Polycom (News - Alert), a provider of unified collaborative communications solutions, has announced the expansion of its VoIP Interoperability Partner (VIP) Program for manufacturers of SIP-based call control platforms.

Along with the announcement of the program, Polycom also announced the addition of six newly certified members: Cedar Point (News - Alert) Communications, LignUp, MetaSwitch, PanTerra Networks, Sutus, and Zultys.

Polycom now recognizes a total of 25 VoIP platform providers as being certified members who deliver solutions that seamlessly interoperate with the line of Polycom SoundPoint IP conference phones. Customers can now enjoy a broad and flexible offering of interoperable, standards-based VoIP solutions that meet a range of business needs.

Polycom’s line of VoIP desktop and conference phones delivers flexibility with Polycom voice quality and clarity with the company’s HD Voice technology, designed to enrich the customer communications experience with high definition voice quality that doubles that of traditional landline phones.

To make it easy for users to transition to a VoIP environment, Polycom phones are software upgradeable through the network and offer rich feature support through a combination of intuitive hard and soft keys with a large graphical display.

“Polycom and its partners are giving customers integrated solutions that will smooth the transition to VoIP and ensure reliability and comprehensive feature support between the SIP-based call platform and the Polycom phones,” said Will Stofega, research manager of VoIP services at IDC (News - Alert).

“Our VIP program offers customers the flexibility to choose the best VoIP solution for their needs, while guaranteeing interoperability with our best-in-class endpoints,” said said Sunil Bhalla, senior vice president and general manager of Voice Communications at Polycom. “Since initiating our VIP program we’ve seen tremendous interest from the industry’s leading vendors of SIP-based platforms, and we’re delighted to welcome our newest partners to the Polycom family.”

With the Polycom VoIP program, vendors can demonstrate that their premises-based or hosted SIP-based call control solutions interoperate with a defined feature set of the desktop and/or conference phones and SIP software. The VIP program involves rigorous interoperability testing at a Polycom-approved test facility according to a Polycom test plan.

The program is also designed to help assure that customers moving from legacy PSTN phone systems to VoIP solutions featuring Polycom phones and certified manufacturers’ equipment enjoy seamless interoperability and familiar functionality. As a result, customers can enjoy an easy transition to VoIP and reliable technical support.

 

Organizations are increasingly discovering the benefits that VoIP can deliver to their communications capabilities and their bottom line. The challenge for many companies however, is the fear of a complicated and costly implementation when transitioning from a legacy PSTN system.

Polycom focuses on not only easing those fears, but also delivering a smooth transition experience so that these customers can quickly experience the benefits that VoIP can provide, eliminating common problems that can occur when transitioning to any new system.

Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.