VegaStream - VoIP for Home and Business - Understanding the Difference

Instant messaging worked its way into the corporate space as employees used products such as AOL's Instant Messaging service as a convenient way to get round email and voicemail over load and to find out whether the person you want to speak to is actually at their desk. In a similar vein, IT research firm Gartner predicts that by 2007 20% of all companies will have adopted plans that accommodate the fact that employees own the notebook PCs they use at work.

However, there is one exception to this trend, and that is Voice over IP (VoIP) or Internet Protocol Telephony (IPT) as it is also known. Companies such as Skype have done much to demonstrate the potential for VoIP to let people talk with each other across the globe for practically no charge. All the major ISPs and search engine sites (Google, Yahoo, and MSN) are rolling out consumer VoIP services. Yet with few exceptions, there is little sign that these consumer services are being used by people in the workplace.

There are a number of technical reasons for this, most notably the potential for consumer VoIP services to compromise the enterprise' IP network security. However the primary reason is that the demands on the telephone in the office simply cannot be met by the somewhat cumbersome and restricted, point-to-point service offered by consumer VoIP services. Today's office voice communication systems feature call forwarding, voice mail, conferencing, hunt groups, hold and divert. These are not widely available in the basic consumer VoIP offerings. Furthermore, the PC-based VoIP offering does not provide the essential and convenient function of simply dialling a 10 to 12-digit number to make a call.

VegaStream - VoIP for Home and Business - Understanding the Difference

Enterprise VoIP products offer these features, and a whole lot more. With all messages data and real-time communications (such as voice, video and instant messaging) carried over the same IP network, there is opportunity for very rich communications sessions. For example, a colleague sends you an email within which there is an icon that lets you know that the colleague is available to take a call to discuss the content of the message. By clicking that icon, your colleague's phone rings and you talk; the colleague could be sitting at a desk anywhere in the organisation, or even at home on a broadband "extension" to the enterprise network, and the phone next to him or her would ring because the IP network knows where he or she is.

Cost is another major reason why VoIP cannot be lifted directly from the home to the workplace. To fully deploy VoIP in the office with all the new features of a converged IP platform, a company will be encouraged to spend money on new desk top devices; just as the consumer will have to buy a sufficiently fast PC and a headset to accommodate a consumer VoIP service. Most finance directors will struggle to sign off a business case to simply replace a serviceable piece of equipment (such as the company phone system) with something that for all intents and purposes does the same thing.

However, by implementing a gateway between their existing telephone equipment and the new VoIP services, businesses can realise the potential for external calls being carried over the Internet at vastly reduced costs compared to using the Public Switched Telephone Network. VoIP gateways convert the signals used by existing telephone equipment into those that can be carried and switched over the Internet. Many businesses are using VoIP gateways to connect to the new generation of IP-based phone companies or to carry calls between company sites for free using its existing wide area IP network.

It is only a matter of time before all communications, including telephony and mobile, are carried over IP and we will not be able to tell the difference between consumer and business VoIP - just as we see little difference between a home phone and one in the office today. However, for the time being the two remain distinct propositions and the enterprise must be careful when considering deploying a consumer orientated VoIP service instead of one that is designed for the business need.

VegaStream - VoIP for Home and Business - Understanding the Difference
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Formed in 1998, VegaStream is one of the most experienced players in the industrial VoIP market. The company supplies gateway CPE to both traditional telecommunications carriers and the new generation of Internet telephony service providers. VegaStream also serves the enterprise market through a global network of distributors and resellers supported by regional offices in the UK, USA and Australia. VegaStream is a non-listed UK company. Investors include the management team, Pace Micro Technology PLC and MTI Partners. [http://www.vegastream.com]

watch mobile phone Save Save On La Mer The Powder 03 Beige Best Buy Oe Replacement Cadillac Srx Driver Side Best Offer Spectra Premium F55A Fuel Tank For

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Video Conferencing

Video conferencing is similar to the popular video phones where you can call anyone around the world and not only speak with them, but see them on your computer or television screen during the conversation. The difference is that video conferencing is intended to work for larger conferences rather than serving the needs of individual consumers, often using closed circuit television.

While many businesses have taken this technology under wing as a useful tool, there are advantages and disadvantages of video conferencing which must be considered before you decide if it will work for your meeting needs or not.

Phone Conferencing

Advantages

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Video Conferencing

1. Reach anyone you need to reach immediately, no matter what time of day it may be for anyone involved. Time differences between states and countries can be overlooked without anyone traveling long distances for the conference.

2. While a phone call may suffice for two people who need to have a short conversation, web-based conferencing allows large rooms of people at different locations to interact with one another effectively. Ten business execs in Amsterdam can easily interact with five others in New York and two in Tokyo to create a full conference with everyone able to see and hear perfectly.

3. PowerPoint and other visual displays can be shared with everyone attending the conference at the same time, giving the feel of everyone being in one room and keeping everyone on task and focused.

4. Virtual whiteboards allow people from different locations to add in their own thoughts or ideas into one collaborative space. This enables everyone to form a plan of action or collaborate on a design or slogan instantly.

5. It is possible, with some services, for everyone to gain access to another computer, seeing whatever is on that computer screen. With more advanced services, a document can even be changed and typed into directly from other computers connected into the conference. Businesses that require active collaboration on one project form can be greatly enhanced with this possibility.

Disadvantages

1. The price may be the biggest drawback for some people, though there are very cheap options if you do not require the more advanced features. Usually, a business that can make good use of the more advanced features often finds that the money they save flying clients or employees around the country or world more than makes up for the cost of the service provider. As fuel becomes more of an issue around the world, the price becomes less of a disadvantage and more of an advantage.

2. There are some human ways of communicating that do not translate very well over a distance, such as eye contact. When you sit in the same room with someone and listen to a speech or presentation you will make eye contact and they will judge who is paying attention by looking around the room. Much of this contact is not easily delivered through a webcam.

The advantages and disadvantages of video conferencing have to be weighed against your purpose and whether there will be something valuable lost through this technology that you don't want to give up.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Video Conferencing

Is teleconferencing an advantage or a disadvantage for you? For more information on Video Conferencing, try visiting http://www.theconferencecallservices.com - it is a website offering solid tips and information on different conferencing options.

mobile phone watches Best Offer Spectra Premium F55A Fuel Tank For