DSL network architectures.

“As the foundation for the new “drop-in” IP Video Routing Solution, Laurel’s ST200 broadband services router provides the high scalability needed to reliably meet the bandwidth demands of delivering video services. Laurel has enhanced this platform with a new Ethernet-optimized network processing blade that can deliver 10 gigabits per second of wire-speed performance and a complementary high-density 10-port gigabit Ethernet physical interface card. As DSL access networks transition from ATM to IP, Laurel’s gigabit Ethernet port density will allow direct connectivity to new Ethernet-based DSLAMs as well as provide high-speed connectivity to the IP backbone. For service providers who want to consolidate their networks immediately, the B-RAS capabilities of the Laurel platform allow it to be deployed as a combined video router/Internet service platform.

www.laurelnetworks.com

A Devil Of A Product For Business VoIP

Devil7, a fast growing UK VoIP service provider has chosen VegaStream as its OEM supplier of VoIP/TDM gateways and has re-branded the VegaStream range as the “Devil box” range. Targeting business customers, the Devil7 proposition is that by simply attaching the “Devil box” to their existing TDM equipment they will significantly reduce their phone bill and fully exploit the functionality of their TDM equipment.

Devil7 is part of the Fresh Media Group of specialist pre-print businesses servicing the quality print market. The original Devil7 business plan was to deliver VoIP services over the broadband network that has been built within the publishing community for large file image transfer applications. However the proposition is so powerful that it has found interest across the business market.

“We have a simple business proposition for the finance director. Connect your PBX to a Devil box and you can call all other Devil box users for free and dramatically reduce call charges to all other destinations,” said Andrew Berg, co-managing director of Devil7. “VegaStream have been fully supportive of our business idea and so we negotiated terms that allow us to bundle the cost of the Devil box within the customer’s service charge. The final proposition is a financial no brainer, especially when the customer has multiple sites,” said Berg.

“We decided to work with VegaStream to create the Devil box because they could provide the range of kit that met all our market needs from a single line for home workers to large sites supporting 120 simultaneous calls,” said Berg.

www.devil7.com
www.vegastream.com

SBC Communications Selects Amdocs For Project Lightspeed

SBC Communications Inc., announced that it has awarded a multi-million dollar, multi-year contract to Amdocs to support Project Lightspeed, the SBC initiative to expand fiber optics deeper into neighborhoods to deliver IP-based TV, voice, and broadband services.

Amdocs will provide the SBC companies with a range of services to ensure high-quality customer service, as well as its IP (Internet Protocol) Convergence solution. The Amdocs IP Convergence solution is based on the Amdocs billing, customer relationship management (CRM), ordering and payment mediation products, combined with Amdocs consulting and systems integration services.

“The ability to rapidly launch competitive and innovative services, while delivering a differentiated customer experience, is essential for success in the new IP-based economy,” said Lea Ann Champion, SBC senior executive vice president. “We look forward to working with Amdocs.”

www.sbc.com
www.amdocs.com

Telic Adds Voicemail To VoIP Services Suite

Telic today announced the addition of the xVox Voicemail solution to its suite of managed VoIP services. The xVox Voicemail solution is a SIP based, software-only application specifically designed to be deployed in a service provider’s data center . Available as an a’la carte offering, or integrated as part of Telic’s SOHO Broadband solution, it provides all the functionality required to roll-out a business class SIP voicemail service to both enterprises and consumers. With administrative accessibility via Web or telephone, the xVox voicemail solution offers the convenience and flexibility that VoIP consumers demand.

Because the xVox voicemail solution was created using VoiceXML technology, it has the flexibility and extensibility necessary to support new features and capabilities in a timely and cost-effective manner. The system runs on commercially available off-the-shelf components and the Sun Solaris operating system, with no proprietry hardware or DSP boards required.

www.telic.net

Rodopi Launches Hosted AAA RADIUS

Rodopi Software has announced the launch of its Hosted AAA RADIUS solution, which collects up-to-the-minute usage information and strict user authentication for IP services in a fully hosted environment. Hosted RADIUS allows service providers to offer all types of metered usage applications, including VoIP, mobility, pre-paid cards, wireless hotspots and others by communicating allowable session time to gateways and access points. Session time is then collected by Hosted RADIUS and communicated to the OSS application for real time billing.

