Avaya SOA and SIP-based Solutions Integrate Intelligent Communications Throughout Enterprises
SIP Enablement and Application Enablement Services deliver the promise of SOA
Software and Custom Application Practice helps enterprises integrate SOA into their operations
Development partners already integrating capabilities to build new solutions
BASKING RIDGE, N.J., March 6 / -- Converged networks pose significant challenges for enterprises due to multiple standards, software applications and devices. Avaya (NYSE:AV) is helping companies resolve these challenges using Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), a software architecture that makes it easy to disaggregate and rearrange pieces of software, and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), an industry standard that streamlines integration of new applications and enables enterprises, to tap the full potential of presence-based applications.
By turning complex communications software into flexible, re-usable components or applets, Avaya, a leading global provider of communications networks and services for businesses, is enabling companies to integrate their applications and others in an SOA framework to reshape their business operations.
This next step in Intelligent Communications capitalizes on open interoperability, productivity, business continuity, security and compliance, and facilitates a smooth migration to new SIP capabilities and Web Services. Companies that integrate communications into their business processes can reduce the complexity of separate platforms, achieve significant cost savings, and improve collaboration and productivity. They also can design workers' individual communications tools using voice, text and video based on business needs for easier access and use.
"We invite enterprises to re-imagine and optimize business processes using communications," said Don Peterson, chairman and CEO, Avaya. "Avaya is building on open standards to free businesses to customize their communications and business processes to deliver better service and productivity based on their individual business needs."
Products and Services in Support of SOA and SIP
Today, Avaya introduced three new components to support its SOA and SIP strategy:
o Avaya's new version of SIP Enablement Services helps businesses save
money and simplify network implementations supporting a broader range
of multi-vendor SIP end points.
o A new version of Application Enablement Services increases security
and survivability to give application developers a more reliable and
survivable environment for developing Web services-based applications.
o A new Software and Custom Application Practice in Avaya Global
Services develops software for specialized integrations and helps
companies integrate Web Service and SOA into their enterprises.
Avaya has been shipping open standards, SIP-based solutions to customers globally since February 2004. Avaya's SIP products bridge Internet applications with telephony and voice functionality and give businesses the ability to add features as they need them and to protect their investments for future needs.
In January, Avaya won the annual IP PBX evaluation competition conducted by Miercom, a leading network consultancy and product test center, for the second year in a row. Miercom awarded Avaya the highest score ever recorded in its annual large-scale IP PBX evaluation. In its evaluation, Miercom cited Avaya for leadership in mobility and advanced voice processing and excellence in security and system performance. As a result, Avaya also earned the "Best in Test" award for high-end IP PBX solutions from Business Communications Review magazine.
Avaya is also recognized in the industry for delivering a broad set of value-added features over SIP to all SIP endpoints, whether they are Avaya or third party. Avaya is also working with a rapidly growing community of SIP solution vendors to capitalize on this interoperability and create new multi-vendor solutions for enterprises.
One customer benefiting from Avaya's expertise is MYOB Group, a leading provider of business management software for small and medium sized enterprises and accounting practices around the world. MYOB deployed an Avaya IP telephony solution to support its multiple contact centers and create round the clock virtual support for offices in Australia, New Zealand, the USA, the UK, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. The system reduced costs, enabled more agile, secure and reliable operations and gave customers more personalized service.
Developer and Partner Ecosystem
Avaya also is at the heart of a growing ecosystem of developers and partners who are already using open standards to develop applications. (See attached list.)
Avaya recently announced an alliance with Samsung in which the two companies will jointly develop and market open standards-based IP communications solutions to businesses globally. This collaboration will drive the delivery of enhanced IP convergence products and mobility solutions and help businesses realize greater productivity from an increasingly mobile workforce, enhance customer service, and improve business results through enterprise communications.
One development partner in this ecosystem is SAP America, Inc. SAP and Avaya are integrating the multi-channel communications routing and management capabilities of Avaya Interaction Center software with mySAP(TM) Customer Relationship Management (mySAP(TM) CRM) to enable companies to provide advanced customer care. Customer service agents using SAP's market leading CRM solution will have the capability to interact with customers through voice, email, and Web communication through their mySAP CRM console, enabled by Avaya contact center software.
