In creating a new suite of enterprise products that enable easy deployment and use of mobile PBX integration software, EMCC has built up extensive expertise in mobile VoIP. EMCC has developed a cross-platform VoIP engine capable of being installed on S60, Windows Mobile and other platforms that may lack built-in VoIP capability. The comprehensive VoIP engine can easily be deployed “Over the Air” (OTA) to handsets based on S60 and other Smartphone platforms. It is a fully functional engine that does not rely on any of the in-built handset capabilities.
Nokia’s market leading smartphone platform S60 has been the foundation for some of the most exciting devices available and continues apace with the latest round of new releases. However, built-in VoIP capability is absent from some of the more recent models. This may presents a significant barrier to companies wishing to create VoIP applications or provide VoIP services.
“Our technical expertise and platform experience has enabled us to overcome a major hurdle that prevented effective deployment of a VoIP solution across the S60 platform which accounts for around 50% of the smartphone market” said Garry Partington, CTO. “We were concerned that the uncertainty caused by the absence of such a solution on certain handsets may be a limiting factor for companies wishing to develop VoIP solutions. EMCC understands the need to remove such uncertainty and are happy to discuss potential options with organizations wishing to pursue such a solution.
To arrange a discussion regarding our VoIP engine solution please email voip@emccsoft.com
HERNDON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A next-generation 4G wireless network based on mobile WiMAX technology debuted today in Baltimore, heralding the start of a new era for wireless consumers as Sprint (NYSE: S) officially launched XOHM(TM) mobile broadband commercial service in the first major U.S. city.
"This is truly an historic day with the birth of a completely new Internet-based business model that alters the dynamics of the traditional telecom industry," explained Barry West, president of Sprint's XOHM business unit. "Wireless consumers will experience WiMAX device and XOHM service innovation on multiple levels as the computer, Internet, telecom and consumer electronics industries converge to redefine wireless mobility."
XOHM WiMAX will extend the home or office Internet experience and mobile multimedia applications to other places and additional devices. With XOHM, consumers, businesses and local governments will ultimately be able to experience new forms of interactive communications, high-speed mobile Internet browsing, social-networking tools, location-centric services and multimedia including music, video and on-demand products at faster average downlink speeds of 2-4 Mbps. The data-centric XOHM broadband service differs from present wireless offerings in that:
Starting today, customers can purchase XOHM-branded Samsung Express air cards for $59.99 and ZyXEL modems for $79.99 via XOHM web, telesales or select Baltimore-area independent retailers. Additional WiMAX devices such as a ZTE USB modem, Intel Centrino 2 WiMAX notebook PCs and the Nokia N810 WiMAX Edition are expected in market later this year.
Introductory offers allow customers to choose from both daily and month-to-month service options. At launch, mobile WiMAX service plans include a $10 Day pass, $25 monthly Home Internet service and $30 monthly On-the-go service. Special launch pricing includes a $50 "Pick 2 for Life" monthly service option covering two different WiMAX devices. Visit www.xohm.com to view the current XOHM WiMAX coverage area, details of the introductory broadband service offerings and device sales information.
XOHM subscribers will be given free access to a unique and customizable Web site, called MyXOHM, focusing primarily on local services and entertainment content, as well as providing security services, hosted storage and interactive communications. After choosing preferences, subscribers will have their content pushed to a customized and location-aware portal via small digestible widgets.
XOHM continues to work with WiMAX ecosystem partners and others to incorporate WiMAX technology in a range of computing, portable multimedia, interactive and other business and consumer electronic devices, including the availability of XOHM WiMAX in vehicles for navigation information, news and entertainment.
Sprint will be the first and only national wireless carrier to offer customers a dual-mode 3G - 4G device that extends the power of Sprint's NOW network. Expected to launch in the fourth quarter, this Sprint device will operate on the nation's largest 3G mobile broadband network and the 4G network in Baltimore and other markets as WiMAX service becomes available.
