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4. CONTENTS
HOSTING
6 MICROSOFT
16 Preaching Convergence
The Competitive Landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Too Many Devices, Too Little Time . . . . . . . . . 18
Unified Communications Lineup . . . . . . . . . . 19
The ROI of UC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Product Stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2 Editor’s Note The Partner Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Hardware and Software
6 Unified Communications: Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Hosted Solutions
The Business Value of Hosted
Unified Communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Microsoft UC Core Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Advertising Sales
Matt Morollo EAST
Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 VP, Publishing
Hosted Messaging Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 508-532-1418 tel JD Holzgrefe
508-875-6622 fax Director of Advertising, East
Microsoft Office Communications Server mmorollo@1105media.com 804-752-7800 tel
253-595-1976 fax
2007 Hosted VoIP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 WEST/MIDWEST jdholzgrefe@1105media.com
Hosted Meeting Services with Dan LaBianca Erik Nielsen
Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2007 . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Director of Advertising, Eastern Sales Manager
West/Central 303-862-4625 tel
Putting It All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 818-674-3417 tel 720-247-9032 fax
818-734-1528 fax enielsen@1105media.com
dlabianca@1105media.com
IT CERTIFICATION &
Bruce Halldorson TRAINING: USA, EUROPE
Western Regional Al Tiano
Sales Manager Advertising Sales Manager
CA, OR, WA 818-734-1520 ext. 190 tel
HOSTED RESOURCES 209-333-2299 tel
209-729-5855 fax
818-734-1529 fax
atiano@1105media.com
bhalldorson@1105media.com
AD INDEX SALES STAFF
Patrick Cragin Tanya Egenolf
Advertiser Page URL MidWest Regional Advertising Sales Associate
1&1 7 www.1and1.com Sales Manager 760-722-5494 tel
303-255-1733 tel 760-722-5495 fax
AppRiver C2, 1 www.appriver.com
440-851-6859 fax tegenolf@1105media.com
Intermedia 15, C3 www.intermedia.net pcragin@1105media.com
Kaseya 9 www.kaseya.com PRODUCTION
Logicworks 5, C4 www.logicworks.net/Redmond Danna Vedder Serena Barnes
Microsoft Account Manager Production Coordinator
The Planet 3, 17 www.theplanet.com
253-514-8015 tel 818-734-1520 ext. 164 tel
TriVenture 13 crmontarget.com/whitelabel 775-514-0350 fax 818-734-1528 fax
USA.NET 11 www.usa.net dvedder@1105media.com redmondadproduction@
1105media.com
2 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
5.
6. Editor’s NOTE
HOSTING
MICROSOFT
Hosting’s Time Is Now
Editor in Chief
BY SCOTT BEKKER, Editor in chief Scott Bekker
Managing Editor
Wendy Gonchar
T here’s been a flurry of activity around hosted services in the last Art Director
year or so. It feels as electric as it did when the abbreviation ASP Scott Shultz
automatically meant Application Service Provider. But the infra- Senior Graphic Designer
Alan Tao
structure feels better now, stronger, more real.
Perhaps it’s the billions of dollars being invested by Google,
Microsoft and Yahoo! to build out data center capacity for slightly
mysterious ends. Maybe it’s the runaway success of Salesforce.com
President
with its predominantly Software as a Service (SaaS) delivery model for
Henry Allain
business applications. Perhaps it’s the fact that major vendors are start-
VP, Publishing
ing to offer hosted versions of software that had traditionally been
Matt N. Morollo
offered exclusively through the sales of licenses for local installation.
VP, Editorial Director
What all those companies recognize is that the underlying networks Doug Barney
for remotely accessing hosted applications are much more solid than
VP, Conferences
they were a decade ago. Broadband is everywhere. Customers who rely Tim G. Smith
on hosted applications can be assured that all their branch offices and Director, Marketing
even most home offices have the bandwidth to get the same perform- Michele Imgrund
ance as the corporate headquarters. With wireless networks popping up Creative Director
not just at Starbucks but at McDonalds, too, traveling staff can easily Scott Shultz
find a spot to access hosted applications on the road. Executive Editor, New Media
Buying applications as hosted services can free IT departments from Michael Domingo
the need to add staff for new applications or it can permit redirection of Executive Editor, Web Initiatives
highly paid professionals from network maintenance tasks to business Becky Nagel
development work. It can also make pilot implementations trivial to set
up and take much of the guesswork and expense out of installing a
new solution.
