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Don't be afraid of new technologies.
They have their good points. |
VoIP & Beyond:
The Terminology Behind The Solution
It would appear that many of the early problems that plagued VoIP have been resolved to some measurable degree over the last couple of years - critically important things like call quality, consistency, and reliability. That's good. However, for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that our TDM pricing is far more aggressive than most others VoIP pricing (which eliminates the primary reason many companies move to VoiP - perceived cost savings), we here at Genesis are not at all convinced that VoIP is ready to displace more traditional TDM solutions in most voice intensive applications (particularly Call Centers, even more so if they're inbound intensive like Customer/Tech Support operations and Answering Services).
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Once you take significant cost savings out of the equation, it becomes really hard to justify the headache and high cost of changing all of your hardware (phone system etc.) to move to VoIP, and there are many that would argue that the call quality and consistency is still not that of TDM. The killer app is just not there. To quote an article on VoIP from ComputerWorld, "...for many, the technology's return on investment is still uncertain. To get payback from VoIP, IT managers must find the applications that will be critical, if not killer, for their organizations...".
VoIP, however, does have it's place in our lineup.
In MPLS solutions, for example, VoIP technology allows mutliple locations of your organization to communicate with one another (via both voice and data) as if the entire operation was under a single roof. Think of it as a LAN on steroids. One of the addtional benefits of this solution is the fact that inter-office communications become cost-free because they take place on your MPLS network, as opposed to having to travel across the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network), where they would be billed by the minute as intra or interstate calls.
Our VoIP/SIP offerings are also a great way for those of you operating Canadian, off-shore, or overseas Call Centers that are currently using VoIP (or considering it) to take advantage of our incredibly aggressive pricing - with our VoIP/SIP products, we can provide those types of operations the same pricing you would get if you were physically located in the continental United States, while eliminating the need for small carrier grade switches (like the Nortel Passport), multiple IPLC's, and colocation facilities typically associated with TDM solutions in those applications. And we've been told repeatedly by clients using our SIP solution that the call quality is indistinguishable from TDM. It's a beautiful thing.
On a side note, if you are currently using TDM and bringing your traffic into the U.S. from elsewhere via E1s, we can pick your traffic up at the colo and terminate here (domestically) or abroad at our famously aggressive rates, postponing or even eliminating the need for you to go to VoIP to achieve greater cost effectiveness. We're particularly strong to Canada, the UK, and Australia. But we digress...
Muddling through an alphabet soup of acronyms can be quite confusing when trying to make an informed choice for a communications solution. For those of you considering VoIP, Genesis Telemanagement would like to help you better understand the technology behind our innovative VoIP solutions by providing you with these brief explanations of some of the most frequently used terms and definitions in the IP/VoIP world.
ACD
Automatic Call Distributor (ACD) is a telephone facility that handles incoming calls and manages them based on a database of handling instructions.
ATM
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is a network technology based on transferring data in cells or packets of a fixed size. The cell used with ATM is relatively small compared to units used with older technologies. The small, constant cell size allows ATM equipment to transmit video, audio, and computer data over the same network, and assure that no single type of data hogs the line. ATM creates a fixed channel, or route, between two points whenever data transfer begins. This differs from TCP/IP, in which messages are divided into packets and each packet can take a different route from source to destination. This difference makes it easier to track and bill data usage across an ATM network, but it makes it less adaptable to sudden surges in network traffic.
CRM
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) entails all aspects of interaction a company has with its customer, whether it be sales or service related. Computerization has changed the way companies are approaching their CRM strategies because it has also changed consumer-buying behavior. With each new advance in technology, especially the proliferation of self-service channels like the Web (World Wide Web) and Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) phones, more of the relationship is being managed electronically. Organizations are therefore looking for ways to personalize online experiences (a process also referred to as mass customization) through tools such as help-desk software, e-mail organizers and Web development applications.
CTI
Computer-Telephony-Integration (CTI) refers to systems that enable a computer to act as a call center, accepting incoming calls and routing them to the appropriate device or person. Today's CTI systems are quite sophisticated and can handle all sorts of incoming and outgoing communications, including phone calls, faxes, and Internet messages.
Internet Telephony
A category of hardware and software that enables people to use the Internet as the transmission medium for telephone calls. For users who have free, or fixed-price Internet access, Internet telephony software essentially provides inexpensive telephone calls anywhere in the world. Internet telephony products are sometimes called IP telephony, Voice over the Internet (VOI) or Voice over IP (VOIP) products.
IVAD
Integrated Voice and Data often runs on a single T-1. This technology uses a high-speed switching technology called ATM to provide up to 32 lines and up to 1.5 MB of data or Internet access over a single 1.5 MB T1.
IVR
Interactive Voice Response (IVR) is a telephony technology in which someone uses a touch-tone telephone to interact with a database to acquire information from or enter data into the database. IVR technology does not require human interaction over the telephone as the user's interaction with the database is predetermined by what the IVR system will allow the user to access. For example, banks and credit card companies use IVR systems so that their customers can receive up-to-date account information instantly and easily without having to speak directly to a person. IVR technology is also used to gather information, as in the case of telephone surveys in which the user is prompted to answer questions by pushing the numbers on a touch-tone telephone.
VoIP
VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol is a process of sending voice telephone signals over the Internet or other data network. If the telephone signal is in analog form (voice or fax), the signal is first converted to a digital form. Packet routing information is then added to the digital voice signal so it can be routed through the Internet or data network.
T-1
A T-1 line is a dedicated phone connection supporting data rates of 1.544Mbits per second. A T-1 actually consists of 24 individual channels, each of which supports 64Kbits per second. Each 64Kbit/second channel can be configured to carry voice or data traffic. Most telephone companies allow you to buy just some of these individual channels, known as fractional T-1 access. T-1 lines are sometimes referred to as DS1 lines.
TCP/IP
Internet Protocol, or IP, specifies the format of (data) packets, also called datagrams, and the addressing scheme. Most networks combine IP with a higher-level protocol called Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), which establishes a virtual connection between a destination and a source. IP by itself is something like the postal system. It allows you to address a package and drop it in the system, but there's no direct link between you and the recipient. TCP/IP, on the other hand, establishes a connection between two hosts so that they can send messages back and forth for a period of time.
WAP
Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is a secure specification that allows users to access information instantly via handheld wireless devices such as mobile phones, pagers, two-way radios, smartphones and communicators. WAPs that use displays and access the Internet run what are called microbrowsers – browsers with small file sizes that can accommodate the low memory constraints of handheld devices and the low-bandwidth constraints of a wireless-handheld network.
Note: Definitions for terminology contained on this page were compiled from a variety of sources.
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