The Baltimore XOHM service launch is one of the most rapid ever for new network development, approximately two years after Sprint's selection of WiMAX IEEE 802.16e as a technology standard and the formation of a charter WiMAX ecosystem with Intel, Samsung and Motorola. Those firms shared a common vision of next-generation mobility services predicated on an embedded chipset model and the wireless enablement of millions of consumer electronic devices that lack wireless connectivity or Internet capability. Nokia, Nokia Siemens Networks, Google, ZTE, ZyXEL and others have since joined the XOHM WiMAX ecosystem.
Sprint's XOHM business unit focuses on developing the WiMAX ecosystem and standards to bring the latest broadband wireless technology to U.S. customers while pursuing roaming and interoperability agreements globally. The XOHM WiMAX network utilizes the 2.5 GHz spectrum holdings that were combined in the Sprint and Nextel merger to deploy next-generation technology. XOHM uses WiMAX infrastructure developed by Samsung Electronics Corporation Ltd. and has worked with them in deployment and buildout of the Baltimore-area WiMAX network. Additional markets are in various stages of infrastructure development for commercial readiness. These efforts are ultimately intended to allow customers to experience a nationwide 4G mobile broadband network that is designed to offer faster speeds, lower cost, greater convenience and enhanced multimedia quality.
As announced earlier this year, Sprint expects to complete the anticipated combination of its XOHM WiMAX business assets with Clearwire to form a new company in the fourth quarter. This new company, to be called Clearwire, will continue to expedite the deployment of a nationwide mobile WiMAX network. Following the transaction, Sprint will be the only national wireless carrier to sell 4G services through an MVNO structure with the new Clearwire.
iPhone Firmware 2.2 released to select few developers together with a new beta of the iPhone SDK, build 9M2611, according to MacRumors.
Googletalk (Known better as Gooletalk since a typo some time back)has received place within the Google Help, for helping one another, in the Google help forum. This is in addition to Google Talk Help Center and Known Issues. (I also found the default Google Avatar, Googley to be fun!)
Photo courtesy of Digium
At the ASTRICON concluded yesterday, Stefan Öberg, Skype Telecom and Skype for Business, Vice President, introduced the Skype for Asterisk Beta. It is an add-on channel driver module that integrates Skype calling with Asterisk based Telecom products. I managed to have a glimpse of the product on the AstriCon Floor.He elaborated that the beta version of Skype For Asterisk will let us to:
So if you have an interest in Asterisk and Skype, you can apply to join the Skype for Asterisk beta programme.
September 24, 2008 - Gizmo5, the leading standards-based consumer calling service, today announced Gizmo5 for trixbox CE, the world's largest free and open source telephony community. Gizmo5 is now providing SIP trunk services to trixbox CE, which will help SMBs save up to 98 percent on business calls. The new offering also includes pay-as-you-go and is fully integrated with the trixbox CE open source project. The company has also joined Fonality's FACE program (Fonality Authorized Certified Ecosystem) as a Gold partner to ensure its products are optimized and compatible with the trixboxCE platform.
"Gizmo5 for trixbox CE is delivering great value to the trixbox CE community by providing cost effective phone services that can easily purchased and managed directly from within the trixbox CE dashboard. Users just create an account, purchase credit, and click one of the outbound route setup options and they can be making calls within minutes," said Chris Vuillaume, vice president of channels and business development at Fonality. "Gizmo engineers even went a step further with their module by providing the simplest way possible to setup SIP trunk services and inbound and outbound routes."
New users of trixbox CE or those performing upgrades can now set up a full range of SIP trunking services and be making calls within minutes from the same easy-to-use interface they already use to set up office phone networks. Administrators can purchase inbound telephone numbers from more than 20 countries and quickly map them to their business. Economical pay-as-you-go calling credits can be leveraged by the entire business to avoid costly per line setup or monthly fees. In addition calling credits can be rolled over each month for a more affordable option than phone systems that require a per user fee.
"For over a hundred years the phone company has charged businesses vast premiums for domestic and international business calling without providing any increase in quality. Now, with trixbox CE and Gizmo5 businesses can pay for only for what they use, save up to 98% over the phone company and have superior call quality", said Jason Droege, President at Gizmo5.
The calling service for trixbox CE is pre-configured to use the Gizmo5 calling network and includes a new UI for easy administration. Also included is a Tech Check system that confirms basic setup of a trixbox CE system and notifies users when new Gizmo modules are available.