Solutions providers have thornier issues. The SaaS model threatens President & CEO
lucrative installation opportunities. But as hosters seek new business Neal Vitale
opportunities, they’re reaching out to solutions providers with recurring CFO
Richard Vitale
margins and other innovative channel programs. Solutions providers
with vertical expertise, on the other hand, have brand new opportunities Executive Vice President
Michael J. Valenti
to partner with hosters and offer new applications that can reach a
Managing Director
geographically limitless audience.
Dick Blouin
In the same vein, any ISV needs to look hard at available hosting
VP, Financial Planning & Analysis
options for providing their solutions in the SaaS model. With the biggest
William H. Burgin
vendors leading the way, hosted versions of software could quickly
VP, Finance & Administration
become a checkbox that every ISV needs to offer just to compete. From a Christopher M. Coates
straight development perspective, the hosted model has its advantages,
VP, Audience Marketing &
such as the ability to roll out security updates once and be sure every Web Operations
user receives them. Abraham M. Langer
All of these opportunities are floating out there for customers, VP, Information Technology
solutions providers and developers to grab. We’ve pulled together this Erik A. Lindgren
collection of information from some of the major hosting providers in VP, Print & Online Production
the market. We hope it will help you make sense of the potentially Mary Ann Paniccia
cost-saving and business-building opportunities for your organization Chairman of the Board
in these transitional times. • Jeffrey S. Klein
4 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
7. ADVERTORIAL
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Logicworks. “Today’s businesses are well-advised to fully exploit ments—Logicworks is uniquely positioned to partner with consult-
their core competencies, and to seek partners to fill in the gaps.” ants, system integrators, and independent software vendors.
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their initial solution set. application or end-user support, licensing—partners can take full
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As a SAS 70 Type II audited managed services provider, abandonment.
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complex and growing customer needs. Achieving Growth
Using a consultative sales discovery process, Logicworks works
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The comprehensive service includes managed security and Logicworks helps partners be more successful by aiding in
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Coupled with Logicworks’ Core Services—24/7 technical customers on data center tours; crafting customized SLAs;
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8. FEATURE
UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS:
Hosted Solutions
By Joe Schurman
Microsoft MVP
Gurdeep Singh Pall,
Microsoft Corporate
VP, Unified
Communications
Group, surrounded
by new devices
supporting
Microsoft’s Unified
SOURCE: MICROSOFT
Communications
strategy, which
includes a hosted
option.
30-year paradigm shift in telecommunications technology has breached the
desktop with a newly converged and evolved set of communication and collab-
oration tools. Microsoft comes to the market full bore with a solution it calls
Unified Communications (UC), which includes a suite of collaboration and
messaging tools that integrate with traditional TDM and VoIP services to create
a fully developed communications platform. All that is leveraged directly from
the desktop and within the ubiquitous Microsoft Office suite. With an over-
abundance of Microsoft partner and customer interest, Microsoft has also pro-
vided a hosted solution for the UC platform that will create new services capa-
bilities for hosted environments, appealing to both small to midsize business
(SMB) and enterprise markets. Here is an overview of these hosted solutions
for the newly released and announced Microsoft UC platform.
