Avaya Accelerates Intelligent Communications for Enterprise Branches and Small Offices


o Award winning small office IP telephony solution now connects locations to streamline communication, boost productivity and business continuity, reduce costs for enterprise branches

o Avaya one-X(TM) Quick Edition-based branch offices and teleworkers tied together with corporate offices via Avaya SIP enablement services

o Small businesses able to connect over standard SIP connections, bringing 'big business' features to small companies

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 21-- VoiceCon 2006 -- Avaya Inc. (NYSE:AV) announced significant enhancements to its one-X(TM) Quick Edition, allowing more small office locations to connect to and benefit from intelligent IP communication solutions. Large distributed enterprises such as Waste Management Inc., as well as small independent businesses such as Trio Cafe are already benefiting from Quick Edition's simple, cost effective approach to communications. Avaya is a leading global provider of business communications software, systems and services.

Avaya one-X Quick Edition eliminates the need for a central server and embeds the functionality of an IP-PBX into the phones themselves using SIP-based peer to peer (P2P) technology. The enhancements include Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) trunking capabilities, which allow small office locations to reduce costs by routing voice traffic securely over an Internet connection. Companies that need to quickly set up offices to assure business continuity -- whether it involves setting up temporary offices for events, or following a natural disaster -- can also benefit from Avaya one-X Quick Edition.

Waste Management, Inc. is the largest waste management and environmental service company in the U.S. With 21 million residential and commercial customers at more than 1,300 sites, Waste Management needed an efficient solution to connect its equally dispersed work force, particularly in its smallest locations.

"We found the solution in Avaya one-X Quick Edition," said Allen Buford, manager, voice communications, Waste Management. "Streamlined communications is an absolute necessity yet, until now, it's been a challenge. We are now deploying the Avaya solution in our U.S. operations. Our branch employees now have features such as voice mail conferencing and auto attendant, and they can set up, operate and manage it with ease. Plus, we're saving money, since the costs are far less than our former system. And if we need to expand, we just add a phone and we're done -- it's as simple as that."

In addition to SIP trunking, recent enhancements include a Multisite Provisioning Tool, which allows upgrades and updates from a central site at the touch of a button, and Teleworker capabilities allow a remote or home worker to access all the same features as an office worker, without being on the same local area network. All these features, together with conferencing, auto attendant, voicemail and call routing are embedded in the phone, with no need for a centralized server.

"Avaya one-X Quick Edition continues to be dramatically simple and cost effective for locations of less than 20 users. Now with SIP trunking, branch locations can be more connected to the communications in a central office, and reduce call charges and monthly line costs," said Geoffrey Baird, vice president and general manager, Communications Appliance Division, Avaya. "Small offices also benefit from 'big business' features such as voicemail and conferencing, without the need for specialized servers or onsite staff to manage. Quick Edition is the perfect solution for small locations with big aspirations."

SIP trunking allows small office locations to reduce costs by routing voice traffic securely over an internet or WAN connection. For large enterprises, SIP can be provisioned over a corporate network, with the addition of an Avaya SIP Enablement Server in a central location. This configuration, when combined with an Avaya Communication Manager solution, also allows centralized trunking and enterprise-wide dial plans for additional cost savings and productivity benefits. Smaller businesses have the option of working with an emerging number of dedicated SIP service providers to route calls over the Internet.

Trio Cafe using Avaya one-X Quick Edition to improve customer service
Trio Cafe, a popular and successful restaurant, had a different but equally important requirement. The owners wanted a way to better manage incoming calls, freeing them to focus on customer service, yet still provide callers the information and service they wanted.

"The Avaya one-X Quick Edition allowed us to create automated prompts for general information, restaurant hours and directions which reduced by half the number of calls my staff and I had to answer, allowing us to focus on customers in our restaurant," said Kris Wynne, one of the owner/partners of Trio Cafe. "And we can customize the information, such as changing information on our daily menu, as we wish. This is a system that's saving me time and money -- and that's a big deal for my business, even if we're comparatively small."

According to Allan Sulkin, founder and president, TEQConsult Group, "The latest version of Avaya one-X Quick Edition is a major step forward for enterprise voice communications solutions. Originally designed for the needs of small business customers, now peer to peer is capable of satisfying large business applications such as intelligent multi-site networking and/or unified desktop messaging. Quick Edition offers small office size customers the opportunity to implement a relatively low cost, easily managed, highly resilient communications system across multiple facilities."

The new version of Avaya one-X Quick Edition is available through certified Avaya resellers, as well as from BestBuy for Business, CDW and PC Zones.

About Avaya, Inc.
Avaya, Inc. designs, builds and manages communications networks for more than one million businesses worldwide, including over 90 percent of the FORTUNE 500®.

Focused on businesses large to small, Avaya is a world leader in secure and reliable Internet Protocol telephony systems and communications software applications and services.

Driving the convergence of voice and data communications with business applications -- and distinguished by comprehensive worldwide services -- Avaya helps customers leverage existing and new networks to achieve superior business results. For more information visit the Avaya Web site: http://www.avaya.com/

Source: Avaya Inc.

CONTACT:
Media
Barbara Burgess
Tel: 908-953-3348
Email: barbara@avaya.com

Jonathan Varman
Tel: 908-953-6432
Email: jvarman@avaya.com

Web site: http://www.avaya.com/

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