He calls it SKUUM for SKYPE UNWANTED/UNAPPROVED MESSAGING. More info and a link to an article on his site, VoIP Watch
The service is now available on all Nationwide Voice and Data plans. Perhaps now other providers, who already does not have month to month plans or similar, will follow the suit. I for one hate 2 year contracts, I am glad that my company does the signing! May be now I can pick up a Limo Unity and test it!
Lenovo has released a new phone into the market, called S90 I think still the S9 was a better phone. But they are totally different phones and serves different market segments. But Snap VoIP likes you to decide. See a photo of S9 at the end of the article.Connection functions:
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Sound functions:
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Hardware functions:
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Message functions:
Still the conference is going on and yes we have a winner, the first Android based phone is here, which we were awaiting since we said "Google Phone Coming Soon". The HTC Dream or T-Mobile G1 as you will know at any T-Mobile outlet. The T-Mobile G1 released in collaboration with Google is the first commercially available phone based on the 'Android' operating system, which empowers developers with tools to create and offer consumers applications that add value without high and mighty attitude of mobile companies that we have come to know. They used to even restrict what ring tones you could have on your phone until a short while ago.NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--T-Mobile today announced the international launch of the world’s first Android™-powered mobile phone in partnership with Google. Available soon only for T-Mobile customers spanning two continents, the T-Mobile G1 combines full touch-screen functionality and a QWERTY keyboard with a mobile Web experience that includes the popular Google products that millions have enjoyed on the desktop, including Google Maps Street View™, Gmail™, YouTube™ and others.
“We are proud that T-Mobile is the first operator in the world to launch an Android-powered mobile device,” said Christopher Schläffer, group product and innovation officer of Deutsche Telekom. “Since 2005, Google has been an established partner in T-Mobile’s groundbreaking approach to bringing the open mobile Internet to the mass market. With the T-Mobile G1, we are continuing our strong tradition of being pioneers in the world of the open Internet.”
Cole Brodman, chief technology and innovation officer, T-Mobile USA, said, “The Internet and the mobile phone are both indispensable tools for our hectic lives, but only a fraction of us access the Web on our phones. The T-Mobile G1 is our opportunity in the U.S. to accelerate the mass adoption of the mobile Web, by unleashing Google innovation with a unique software experience that mobilizes the Google services hundreds of millions of consumers rely on every day.”
“Increasingly, connectivity does not just mean a phone call, but rather access to the world’s information,” said Andy Rubin, senior director of mobile platforms for Google. “Today’s news signifies an important first step for the Open Handset Alliance: With Android, we’ve opened the mobile Web not only for millions of users, but also to mobilize the developer community that understands the next most important platform in the world rests in the palm of our hand.”
With a fun and intuitive user interface and one-touch access to Google Search, the T-Mobile G1 is also the first phone to provide access to Android Market, where customers can find and download unique applications to expand and personalize their phone to fit their lifestyle.
T-Mobile customers in the U.S. have the opportunity to pre-order the T-Mobile G1, in limited quantities, beginning today at www.T-MobileG1.com and be among the first to experience this game-changing phone. The device will be available at select T-Mobile retail stores and online in the U.S. beginning Oct. 22, for a price of $179 with a two-year voice and data agreement. The T-Mobile G1 will also be available in the United Kingdom beginning in November, and across Europe in the first quarter of 2009. Countries include Germany, Austria, Czech Republic and the Netherlands.
Delivering the Familiarity of Google for a Superior Mobile Internet Experience:
The T-Mobile G1 with Google delivers a premium, easy-to-use mobile Web and communications experience in one device. Working together, T-Mobile, Google and HTC integrated Android and T-Mobile services into the phone’s form and function. The T-Mobile G1’s vibrant, high-quality screen slides open to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard, great for communicating with friends online or using the phone’s e-mail, IM and mobile messaging capabilities. As another option for accessing the device, the T-Mobile G1 comes equipped with a convenient trackball for more precise, one-handed navigation.
