Customers and partners embrace Microsoft's open unified communications
platform to reduce travel, preserve existing investments and increase
productivity.
ORLANDO, Fla., March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Today at VoiceCon
Orlando 2008, Microsoft Corp. announced broad availability of its
conferencing solutions and continued customer and partner adoption of its
unified communications platform. Partners are embracing the platform to
provide interoperable conferencing solutions, and today Polycom Inc.
announced that it will make its videoconferencing systems work with
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 and Microsoft Office
Communicator 2007. Microsoft also outlined continued customer adoption of
its unified communications solutions and demonstrated some new
technologies, such as low-cost high-definition videoconferencing.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)
"I am excited at the enthusiastic customer and partner response to our
unified communications launch," said Gurdeep Singh Pall, corporate vice
president for the Unified Communications Group at Microsoft. "In the last
six months, we have seen some amazing customer testimonials, triple-digit
business growth and widespread adoption that are bringing the power of
face-to-face, high-quality videoconferencing out of the boardroom and to
the broader organization."
Enhanced Videoconferencing Only a Click Away
As of today, Office Communications Server 2007 and Office Communicator
2007 now work with conferencing systems from Polycom and TANDBERG -- which
constitute more than 70 percent(1) of worldwide existing business
conferencing systems. This openness means customers can get more value from
existing conferencing systems while still benefiting from Microsoft unified
communications software for instant messaging, presence and voice over
Internet protocol (VoIP).
Customers are also embracing Microsoft's innovative, low-cost
videoconferencing solution, Microsoft RoundTable. In the last six months,
more than 350 companies have deployed the 360-degree videoconferencing
phone, and 55 resellers have taken it into 17 countries.
"Office Communications Server and RoundTable allow us to improve
collaboration and communication while traveling less; we know that has a
positive impact on the planet, and that's important to us," said Robert
Fort, vice president of information technology and CIO at Virgin
Entertainment Group. "With an entry point of $3,000 per device and simple
plug-and-play operation, we can widely deploy devices to make conferencing
available to everyone."
Customers Benefiting From Unified Communications
More than 140 companies have shared their success and published case
studies about their Microsoft unified communications deployments since
Microsoft launched its platform last October. Details are available at
http://www.microsoft.com/casestudies. Companies such as Dow Corning Corp.
have deployed the system to thousands of users for VoIP, webconferencing
and videoconferencing, e-mail, voice mail, instant messaging and presence.
These companies are reporting cost and travel savings as well as dramatic
productivity gains.
"Office Communications Server 2007 delivers the next-generation
communications capability to provide instant presence information that
reduces contact latency. Then people have rich functionality -- IM,
webconferencing, VoIP -- to have engaging conversations," said Steve
Hershauer, IT architect and engineer at Dow Corning. "As such, this
fundamentally changes the way our internal peers and business partners
communicate, and increases overall productivity for everyone and has a
macro-productivity effect on the processes they touch."
Partners Innovating With Microsoft's Open Unified Communications
Platform
GE Healthcare's imaging collaboration will also demo a conceptual
prototype being built using Microsoft's Office Communications Server. This
technology, when available, could provide physicians with communication
features channeled directly through a unified device, for radiologists this
being the Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS).
"We continue to look for opportunities across adjacent areas to
optimize productivity, quality and innovation within the clinical setting,"
said Prakash Mahesh, global manager of Advanced Technologies, GE Healthcare
IT. "The concept prototype from Microsoft and GE Healthcare IT, when
available, could bridge an important industry gap for physicians and
radiologists, providing improved productivity, enhanced collaboration and
reduced interruptions."
More information about Microsoft unified communications solutions,
which include Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, Office Communications Server
2007, Office Communicator 2007, Microsoft RoundTable and Microsoft Office
Live Meeting 2007, is available at http://www.microsoft.com/uc.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in
software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize
their full potential.
(1) Source: Frost & Sullivan, World Enterprise Video Conferencing End
Point Market, December 2007
Microsoft Unified Communications Group
Partner and Customer Quote Sheet
March 17, 2008
"Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 has allowed Gibson to
improve collaboration and communication between our global offices. With
Microsoft Office Communicator 2007, employees are able to quickly and
simply reach colleagues across geographical boundaries and time zones,
which helped streamline our daily processes and improve productivity."
-- Kathy Benner
Director of Information Technology
Gibson Guitar Corp.
"Windrush Frozen Foods places a strong importance on work-life balance.
With Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, we are able to equip our
employees with the tools and options necessary to work anywhere, at any
time. This gives our employees a tremendous amount of flexibility and
allows them to work outside traditional work schedules, if necessary. This
freedom allows them time complete their work obligations as well as fulfill
important personal obligations, like picking their children up from
school."
-- Robbie Roberts
IT Manager
Windrush Frozen Foods Ltd.
"Office Communications Server 2007 has increased operational
efficiency, reduced our overall costs and improved employee communications
at Lionbridge. Because Lionbridge manages client programs across 26
countries worldwide, it is important for us to have a reliable technology
that enables us to bring several people together across the globe to
collaborate, quickly address issues and provide on-demand innovation for
our clients. Office Communications Server 2007 is enabling us to achieve
this cost effectively and reliably."
-- Oyvind Kaldstad
Director of Information Technology
Lionbridge Technologies Inc.
"We don't have to invest significant amounts of capital to provide a
high-end technology solution. We currently spend $80,000 a month on
conferencing. With Office Communications Server, we expect to reduce that
by 30 percent. That's a significant cost savings."
-- Jeremy Turner
Vice President and CTO
The Shaw Group Inc.
"Polycom is committed to providing voice and visual communications
solutions that work with Microsoft's open unified communications platform.
Offering interoperability with Office Communications Server 2007 and Office
Communicator 2007 will allow customers to use Polycom visual communications
as an extension of the Microsoft applications they already use to
communicate with others, and will help make visual communications easier to
manage in a Microsoft unified communications network."
-- Joe Sigrist
Senior Vice President and General Manager of Video Solutions
Polycom Inc.
"TANDBERG has always believed that video is an integral component to
any successful business communications strategy. TANDBERG is committed to
delivering leading-edge video communications solutions that seamlessly
interoperate with Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007."
-- Peter Nutley
Director of Global Product Marketing
TANDBERG
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