Combined with Rodopi’s EasyOSS, Hosted RADIUS offers service providers a 100 percent web-based business platform that automates billing, provisioning, customer care and RADIUS functionality without the expertise and expense associated with building and maintaining data center facilities. Hosted RADIUS and EasyOSS are available to IP service providers now.

www.rodopi.com

Rio Rancho, NM: Municipal
Voice over WiFi No Longer Just Under The Microscope
By Robert Liu

This week, much of the wireless LAN (WLAN) community again reconvened in Philadelphia to discuss government’s role in wireless networking. And while the merits of “social good of government-sponsored WiFi versus free market trade” are debated, one thing is clear: Talk is cheap!

Take case in point Rio Rancho, NM. The city of 64,000 residents, which is sometimes referred to as “Silicon Mesa” because of the number of high tech companies headquartered there, has rolled out a carrier-class, metro-wide Voice over WiFi telephone service that competes with the traditional incumbent’s local loop. The VoWiFi (a.k.a. VoWLAN) network is believed to be the largest of its kind deployed in a metropolitan area in the U.S.

The deployment represents the combined efforts of Azulstar Networks of Grand Haven, Mich., who served as the system integrator; Ecuity of Bellevue, Wash., who was the VoIP service provider; Meru Networks of Sunnyvale, Calif., who was the WLAN equipment vendor; Proxim, who handled the pre-WiMax backhaul; and local officials.

“By partnering with governments, technology leaders and other service providers, we are able to quickly design and deploy Wi-Fi / WiMAX mobile networks and services like the one we’ve deployed in Rio Rancho,” said Tyler van Houwelingen, Azulstar CEO.
The coverage area spans over 60 percent of Rio Rancho and is now available for residential, business and mobile telephone users throughout the 505 area code. Pricing for residential fixed/mobile phone service has been set at $29.95/line for unlimited calling within the USA and Canada.

The Azulstar Business service adds 4-digit inter-company calling, a fax line and a Soft-PBX, which eliminates PBX hardware and provides a suite of centralized call control. In a press release, Azulstar said it expects typical small business to save between 40 to 60 percent off of their current bill and in most cases can leverage existing hardware.

The service comes as the latest research shows VoIP revenue topped $1.3 billion in North America last year. The market for VoIP services is projected to skyrocket to $19.9 billion by 2009, according to Infonetics.

“As carriers migrate their network towards IP over the next 5 years, more services are inevitably next generation VoIP services. This is a very early look, as VoIP services revenue represents less than 1 percent of total wireline carrier revenue in North America in 2004,” said Kevin Mitchell, directing analyst for Infonetics and author of the report.

The Rio Rancho network uses some 200 access points provided by Meru Networks. The data portion of the WiFi cloud went live back in January. Through Ecuity, the voice service is now fully SIP-compliant. Features included with all calling plans include caller ID, call forwarding, voice mail over e-mail, multi-party calling, call waiting and Web based call control manager.

Azulstar said it also plans to add seamless roaming in and out of cellular CDMA and GSM networks later this year.
According to In-Stat, about 85 percent of respondents to a recent survey said they were interested in using dual-mode VoWLAN/cellular handsets.

www.azulstar.com

Symbol Expands Wireless Security, Management Portfolio

Symbol Technologies, Inc., announced a suite of products designed to enable a higher level of security for wireless networks and continue driving the adoption of enterprise mobility. New product line enhancements include the Symbol Wireless Intrusion Protection System (IPS) security solution; RF (radio frequency) Management, a network performance and management tool; and the next generation WS2000 wireless switch. All products will be generally available beginning in the third quarter.

Symbol Wireless IPS is a security solution for monitoring, detecting, and preventing intrusions to a wireless network. Wireless IPS is fully integrated within Symbol’s enterprise-class wireless switch portfolio, enabling comprehensive wireless network security. As WiFi becomes the new network edge — the point where a user, mobile devices, and services access the network — the wireless network can become difficult to define and control. Wireless IPS is designed to alert IT and network security managers of network utilization policy violations, internal and external attacks, bandwidth stealing and threats to the network integrity. Wireless IPS will detect and protect the network from any unauthorized and malicious radio-based device or activities. IT and network security managers that do not allow Wi-Fi access to their networks can be confident that this policy is being enforced with Symbol’s Wireless IPS.