“T-Mobile, Google and HTC share a similar vision for making the mobile Internet practical, relevant and fun,” said Peter Chou, president and CEO, HTC Corp. “The T-Mobile G1 represents the culmination of this vision by offering a variety of services, applications and content that introduces an Internet experience that everyone can enjoy. We are honored to be joining T-Mobile and Google today for this historic unveiling of the T-Mobile G1.”
With one-click contextual search, T-Mobile G1 customers in a flash can search for relevant information with a touch of a finger. A full HTML Web browser allows users to see any Web page the way it was designed to be seen, and then easily zoom in to expand any section by simply tapping on the screen. With built-in support for T-Mobile’s 3G and EDGE network as well as Wi-Fi, the T-Mobile G1 can connect to the best available high-speed data connection for surfing the Web and downloading information quickly and effortlessly.
Google Maps Street View:
With Google Maps, Google’s groundbreaking maps service, T-Mobile G1 users can instantly view maps and satellite imagery, as well as find local business and get driving directions, all from the phone’s easy-to-use touch interface. The T-Mobile G1 also includes Google Maps Street View, allowing customers to explore cities at street-level virtually while on the go. Without taking a step, customers can tour a far-away place as if they were there — standing on the street corner. Even better, the Google Maps feature syncs with the built-in compass on the phone — an industry first — to allow users to view locations and navigate 360 degrees by simply moving the phone with their hand. Google Maps Street View is available today in many U.S. locations and soon in European countries.
Communicating on the Go:
The T-Mobile G1 features a rich HTML e-mail client, which seamlessly syncs your e-mail, calendar and contacts from Gmail as well as most other POP3 or IMAP e-mail services. The T-Mobile G1 multitasks, so you can read a Web page while also downloading your e-mail in the background. It combines Instant Messaging support for Google Talk™, as well as AOL®, Yahoo! Messenger ® and Windows Live Messenger in the U.S. With access to high-speed Web browsing and a 3-megapixel camera with photo-sharing capabilities, the T-Mobile G1 is ideal for balancing a busy lifestyle, whether sharing pictures, checking the latest sports scores or accessing social networking sites.
Embracing User-Generated Content:
Customers can use the T-Mobile G1's 3G and Wi-Fi connection to attach and share pictures over email and MMS or download music from their favorite web sites, and soon, upload and post pictures to their personal blog. Built-in support for YouTube allows customers to enjoy YouTube's originally-created content, easily navigate through YouTube's familiar video browsing categories or search for specific videos.
Music at Your Fingertips:
The T-Mobile G1 comes pre-loaded with a new application developed by Amazon.com that gives customers easy access to Amazon MP3, Amazon.com’s digital music download store with more than 6 million DRM-free MP3 tracks. Using the new application, T-Mobile G1 customers are able to search, sample, purchase and download music from Amazon MP3 directly to their device (downloading music from Amazon MP3 using the T-Mobile G1 requires a Wi-Fi connection; searching, sampling and purchasing music can be done anywhere with a cellular connection). The T-Mobile G1 will be the first device with the Amazon MP3 mobile application pre-loaded.
Android Market:
The T-Mobile G1 is the first phone to offer access to Android Market, which hosts unique applications and mash ups of existing and new services from developers around the world. With just a couple of short clicks, customers can find and download a wide range of innovative software applications — from games to social networking and on-the-go shopping — to personalize their phone and enhance their mobile lifestyle. When the phone launches next month, dozens of unique, first-of-a-kind Android applications will be available for download on Android Market, including:
For more information on the T-Mobile G1 in the U.S., please visit www.T-MobileG1.com. For more information on the T-Mobile G1 in the United Kingdom, please visit www.T-Mobile.co.uk/G1.
Notes: Additional charges may apply to features and services. 3G may not be available in all locations. Price and availability of device subject to change; taxes and other charges may apply.
Fonality recently announced a major upgrade to its unified communications platform, HUD. HUD is a communication hub including SMS, instant message, landline calling, mobile calling, chat, voicemail, email, conferencing, recording and barging. The Fonality system gives a secure and affordable system to support local, remote and telecommuting workers for small business' with five to 500 employees.
