In the same article about the evolution of VoIP (bit.ly/1LyEGwd) the blogger details how legacy telephony vendors kept their customers captive with their proprietary phones systems that were “complex, inflexible and costly”. Now, he states, VoIP presents a broader playing field mainly due to standardization by using open systems that support interoperability. Don’t tell that to companies who have migrated to VoIP with partners such as Cisco, Shoretel or Mitel who would much rather you stay with the proprietary phone systems.
However, he is correct that over the past number of years, service in the field has moved more and more to a level playing field. SIP (Sessions Initiation Protocol) having become standardized sufficiently to ensure connecting external devices to the system is relatively simple and certainly less difficult. In the early days we used to get contacted by companies who had been early movers to the IP side of Nortel’s Communications Server 1000 wanting to adapt the associated handsets to alternate platforms but that was just not possible. It also meant that our Portico™ TVA™, the device to SIP enable legacy telephones, had to be fully tested with each new platform to ensure we were compatible with even the most basic of functions. With the move to a more standardized protocol it is more than likely that the Portico™ TVA™ will work almost completely with any of the new VoIP platforms being introduced almost on a daily basis. Now there is no excuse not to try out the Portico™ TVA™ where companies are looking at reducing costs of their telephony service both on an operational and capital basis. Let us know how we can help you at sales@citel.com.