"SAP's SOA enables Avaya and independent software vendors, system integrators, and customers to use a common approach in composing innovative business process applications, while ensuring robustness and speed of execution for business operations," said Robert Kapanen, director of business development for enterprise services community, SAP Labs, Inc.
One DevConnect member is Accuvoice which designs and develops custom as well as off-the-shelf software solutions in the IVR market.
"With Avaya moving toward SOA, Accuvoice is working with Financial Services, Healthcare and Government customers to leverage their investment in WEB infrastructure, applications, processes and development staff for fast, cost-effective deployment of guided or mixed initiative speech services using Avaya's Dialogue Designer, IR, Voice Portal, IBM's WebSphere Voice Servers and WebSphere Application Servers and proprietary and public Web Services," said Maralee Pope, president, Accuvoice.
The Avaya DeveloperConnection Program consists of more than 2100 members who have access to a wide range of support from Avaya, including technical resources and training. They must also meet rigorous Avaya criteria for customer satisfaction, product support, business operations, marketing and sales. Membership information and a listing of solutions developed and tested under the DeveloperConnection program are available at http://www.devconnectprogram.com/.
Also at VoiceCon, Avaya is demonstrating the one-X(TM) Mobile Edition for S60, which equips Nokia S60 enterprise smart phones with access to Avaya's flagship Communication Manager software, and a voice-activated, Web-based appointment scheduling solution that allows patients to use either self-service voice prompts or the Internet to select an appointment time. Patients can even request that they be notified in the event a cancellation opens up an earlier date. When cancellations do occur, the Avaya Voice Portal automatically dials the first patient in the appropriate appointment queue to offer the new time, securing a verbal confirmation and updating the healthcare provider's calendar. As a result, Avaya can enable medical offices to operate more efficiently while enhancing patient services.
To learn more about how more than 100 forward-thinking companies from all over the world are already working with Avaya to use Intelligent Communications to gain a distinct competitive advantage, visit our world of possibilities at Inside Intelligence, http://avaya.com/intelligence.
Avaya solutions will be on display at Avaya Booth #601 at VoiceCon 2006 in Kissimmee, FL, March 6-9. For all information on Avaya's strategy, product and services announcements at the show, look at our virtual press kit at http://www.avaya.com/media.
About Avaya
Avaya Inc. designs, builds and manages communications networks for more than 1 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 (IP) 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 website, www.avaya.com/. For more information on the Avaya DeveloperConnection Program, visit http://www.devconnectprogram.com/.
The following developers and partners are at the heart of a growing ecosystem that embraces Avaya's open standards and SIP strategy and are leveraging its SOA and SIP capabilities to develop new applications.
Accuvoice, Inc.
Acme PacketAGN Networks
American Communication Technologies, Inc. (ACT, Inc.)
Austin Logistics, Inc.
Be Here Corporation
Bhrigus, Inc.
BT
Citel Technologies
Centurion, Inc.
Citrix Systems, Inc.
Computer Instruments, Inc.
CounterPath Solutions, Inc.
Dialogic Communications Corporation (DCC)
eWings Technologies, Inc.
Empirix, Inc.
Excel Switching Corp
Global Crossing Telecommunications, Inc.
Gold Systems
Hitachi Cable America
IBM
Ingate Systems, Inc.
Interactive Northwest, Inc. (INI)
IQ Services
IPcelerate, Inc.
Jabber, Inc.
Juniper Networks, Inc.
LifeSize Communications, Inc.
Meru Networks, Inc.
Millenigence, Inc.
NexTone Communications, Inc.
Nokia
Quintum Technologies, Inc.
Packeteer, Inc.
PaeTec Communications
Polycom
Sabio, Ltd
SecureLogix Corporation
Shanghai Elite Software Technology Co., Ltd.
SimpliCTI Software Solutions
Sipera Systems, Inc.
Softel Communications
Speakerbus Technology Ltd
Spirent Communications
Teledex, LLC
Tello Corp
Witness Systems, Inc.
Viecore, Inc.
Source: Avaya Inc.
CONTACT: W. Scott Horne, Media Relations, +1-908-953-3476,
horne@avaya.com, or Matt Booher, Investor Relations, +1-908-953-7500,
mbooher@avaya.com, both of Avaya Inc.
Web site: http://www.avaya.com/
http://www.devconnectprogram.com/
http://avaya.com/intelligence
http://www.avaya.com/media