Novell Teaming brings together people and the content they need to do their jobs. Users create workspaces and invite other members to participate—both from within or outside organizational boundaries. Virtual teams can easily and securely manage, share, locate and access documents, calendars, discussion forums, wikis and blogs. Novell Teaming also includes powerful, built-in workflow functions to help team members track the status and progress of documents. Team workspaces also enable enterprise social networking and the creation of effective teams, with members chosen not by proximity, but because they possess the required content expertise and skills for the project.
There are more features in the real-time collaboration solution make users aware of the online availability of team members and give users the ability to instant message (IM) with team members–either individually or as a group–or participate in live voice conferences or Web conferences. The Web conferencing components let users share desktops, show slide presentations and participate in whiteboarding sessions. With these solutions, teams communicate more effectively and become more productive irrespective of their platform of their choice (Linux and Windows).
The Novell's Teaming + Conferencing commercial solution place itself in the Microsoft's Sharepoint Space and from the comparisons provided on the Novell site shows the differences.
Novell Teaming + Conferencing includes:
The small company that I work for and part own, uses Cisco gear in every corner and nook. Close to us and in far away lands. And I am sure there got to be more in between.In front of these myriad networks, we also develop products for prestigious companies. Companies that take most part of your earnings!. Basically we have to convince clients that our products could provide what they require to operate smoothly and more. These clients, they are all over the nation. Some of these, we visit and provide face to face demos. The others we hold teleconferences and provide online demos, using WebEx from, again Cisco. Once we have convinced our clients, we get to setup the products to fit their needs as every one differs in their own way. So we got on with our developers, who expands a few continents. Again it is phones (Asterisk IPPBX) and WebEx. So when we heard that Cisco is definitely going to acquire Jabber, we knew we do not need to whisper, anymore. The other thing is that we have been happily Jabbering on Asterisk with chan_mobile for a while!, ourselves. Our original Jabber server still alive on a Pentium III machine!
So Cisco, we are ready!. Following is the Cisco press release regarding the Jabber acquisition;
The acquisition will enable Cisco to embed presence and messaging services "in the network" and provide rich aggregation capabilities to users through both on-premise and on-demand solutions, across multiple platforms including Cisco WebEx® Connect and Cisco Unified Communications.
"Enterprise organizations want an extensible presence and messaging platform that can integrate with business process applications and easily adapt to their changing needs," said Doug Dennerline, Cisco senior vice president, Collaboration Software Group. "With the acquisition of Jabber, we will be able to extend the reach of our current instant messaging service and expand the capabilities of our collaboration platform. Our intention is to be the interoperability benchmark in the collaboration space."
Jabber provides a carrier-grade, best-in-class presence and messaging platform. Jabber's technology leverages open standards to provide a highly scalable architecture that supports the aggregation of presence information across different devices, users and applications. The technology also enables collaboration across many different presence systems such as Microsoft Office Communications Server, IBM Sametime, AOL AIM, Google and Yahoo!. Jabber's platform leads the market in system robustness, scalability, extensibility and global distribution.
The Jabber acquisition exemplifies Cisco's "build, buy and partner" innovation strategy to move quickly into new markets and capture key market transitions. In addition to internal software innovations, Cisco actively employs investments in, and acquisitions of, other companies to support its software strategy; recent purchases include industry leaders WebEx, IronPort, Securent and PostPath.The transaction will be accounted for in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Financial terms of the transaction are undisclosed. The acquisition is subject to various standard closing conditions and is expected to be complete in Cisco's first half of fiscal year 2009. Upon completion of the acquisition, Jabber employees will become part of the Cisco Collaboration Software Group (CSG). CSG is part of the recently established Software Group, consisting of Cisco's major software businesses; including the IOS network operating system, network and service management, Unified Communications solutions, policy management, and SaaS offerings.
Apple announced today the recall of Apple Ultracompact USB Power Adapter for iPhone 3G (image above) which Apple calls "exchange program". The reason for recall? The ultracompact Apple USB power adapter's metal prongs can break off and remain in a power outlet, creating a risk of electric shock.
The BlackBerry Pearl 8220 smartphone allows you to screen calls and preview messages on the external screen, use the internal display for messaging, maps, and type with one or two thumbs on the large keyboard. The usual Blackberry stuff on a large screen that allows see clearly, Maps and Games.