6 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
10. FEATURE: Hosted Solutions
The Business Value of Hosted virtual environment was critical, so upon
Unified Communications release of the 2007 edition of Microsoft’s
IT business decision makers are split UC platform, both Microsoft Office
between outsourcing IT services and manag- Communications Server (OCS) 2007 and
ing these services internally. Up until a few Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 are sup-
months ago, hosting collaboration services ported on environments running Microsoft
was nearly impossible due to the burdens of Virtual Server 2007.
required integration, implementation, net- These modifications in application
work traffic and security. Today, the architecture now create a host of new
Microsoft Unified Communications 2007 options for the customer that are not
platform provides the capability to imple- limited to an on-premise deployment as
ment these collaborative systems in a hosted they were before.
model to assist organizations who either do
not have the expertise and physical real estate Microsoft UC Core Products
to host application servers, or the amount of The Microsoft UC product portfolio is com-
IT staff to manage these services onsite. In a prised of both collaboration and messaging
hosted environment, the Microsoft UC server products, which include the following:
platform can be managed by UC and MCSE
certified technicians and still provide a Microsoft Exchange Server 2007
localized approach for these organizations Microsoft’s flagship mail services product,
even though theses services may be hosted Microsoft Exchange Server has dominated
miles, cities or countries away. enterprise organizations and SMBs for years.
Based upon previous case study informa- Exchange Server 2007 now provides addi-
tion and by interviewing new customers, tional and enhanced features to customers
Microsoft and its UC partner organizations such as Unified Messaging, which integrates
concluded that providing a hosted model in voicemail and calling features within
addition to a consolidated, onsite approach Microsoft Office Outlook 2007. In addition,
would appeal to IT decision makers who enhancements have been made for remote
were concerned about the amount of applica- mail services, mobile messaging with
tion, IP and telephony-based services that are Windows Mobile 6 devices and now, hosted
required with a bundled UC solution. services for e-mail, filtering, security, archiv-
Providing a hosted solution for these services ing and business continuity support for a
never-loss email service.
Microsoft concluded that providing its Microsoft OCS 2007
Microsoft Office Communications Server
Office collaboration and messaging (OCS) 2007 is VoIP on steroids. Based on a
servers in a supported virtual VoIP server platform, OCS provides a
combination of communication tools
environment was critical. such as Instant Messaging, voice services
through VoIP and call controls for corpo-
relieves the IT decision maker by providing a rate phone systems, as well as hosted online
managed services package that usually only meeting services. OCS provides support
involves an upfront deployment fee and for new VoIP devices developed specifically
ongoing support contract so that the organi- for the OCS client, Microsoft Office
zation’s representative doesn’t have to worry Communicator 2007 including video and
about deploying, storing and supporting voice devices, such as new desktop phones
these services on-site, which can definitely be with integrated video and color display,
cost and physically prohibitive. monitors with video support, and meeting
Based on customer requests, Microsoft also service devices like Microsoft Office
realized that providing its Office collabora- RoundTable that provide panoramic video
tion and messaging servers in a supported displays and active speaker recognition.
8 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
11. Systems Managed.
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getting control of your entire windows based • Remote Desktop Management / Remote Support
• Patch Management
computing infrastructure. With maximum scalability
• Network Monitoring / Alerts
and flexibility, Kaseya gives you the power to securely • Windows Event Monitoring / Alerts
• Software Deployment / Update
automate IT administration. From innovative features
• Help Desk / Trouble Ticketing
like web based administration to patch management • Network Policy Enforcement
• Backup and Disaster Recovery
and remote monitoring, Kaseya enables organizations
• Endpoint Security
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performance. Get Kaseya today and check off your • Maximum Security
• Flexible Web Based Administration
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12. FEATURE: Hosted Solutions
Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2007 Microsoft Exchange Server 2007
Microsoft Office Live Meeting is the latest Hosted Messaging Services
version of Microsoft’s online meeting Microsoft has provided hosted solutions
service technology. It provides a wealth of for enterprise messaging through earlier
features, including video integration with releases of Microsoft Exchange Server. The
Microsoft RoundTable, VoIP and Internet difference with what is provided in the UC
Audio Broadcast support, the ability to 2007 platform for Exchange Server and
share presentations and data, polling previous versions is that now Microsoft
and QA panels, as well as recording Exchange Server supports Unified Messaging
capabilities for on-demand viewing. Live with voicemail integration. In addition to these
Meeting provides an Internet-based meet- services, Microsoft has introduced newly
ing platform that scales to millions of users enhanced Exchange Server, server-based
and offers the highest quality of video, voice solutions to provide state-of-the-art messaging
and data support. continuity (guaranteed, uninterrupted e-mail
service), security services for encryption and
Each product plays a specific role in anti-virus/anti-spam, filtering services, as well
enabling effective communication and as compliance services.