www.symbol.com

SpectraLink Demonstrates First Of Its Kind Wi-Fi Handset

SpectraLink Corp. recently demonstrated its commitment to interoperability and industry standards with a live demo of the industry’s first WiFi handsets to support new wireless security and quality of service (QoS) standards. SpectraLink’s NetLink Wireless Telephones support the WiFi Alliance’s WPA (WiFi Protected Access) and WPA2 security specifications, which are based on the IEEE 802.11i standard. The WPA and WPA2 specifications provide wireless LAN security solutions that are compatible with new and existing WiFi infrastructure equipment. With support for the WiFi Alliance’s WMM (WiFi Multimedia) QoS specification, which is based on the IEEE 802.11e standard, NetLink Wireless Telephones provide excellent voice quality while sharing a Wi-Fi network with other voice and data applications.

SpectraLink’s NetLink Wireless Telephone portfolio is designed to meet the communication needs for enterprises of any size in an array of industries. NetLink Wireless Telephones operate as client devices on wireless LANs utilizing the IEEE 802.11b (WiFi) global standard, allowing converged mobile voice and data applications on a single wireless infrastructure. SpectraLink Voice Priority (SVP), a quality of service (QoS) mechanism, is employed on the wireless LAN to ensure excellent voice quality with minimal impact on data throughput.

www.spectralink.com

Report: Wireless Equipment Market To Reach$29.3 Billion By 2008

WiFi and WiMAX infrastructure revenue are expected to reach $5.2 billion and $115 million respectively in 2005, according to TIA’s 2005 Telecommunications Market Review and Forecast. The WiFi equipment market is increasing at a fast pace and will continue to grow as hot spots proliferate. An emerging WiMAX equipment market will also contribute to growth in the coming years. The report maintains that revenue from spending on wireless capital expenditures/Wi-Fi/WiMAX are expected to reach an estimated $22.3 billion in 2005, climbing to $29.3 billion by 2008, a 7.1 percent compound annual gain.

Spending on services in support of the wireless infrastructure (including WiFi and WiMAX), such as basic services and support (e.g., field maintenance and repair), professional services, and depot repair and logistics rose 13.6 percent in 2004, rebounding from the 31.8 percent drop in 2003 associated with the drop in wireless infrastructure spending.

“With the Wi-Fi and WiMAX markets expanding rapidly, we will begin to see more demand for mobile broadband and broadband connectivity. Major carriers such as SBC, Verizon and Sprint have already announced deals to expand the number of hot spots and to broaden their networks,” stated TIA President Matthew J. Flanigan. “It is likely that both of these markets will stimulate the overall broadband market to the benefit of all technologies.”

www.tiaonline.org

Aculab Announces Prosody X Next Generation Media Processing

Aculab has announced the launch of its next generation media processing resources platform — Prosody X.
For developers seeking maximum flexibility and value per channel, Prosody X provides a highly configurable card that combines Aculab’s proven media processing resources, IP telephony and TDM digital network access functions.

Unlike competitors’ cards that offer a fragmented set of functions focused toward one application only, Prosody X offers the ultimate flexibility to developers who can select the functions required to scale a wide range of low to high density applications. On-board IP architecture makes the product distributable amongst different chassis platforms offering resilience and scalability as well as future proofing solutions as they move to IP.

Preliminary channel counts for fully configured cards with basic speech processing are running at 1200 for the cPCI and 600 for PCI variants. Its rich blend of basic and advanced speech, fax and data features coupled with the price makes Prosody X an extremely attractive option for any developer looking to create large scale VoIP applications like IVRs and ACDs.

Speaking about the launch, Chris Gravett, Aculab’s Sales and Marketing Director said, “This is an exciting time for Aculab. We’re confident that Prosody X is going to take the industry by storm. We already have demand from customers who can’t wait to get their hands on the product and we know that they will be extremely impressed when they deploy it in their solutions. The pricing strategy is set to be aggressive, ensuring the best value for our customers whilst growing our market share.”

www.aculab.com

GL Communications Introduces New Boards

GL Communications, Inc., announced the release of a new generation of high density (HD) T1/E1 boards. This new series of T1/E1 HD boards is designed to process hundreds of channels or timeslots simultaneously on T1 and E1 lines. These boards are smaller, more efficient, and significantly faster as compared to PCI boards, and they are fully compatible with the latest T1/E1 software that includes several new applications and enhancements.