The BlackBerry Pearl 8220 also carries a Media player for music and video (turn it on its side to enjoy videos in widescreen), camera for photo and video recording, and of course, Wi-Fi and video streaming make your life better once near a hotspot!
I think I will swap my blackberry to a Pearl or a Blackberry Curve. You can learn about blackberry perl line here.
Global IP Solutions (GIPS) announced that Mail.ru Agent, A popular IM application in Russia, will start using GIPS VoIP Technology. mail.ru is one of the leading web portals in Russia. Following is the press release by GIPs;SAN FRANCISCO and MOSCOW, September 15, 2008 - Global IP Solutions (Oslo Børs: GIPS), the leading provider of IP multimedia processing, announced today that Mail.Ru, the leading web portal of the Russian Internet, will use GIPS' VoIP technology in its Mail.Ru Agent - the most popular instant messenger application in Russia.
"VoIP is a strategic component of Mail.Ru Agent development, which is why it was critical to choose the best VoIP solution provider in the marketplace," said Anna Artamonova, Mail.Ru Vice President of Marketing. "Our collaboration with GIPS will significantly improve the voice quality of the Mail.Ru Agent for PC-to-PC calls, as well as telephone calls to both landlines and cell phones."
Frost & Sullivan, the business research & consulting firm, predict the unified communications market will grow by 13 per cent this year, reaching revenues of $4.55 billion.
As part of the agreement, GIPS' VoiceEngine will be embedded inside the Mail.Ru Agent (http://agent.mail.ru), starting with version 5.2 allowing affordable calls to stationary and mobile phones.
"We're thrilled to add Mail.Ru to our list of leading global Internet Service Providers, who see Unified Communications and point-to-multipoint communications across IP-devices as a strategic benefit for their customer base," said Jan Linden, GIPS Vice President of Engineering. "With GIPS VoiceEngine's unique capabilities, such as automated adjustments for echo, noise suppression and bandwidth constraints, we are confident that Mail.Ru will realize an immediate dramatic improvement in voice quality and overall user experience."
GIPS VoiceEngines have been downloaded more than any other voice engine worldwide, enabling consumers and businesses to enjoy high-quality IP-based communications, even under adverse network conditions.
What I have said a long time ago, Google Phone Coming Soon, Has been repeated by T-Mobile.
The Cisco Virtual Office has stepped up to fill the demand emanating from mid-sized and large enterprises that employ a larger numbers of distributed workforces, who are placed hundreds or thousands of miles form their corporate offices with need for Unified Communications and access to collaborative Services and business applications. The Cisco Virtual Office, packages routing, switching, security, wireless, IP telephony, and policy control technology into a centrally managed office-caliber solution that provides highly secure video, voice, data and wireless service.The solution deployes Zero-touch setup Cisco 881w Series Internet Services Router and Cisco 7970G IP phone with color display at remote offices and Cisco 7200 Series router serving as a converged platform for virtual private networking, offering easy-to-manage encryption and security.
American Century Investments, a leading investment management company based in Kansas City, Missouri, uses and so far rolled out the Cisco Virtual Office solution to more than 110 of its sales agents and remote workers.
Cisco itself is an active user of the Cisco Virtual Office solution. More than 12,000 employees in 70 countries use Cisco Virtual Office, and in 2009 the company plans to increase adoption to 20,000 users. By 2010, Cisco plans to have deployed the solution to 30,000 of its employees globally.
The following videos from the company's vice president of information technology Chuck Trent and two U.S.-based users provides more information on the product and the usage;
Cisco Virtual Office: Chuck Trent
Cisco Virtual Office: Jill Shaul
Cisco Virtual Office: Craig Huegen
SAN JOSE, Calif. - September 9, 2008 - Cisco® today announced the Cisco Virtual Office, a highly secure solution that allows businesses to extend their enterprise - and productivity - by "bringing the office" to employees who regularly work in a variety of remote settings, such as branch locations or from a home office.
