UC implementation is proceeding despite budget constraints

Melbourne, 18th January 2010. – Ovum, the global advisory and consulting firm, conducted a new research with multinational corporations (MNCs). It shows that, despite fierce budget constraints, they are upping the pace of unified communications (UC) implementation and integration. UC rollout has progressed painfully slowly in these huge organisations, but many individual UC applications are now deployed, with a strong focus on video in the coming year. Extending to mobile devices is a priority for many.

Almost all the organisations taking part in this survey have a global strategy for implementation of IP telephony. “More than 40% have a global IPT strategy including a roadmap for implementation throughout the company or group – a big change since last year, when only one in four said they had a group-wide implementation roadmap”, said Pauline Trotter, Principal Analyst based in London. The dominant model is to have a global IPT strategy but with implementation requiring business case authority at business unit level, according to the unit’s individual needs and budgets (see Figure 1).

Many MNCs are now moving into the global implementation phase and are putting partnerships in place to support this activity. Figure 2 shows that “almost all of the companies we spoke to (86%) have selected a global equipment vendor for IP telephony –a substantial increase since last year, when just over half had formed global equipment vendor partnerships”, adds Trotter. Cisco and Avaya dominate the global vendor partnerships, but a number of other IPT vendors are named. Less than one-third also have a global implementation partner in place – a similar number to last year – with Dimension Data the most frequently named company. A number of other global IPT implementation partners are named, including Orange Business Services and AT&T.

Email and IM are the most commonly deployed applications on handheld devices today. However, many of the interviewed EVUA members are planning to deploy more mobile UC applications within the coming year. There is particular interest in telephony presence features; click-to-call from mobile applications; and single voicemail, single number and simultaneous ringing for fixed and mobile. Many companies plan to use dual-mode (GSM/Wi-Fi) devices. There is least interest in extending video applications to mobile devices.

Relatively few of the companies we interviewed are using mobile extensions to the

PBX. Around 65% have no mobile devices acting as PBX extensions. Modest growth is predicted, with around half of the interviewed sample expecting to be using some mobile extensions within a year.

The mobile UC market, while distinctly immature in terms of service and product offerings, is looking to become a crowded marketplace with multiple supplier types jostling for position. Ovum is interested to see who the EVUA members thought would be the most important suppliers of mobile UC applications and services. “It looks as if they believe the software collaboration vendors and IPT vendors will dominate in mobility too although many see an important role for multiple types of supplier including mobile operators, SIs and device vendors”, concludes Pauline Trotter.