Some highlights of the High Density T1 E1 boards:

• Form Factor of the new HD boards is much smaller, its size being 4.2” x 7.1” as compared to the older boards 4.2” x 9.2”.
• Speed of the HD boards is significantly greater. The new boards use DMA and a 32-bit wide bus as compared to the older boards that used an interrupt driven scheme and a 16-bit wide bus.
• CPU Utilization with the newer boards is negligible. One can easily put 12 new dual HD boards in one rack system running many applications on all 24 ports simultaneously.

Additionally, unlike older boards, new HD Boards are compatible with Dual Processor motherboards and software that simulates dual processors (i.e. Hyper-Threading). Improved On-Board Logic provided by upgraded FPGA can handle almost all specialized functions with a single load mechanism unlike the multiple loads on older boards. This permits special applications to be run simultaneously without T1/E1 line interference associated with unloading and loading of multiple applications. For example FDL applications can be run simultaneously with BERT or Error Insertion applications.
Currently HD boards are only available in Dual T1 and Dual E1 port versions with compatible T1/E1 Analyzer Software.

www.gl.com

STMicroelectronics, Octasic In Agreement On ICs

STMicroelectronics, and Octasic, Inc., announced that the two companies have signed an agreement to deliver a family of leading-edge Voice-over-Packet (VoP) ICs.

The first ICs developed under this agreement will be based on ST’s world-class 0.13-µm and 90-nm semiconductor process technology and Octasic’s designs for Voice over Packet (VoP) and Voice Quality Enhancement (VQE), which includes technology for line and acoustic echo cancellation, noise reduction capabilities, vocoding and packetization. The first IC of the family will be available in Q205, with the second one shortly afterwards. The agreement also provides for the development of future system-on-chip (SoC) VoP devices which will be implemented in 90-nm and below process technologies.

Michel Laurence, CEO of Octasic, said “A successful business relationship is built by forming alliances that help customers obtain a reliable source of high-performance technology.”

www.octasic.com
www.st.com

VOCAL Announces Single-Processor VoIP ATA

A single-processor design announced by VOCAL Technologies, Ltd. will enable the development of inexpensive equipment that allows homes and small businesses to add telephone lines to their broadband services. VOCAL’s innovative reference design for a VoIP analog telephone adapter (ATA) is based on the TMS320C55x low-power digital signal processor (DSP) generation and analog technology from Texas Instruments.

VOCAL’s ATA reference design incorporates TI’s TMS320C5502 DSP alongside power management and analog logic devices. The C5502 device provides all the signal processing and control functionality needed to digitally encode and decode two conventional analog phone calls, then packetize them for transmission using the Internet Protocol (IP) over a broadband service provided by a cable or DSL modem. The programmable 200-megahertz (MHz) C5502 DSP from TI enabled VOCAL to integrate all of the necessary software functions and still have more than 25 percent of the DSP’s performance left over for future product enhancements.

The VOCAL ATA design also incorporates five high-performance analog power management and analog logic devices from TI to efficiently manage the ATA’s power system. The TPS54350 SWIFT (Switcher With Integrated FET Technology) 3-A DC/DC converter provides greater than 90 percent efficiency with its accurate regulation of operating voltage down to 0.891 volts.

The VOCAL ATA design promotes cost-efficiency, fast time-to-market and ease of implementation for value-added features in a broad range of customer premise equipment.

www.ti.com

Performance Technologies Unveils New IPnexus Blade

Performance Technologies introduced the IPnexus CPC300 Advanced PTMC Carrier Blade, allowing system integrators to flexibly create custom functionality by populating it with industry-standard modules to fulfill their specific application requirements.

The CPC300 can be used with a wide array of PTMC modules available today, ranging from telecom I/O cards, DSP cards or packet processing modules. Developers can then use the CPC300 and the NexusWare Core environment to yield equipment such as media and signaling gateways, wireless infrastructure equipment, IP media equipment, telecom switching/routing equipment and SS7 network elements.

The CPC300 comes equipped with NexusWare Core, Performance Technologies’ Linux-based board support package (BSP) that provides a powerful development, integration and management environment. Pricing for the CPC300 starts at $4,695, and it is available immediately.

www.pt.com

ADLINK Releases Latest COM

ADLINK Technology Inc., has released its latest Computer on Module (COM) based on the ETX form factor, the ETX-IV266. The new ETX-IV266 supports ULV Mobile Intel Celeron at 400/650MHz or LV Mobile Intel Pentium III-M at 800/933MHz in an uFCBGA package (soldered onboard). This is the only module in the market in the low-to-medium performance class that supports DDR-based SODIMMs. The onboard 200-pin SODIMM socket supports up to 1GB.

