Alcatel-Lucent Eyes Next-Gen UC with Web-Based 5155 Rich Communications Manager

Unified communications long has been a buzz term in IT, and it’s become increasingly common to hear providers tout technologies that allow end users to check their e-mail and gain automatic access to photographs, contacts, a calendar, video e-mail and instant messages while dragging and dropping photographs into their own personal Web spaces and blogging about their day.

 

And all of that while listening to music.

 

Today, the communications technology space is looking toward Las Vegas, where a Paris-based voice, data and video solutions provider is preparing to launch a new UC solution that’s expected to garner close attention in the market.

 

Officials at Alcatel-Lucent say their “5155 Rich Communications Manager” provides a Web framework to bring together messaging, network address book, and other services with seamless interoperation.

 

Its WebDesk interoperates with other Alcatel-Lucent (News - Alert) offerings, such as the 5100 Converged Messaging System, the 5410 XDMS Network Address Book, and the 5110 SMSC, company officials say. Importantly, especially in this slower economy, the solution’s standards-based interfaces can be integrated with other network elements to provide converged and unified messaging.

 

Set for launch at CTIA Wireless 2009, the Rich Communications Manager operates through a single Web portal to provide enhanced messaging and communications to fixed, mobile, and IP devices. Some are calling Alcatel’s product an answer to Google (News - Alert) Voice.
 

Here’s a screen capture of the product (click image to enlarge):

 

 

With its new functionality, Alcatel-Lucent officials say, mobile and wireline end users can retrieve, view, respond, and forward video, photos and text from a Web portal that also integrates address books between user devices.

 

TMCnet had a chance to put some questions about the new product to Ray Colbert, Alcatel-Lucent’s director of Rich Communication marketing strategy.

 

What we discovered during our interview – printed in full below – is that Alcatel-Lucent put a lot of thought not only behind streamlining communications and saving costs for businesses, but also paid attention to end users’ habits and the rising popularity of social networking tools such as Facebook (News - Alert) and Twitter.

Specifically, Colbert told us, Alcatel-Lucent understands that the Web is where innovation is happening now. Grasping that, Alcatel-Lucent developed Rich Communication Manager and so-called “WebCom widgets.” The company envisions widgets and mash-ups for photos, songs and videos, that seamlessly integrate social networking sites, like Facebook and MySpace (News - Alert), with a service provider’s communication assets – a network address book, presence, location, voice mail, voice calling, SMS/MMS.

 

Our exchange follows.

 

 

Ray Colbert (pictured left): The Web-based aspect is very important. The Web is where rapid innovation is happening. The pace of innovation is fast and getting faster. The Alcatel-Lucent Rich Communications Manager extends the mobile device to the rich Web 2.0 mash-up environment on the end user’s personal computer.

 

By blending activities previously only available on mobile handsets with services on the Internet, exciting new personalized experiences for consumers and businesses are created. This includes the convenience of unified messaging – being able to access, manage and share all of their fixed and mobile messages and converged content in one place – a Web portal on your laptop – whether at home, work or on the move. It is all about delivering superior value. Customers are looking for value.

 

 

RC: The Web is also where there is a need for communication enablement. We hear a lot about Web-enabling communications. The flip side of that term is communication-enabling the Web. The Web is where new communications paradigms are being created.

 

Words like Twitter and Facebook are becoming verbs. This is where the Rich Communication Manager and WebCom widgets come into play. The kinds of widgets and mashups Alcatel-Lucent envisions include user content – such as photos, songs and videos, and Social Networking WebCom widgets that seamlessly integrate social networking sites, like Facebook and MySpace, with service provider’s communication assets – Network Address book, presence, location, voice mail, voice calling, SMS/MMS.

 

 

RC: End users will appreciate the Rich Communications Manager’s familiar desktop paradigm, which makes it simple and intuitive to use. It leverages common desktop concepts, such as windows, sizing arrows, navigation bars and drag and drop capability. Therefore, end users can, for example, contact information – mobile number, e-mail address or v-card – in a Network Address Book can be dragged and dropped into another application. By extending mobile services, such as SMS, MMS, buddy lists and voice mail to the Web, wireless subscribers can also use the larger screen and keyboard to keep in touch with their mobile service from work and home.

 

 

RC: Today, people must check both their mobile devices for voice-mail, SMS and MMS messages, as well as their laptops for e-mail, faxes and IM. The Rich Communications Manager enables you to see all fixed and mobile messages in one place to provide convenience and efficiency. For instance, you can work uninterrupted on your laptop while still monitor incoming calls, which you can both listen to or read a transcription of, and promptly respond with w text message or share the call contents via e-mail with friends, family or colleagues.

 

RC: Alcatel-Lucent’s Applications Enablement strategy focuses on leveraging open platforms to enable the blending of traditional mobile and Web 2.0 services, as well as their rapid introduction. The Rich Communications Manager is built on such an open platform to allow modules and widgets to be easily added by Alcatel-Lucent, service providers or third parties.

 

Alcatel-Lucent is planning to release social networking, multimedia albums, videoshare modules in the future. Likewise, the open platform also allows service providers and third party developers to rapidly bring to market new applications tailored to their target customers to differentiate themselves in the marketplace.

 

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