The Cisco Virtual Office addresses the growing trend among mid-sized and large enterprises that have increasingly distributed workforces who need access to collaborative business applications and services outside of their corporate offices. The networking solution packages routing, switching, security, wireless, IP telephony, and policy control technology into a centrally managed office-caliber solution that provides highly secure video, voice, data and wireless service. (http://www.cisco.com/go/cvo) It is flexible, allowing employees to work in a variety of places with technology and services that are as advanced as if they were sitting at their desk in their office. This "extension" of an employee's collaborative office environment includes access to voice and video over IP communications, all protected within a highly secure networked environment.
The Cisco Virtual Office comes at an opportune time. As businesses look for flexible and cost-effective work options, particularly in the wake of rising gas prices and energy costs, the solution enables them to ensure highly secure collaboration amongst a more distributed workforce. (http://www.internetinnovation.org/Portals/0/Documents/Final_Green_Benefits.pdf) This agility helps maintain business continuity, such as during inclement weather, and can generate cost savings on real estate by eliminating needs for additional office space. Furthermore, remote workers can enhance productivity by accessing the same communications and collaboration technologies available to their office-based counterparts.
One of the solution's most valued features is its "zero-touch" setup. Automated, pre-configured setup offloads installation responsibilities from employees, most of whom are not qualified or knowledgeable enough to implement networking systems themselves. With the solution's zero-touch setup, businesses can extend their workforces to thousands of locations with the peace of mind that employee error and IT support will be minimal. As a whole, the Cisco Virtual Office consists of the following components:
Remote site
Headquarters site
Services
"The Cisco Virtual Office is ultimately about helping extend secure mobility and empowering the collaborative workforce wherever and whenever it connects," said Marie Hattar, vice president of network systems and security solutions for Cisco. "It enhances the benefits of remote working by providing office-caliber technology wrapped in a security blanket. It allows businesses to stay agile, and in some cases, it can provide an environmentally friendly alternative to commuting while managing operational expenses at corporate sites."
According to Hattar, as the number of distributed workers increases and the way they access corporate networks and information multiplies, both in terms of device and location, businesses need an increasingly flexible IT infrastructure that extends the same protection found within a corporate office to remote locations where employees connect. Because of the solution's security capabilities, businesses can safely establish highly secure mobility, collaborate with their constituents and adopt distributed employee work models that can be more efficient than relying exclusively on centralized corporate sites for conducting operations.
American Century Investments, a leading investment management company based in Kansas City, Missouri, is harnessing the value of remote working and distributed - yet collaborative -- enterprises through the Cisco Virtual Office. To date, American Century Investments has rolled out the Cisco Virtual Office solution to more than 110 of its sales agents and remote workers.
"Our remote worker implementation of the Cisco Virtual Office is designed to provide our employees with flexibility and to allow them to be as functional working from home as they are in the office," said Keith Little, network services manager for American Century Investments. "As our intermediary sales staff grows, we will continue to broaden our adoption of this solution so we can provide our employees with easy remote access to network resources. The Cisco Virtual Office provides us with the benefits of greater employee productivity and operational efficiency. Simply put, we've adopted the Cisco Virtual Office as our own virtual office."
In addition to American Century Investments, Cisco is an active user of the solution. More than 12,000 employees in 70 countries use Cisco Virtual Office, and in 2009 the company plans to increase adoption to 20,000 users. By 2010, Cisco plans to have deployed the solution to 30,000 of its employees globally. To find out more on Cisco's rollout strategy and benefits, please view these videos from the company's vice president of information technology Chuck Trent and two U.S.-based users:
URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxhFgKHYjwc
URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoYd3zWwuY0
URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDteqoaRaHA
The Cisco Virtual Office solution is available today and starts at $700 per seat.
Cisco, the Cisco logo and Cisco Systems are registered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. This document is Cisco Public Information.| Contact Information: | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Press Contact(s) | |||
| Neil Becker | Cisco Systems, Inc. | 408 525-7415 | nebecker@cisco.com |
| Investor Relations Contact(s) | |||
| Marilyn Mora | Cisco Systems, Inc. | 408 527 7452 | marilmor@cisco.com |
| Industry Analyst Relations | |||
| Todd Hanson | Cisco Systems, Inc. | +1 408 853 8255 | todhanso@cisco.com |