The ETX-IV266 comes with standard support for embedded features such as RS-232 console redirection, watchdog timer, COMS EEPROM backup of BIOS settings for battery-less operation, USB booth/legacy and PXE. The board has been designed to minimize power usage and heat dissipation allowing fanless operation when using ULV Celeron type processors.

ADLINK Technology’s ETX product line includes modules based on the low power VIA Eden ESP CPU, Mobile Intel Celeron and Intel Pentium M processors. For core module evaluation, a prototype board with ATX form factor is available. All modules are supported by BSPs for Microsoft Windows XP Embedded, Windows CE.NET, Linux and VxWorks.

www.adlinktech.com

Shunra Virtual Enterprise 3.5 Launched

Shunra Software Ltd., announced version 3.5 of its Shunra Virtual Enterprise solution. The new version addresses some of the most pressing areas of concern for IT professionals today, delivering enhanced automation for rapid testing and assurance of dynamically-changing network environments such as disaster recovery, business continuity, network load balancing, and data integrity. This version also includes expanded integration with related performance solutions, including Segue Software’s SilkPerformer, and scalability for modeling large distributed enterprises.

Key new features of Shunra Virtual Enterprise 3.5 include:

• Enhanced dynamic network emulation.
• Expanded end-user automation and integration.
• Enhanced scalability.

“The increasing complexity of today’s network infrastructures and applications is matched by management demands for increased flexibility, reliability, availability, and security. Whether it is large corporate users, offshore companies, or ISVs, all face demands for higher performance and quality in services and deliverables,” said Michael Azoff, Senior Research Analyst, Butler Group. “This latest version of Shunra’s Virtual Enterprise solution includes a number of enhancements that help customers face these challenges, and enable them to reduce risk in running large and/or complex IT departments, especially where mission critical applications are involved.”

www.shunra.com

IBM Brings WebSphere
To Cisco’s Customer
Voice Portal
By Robert Liu

When Laurent Philonenko left Genesys Telecommunications Labs last June and later re-emerged at Cisco Systems, IBM’s call center guru Bruce Morse saw it as an opportunity to open the networking giant’s eyes to the role that speech technologies can play in the call center arena.

Philonenko, who worked for Genesys’ parent company Alcatel prior to joining the call center software company in 2000, quickly rose through the ranks going from Senior Vice President and General Manager for Genesys’ Service Provider Business Unit to Executive Vice President and CTO. In August 2002, he became COO and in December 2003 added the responsibilities of President and CEO. But six months later Philonenko left Genesys.

While the circumstances surrounding his departure remain uncertain, one thing was clear. Philonenko’s arrival as Vice President and General Manager of Cisco’s Contact Center Business Unit meant that he brought with him a solid understanding of how Cisco could incorporate IBM’s platforms and technologies to expand its role in the call center industry.

“Laurent brings a different perspective to Cisco,” Morse, Vice President of Contact Center Solutions within IBM’s Software division, told TMCnet during a recent telephone briefing.

As Genesys CTO, Philonenko struck an alliance with IBM to deliver vertical market-specific contact center and CRM solutions. And with him now at Cisco, Morse found an ally that would help expand the existing ties that IBM Global Services had with Cisco.

As a result, IBM today is announcing it has partnered with Cisco to deliver speech-enabled self-service solutions to contact centers using IBM’s WebSphere Voice Server and Cisco’s Customer Voice Portal. Global availability of the joint Cisco and IBM solutions is planned for the second quarter of 2005.

IBM is primarily targeting contact centers in banking, insurance, telecommunications, healthcare, energy and utilities, retail, travel and transportation and consumer packaged goods. The solutions will initially support US, UK and Australian English; Chinese; Japanese; German; Spanish and Canadian French.

“The close integration of these technologies helps companies incorporate speech into today’s enterprises, ensuring the highest quality of service is delivered from any global location,” Philonenko said in his prepared statement.

But by adopting the WebSphere middleware platform, Cisco is also shutting the door on some of its customers that rely on an all-Microsoft environment. That’s because IBM’s application server relies on XML data to be parsed out in the VoiceXML standard while Microsoft uses Speech Application Language Tags (SALT) as a standard.

