TechNO Expo

At the same time, IP networking technology is spreading out and interconnecting horizontally with unified communications, access control, video surveillance, physical plant management, and mobile/remote connectivity. We believe that it is this lateral convergence and integration of business processes onto a single network which holds the most promise for the immediate future.

There is a lot of confusion around what “VOIP” means and how it works. There is a tendency to treat business voice, including the various connotations of “VOIP” as a separate technology area instead of one component in an enterprise-wide IP network. This is completely understandable as telephones, PBXs, and the phone company are our historical points of reference. Manufacturer’s, vendors, and solution providers need to drive home that we are dealing with an entirely new paradigm that has the potential to integrate everything—data, voice, video, IM, presence, physical security, etc., into one system. This is when the conversation turns from a voice product to a business solution that drives real value.

There is no question that IP voice communications will only grow more rapidly, pushing traditional phone systems into obsolescence. Business-class integrated voice, video conferencing, and data communication will become the standard for how business people communicate—it’s just a matter of when.

Among the next generation of “killer apps” are the XML-based programs that integrate that other workstation sitting on your desk, the IP phone handset, with your core business applications. Even today there are dozens of IP voice-based business applications to answer business needs across many vertical industries. As IP voice becomes more ubiquitous, development of these kinds of applications will continue to grow and the voice/data boundary will continue to blur.