For example, Cisco has a partnership with Microsoft to enable its IP Communications Connector to support small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) using Microsoft Business Solutions CRM. But if any of them wanted to incorporate speech-enabled self-service solutions onto those CRM systems, those customers would be hard pressed. Morse said IBM currently has no connector modules that would enable cross-platform interoperability with WebSphere Voice Server.

To be sure, most IVR vendors have endorsed the VoiceXML standard, Morse said. And with this partnership, Cisco Customer Voice Portal will incorporate not only VoiceXML but also the open standard of Media Resource Control Protocol (MRCP), which facilitates integration of speech recognition and text-to-speech.

Cisco also will support IBM’s Reusable Dialog Components (RDC) initiative. RDCs are an open source, Java-based set of pre-built components that aid in the rapid development of speech applications. By offering software components using standards and programming models that Java developers are familiar with, the initiative has opened up speech development to millions of Java programmers, and speeded integration of Web and voice applications into the mainstream business infrastructure, the companies said. IBM contributed RDCs to the Apache Software Foundation last year.

www.ibm.com
www.cisco.com

Interactive Intelligence Announces Contact Center Suite Enhancements

Interactive Intelligence Inc., has announced enhancements to its contact center suite — Customer Interaction Center (CIC). The software upgrade provides broader desktop client support through several new client interfaces, as well as the introduction of enhanced Web self-service and e-mail response management capabilities.

“Our latest client enhancements were designed for faster deployment, simplified management, and more flexible and efficient communications,” said Interactive Intelligence president and chief executive officer, Dr. Donald E. Brown.

With this latest release, new options to CIC provide client integrations for Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft CRM, and Microsoft Great Plains, along with a new “thin” client version called Interaction Client .NET Edition for zero-effort deployment.

The new version of CIC also includes enhancements to its easy-to-use knowledge management system, called e-FAQ, which offers automated responses to e-mail and Web inquires. This functionality enables customers to reduce costs by speeding self-service resolution in response to contact center inquiries, thus freeing up agents’ time to deal with more complex interactions.

www.inin.com

FrontRange, VegaStream Team On IP Contact Center Solution

FrontRange Solutions USA, Inc., has certified VegaStream’s line of Vega SIP gateways as the first interoperable product for the FrontRange IP Contact Center (IPCC) solution. FrontRange and VegaStream are working together to help businesses improve customer communications in a cost-effective and scaleable manner, using cutting-edge VoIP technology.

FrontRange IPCC offers small to mid-size businesses enterprise-level features in a software solution, such as: virtual agent, Web-based application builder, real-time and historical reporting, and integration with GoldMine and HEAT.

“Our IP Contact Center offers businesses another cost-effective, feature-rich solution for increasing their customer retention and loyalty. FrontRange IPCC is easily managed, flexible, and works in an open architecture,” said Mike Heberling, Business Development Manager for FrontRange Solutions.

“IPCC uses the session initiation protocol known as SIP to interoperate with other network elements, like VegaStream’s Vega IP gateways,” Heberling continued. “We want to encourage businesses to migrate to a SIP-based, open architecture to take advantage of advanced customer service options.”

The Vega 400, provides a scaleable platform (from a fractional T1 or E1 to 120 voice calls) that coincides with many small and medium enterprises’ business plans. The Vega 50 also connects SMEs and small branch offices to IP networks, but on a smaller scale.

www.frontrange.com
www.vegastream.com

Altitude Software’s IPCC
“In a Box”

Altitude Software recently announced an innovative, “all-in-one” IP contact center solution.

The Altitude vBox, to become available in late 2005, is a turnkey solution that combines the Altitude uCI full multimedia contact center functionality with the benefits of IP networks in a reliable converged communications system, resulting in a cost effective, flexible IP contact center solution. Fully scalable, the solution can start with just a few seats and grow to meet each organization specific business needs.

The Altitude vBox provides businesses with an open standard, software-based contact centre solution allowing for decentralized end-points with centralized management; Historical and real time reporting; Intelligent routing; Universal queue; Inbound, outbound and blended voice; e-mail; Web collaboration, and chat; Screen pops; Data look up and Contact history. The solution integrates an open source IP-PBX, a Web-based configuration management interface, and an “Intel Inside” fully integrated network appliance within a small, elegant, robust box.

www.altitude.com

Voda One To Offer Leasing Through Advanced Funding Program

Voda One, a specialty distributor of networking and communications technology solutions, announced at that it is now offering qualified BusinessPartners more flexible financial terms through Avaya Financial Services’ Advanced Funding Program (AFP).
The Advanced Funding Program provides advanced funding to VARs on equipment sales and associated services that are being leased. As a result, the sales cycle is substantially reduced, with solution providers receiving payment on project completion versus a typical net 30- or 60-day basis.

Additionally, since less upfront cash is required in a leasing arrangement, end users are able to better manage their capital resources.

Chuck Thropp, chief financial officer, Westcon Group North America, commented: “Our arrangement with Avaya Financial Services helps solution providers create flexible leasing terms for their customers and helps end users make the most out of their capital resources. This can lead to enhanced sales opportunities for the solution provider since they are able to provide more flexible terms to their customers. Additionally, the Advanced Funding Program removes a substantial portion of the burden solution providers sometimes face with respect to collecting accounts receivable.”

Kiran Kapur, chief operating officer, Avaya Financial Services, a subsidiary of the CIT Group, Inc., added, “Our Advanced Funding Program is a powerful value-add complementing VodaOne’s other offerings to Avaya BusinessPartners. This program dramatically reduces the time it takes to complete the sales cycle, making transaction time more efficient for all concerned.”

www.vodaone.com
www.ileaseavaya.com

Westcon Canada To Distribute SpectraLink Portfolio

Westcon Canada, Inc., now has a distribution agreement with SpectraLink, the leader in workplace WiFi telephony. Under this agreement Westcon Canada will now distribute the SpectraLink Link Wireless Telephone System and the SpectraLink NetLink Wireless Telephones to its Canadian-based solution provider customers. SpectraLink Wireless Telephones integrate seamlessly with Westcon Canada’s enterprise telephony solutions, including those by Nortel Networks and Avaya.

SpectraLink Wireless Telephones are designed to provide enterprises with all the features and capabilities of advanced digital telephones in a lightweight, durable wireless handset designed specifically for diverse enterprise applications.

The Link WTS operates over the unlicensed 902-928 MHz band and integrates digitally with leading enterprise PBXs. NetLink Wireless Telephones allow for converged mobile voice and data on a single wireless infrastructure by operating as client devices on 802.11b wireless LANs. This allows enterprises to leverage their wireless LAN infrastructure investment for both voice and data devices.

Lynn Smurthwaite-Murphy, general manager of Westcon Canada, said, “By offering SpectraLink Wireless Telephones, we enable our solution providers to make a much stronger play in wireless markets such as healthcare, manufacturing, education and retail. The SpectraLink product portfolio complements our established competencies in convergence and wireless technologies, and we are able to offer unrivaled pre- and post-sales support for the entire product line.”

“Wireless communications is seen as a key differentiator and an increasingly necessary capability for many of our customers, particularly in our core customer bases including the retail, manufacturing and healthcare sectors,” said Kevin Williams, CFO of J&D Systems, a Mississauga-based solution provider. “SpectraLink’s wireless technology allows us to add wireless functionality to just about any type of enterprise network and completes the communications circle for our customers.”

www.westcongroup.com

CallWave Launches ISP Reseller Program

CallWave, Inc., announced the launch of its ISP Reseller Program. Under the program, dial-up and broadband ISPs can profitably resell CallWave’s VoIP-based call management application designed for consumers and small businesses.

Unlike VoIP services that require subscribers to replace their existing phone service, CallWave’s software-based VoIP application is designed to allow users to get more out of their existing landline, wireless, and Internet services without purchasing additional hardware. With CallWave, both dial-up and broadband ISP customers can receive important phone calls they otherwise would have missed, screen messages in real time, and instantly transfer incoming calls to the most convenient phone. CallWave users immediately know whether they’re receiving an emergency call from a family member, an important business call, or a telemarketer solicitation — giving them the power to decide to take the call.

“CallWave gives ISPs a VoIP-based offering that provides immediate and compelling value for subscribers — and it’s simple to use,” said Josh Fraser, Vice President of Business Development for CallWave.

Steve Mossbrook, President of Wyoming.com, a Midwest ISP, adds, “Our subscribers are able to take advantage of highly valuable services like Internet call waiting and real-time call screening and transfer through co-branded CallWave software. These new services help us to differentiate ourselves from other ISPs — enabling us to attract new customers and retain existing subscribers.”

www.callwave.com