collaboration on a global scale. These The following Exchange Server products
services cross firewalls using a series of are available within a hosted model:
standard communication protocols known
as Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and Microsoft Exchange Hosted E-mail
Real Time Protocol (RTP). Utilizing these Exchange hosted e-mail provides a pay-
The Microsoft standards-based protocols Microsoft’s as-you-go model that enables you to
Exchange 2007
Unified Communications servers can scale up or down as needed, minimizing
Hosted Messaging
now communicate with each other and your financial risk. Microsoft Hosted
Services model
offers four different
with non-Microsoft platform services Exchange can help you free up valuable
products for using a common language. This capability capital, IT staff and other costly resources
filtering, archiving, also provides a truly hosted platform for for more effective, strategic use within
continuity and customers that require a hosted model. your organization.
encryption.
10 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
13. ADVERTISEMENT
Sinking an eagle putt keeps the CEO impressed. Crashing your email server doesn’t.
STEVE THE IT DIRECTOR arrived to his office early this morning. Today, he was looking forward to a 7 a.m. tee time with
his CEO. His plan was to quickly check email, then head directly to the course. But as he attempted to open his email
client, his system administrator burst into the office, “Steve, bad news. We were here all night upgrading the virus scan-
ning engine, and the servers wouldn’t come back up. I don’t know what happened, and we are still trying to reach the ven-
dor!” Setting down his clubs, Steve realizes his golf game with the CEO won’t be happening now. Rather than sinking a
few putts and strategizing on a new IT project, he’ll be fighting fires again this morning—along with everyone else on his team.
USA.NET Hosted Exchange Services Would Have Saved the Day!
Do what you do best. Leave the email worries to us. protection, ensuring that the email you receive is the email you
Your email is critical to your business operations. But adminis- want. Plus, USA.NET purchases premier support from our solu-
tering the servers dedicated to the email system is difficult tion partners to guarantee we receive the quickest and highest
especially when it’s not your core business. At USA.NET, our quality of customer service, so you never have to call the virus
certified engineers are focused on managing email and cus- scanning software vendor again.
tomizing solutions for our customers 24x7x365. From system
maintenance to upgrading technology to ensuring you have the It’s more than just email. Its productivity tools built for
most reliable email services on the market today, we’ll make your business.
sure your data is available and protected. And you can rest Not only will you receive the email and collaboration tools inher-
assured that your next career-boosting golf game won’t be ent in Microsoft Exchange, but you will also have access to 20+
interrupted due to email issues. enhanced services. As your business needs change, you can
turn up those additional services instantly — making you the IT
Reliability backed by the toughest SLAs in the business. hero. Whether your organization requires mobility solutions, reg-
The safety and security of your email is a top priority. From data- ulatory compliance and archiving tools or custom integration
preserving backups to complete redundancy, you’ll never be with another application, USA.NET has the services to meet
without the email your business needs to be successful. your current and future messaging needs.
Through our rigorous change management process, you are
assured we lab test every change before it’s implemented. Making the move to USA.NET, Steve and his CEO will now be
USA.NET is SAS 70 Type II audited which means our opera- playing “closest to the pin” and spending their time together
tional controls and effectiveness are reviewed by an independ- discussing business roadmap strategies instead of sitting in a
ent 3rd party audit team. With USA.NET, there are no surprises conference room discussing the financial impacts of the recent
except the speed at which your team finishes those strategic IT system failure.
projects now that email is no longer a distraction.
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USA.NET uses state-of-the-art gateway servers that prevent Contact Us Now
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entering your network. With USA.NET, you’re not stuck with just
1.800.530.8518
a single protection technology. We integrate multiple points of www.usa.net
1.800.530.8518
www.usa.net
Referral and reseller opportunities available
14. FEATURE: Hosted Solutions
Microsoft Office
Communications
Server 2007
offers secure third- Microsoft Exchange Hosted Filtering
party instant Exchange Hosted Filtering incorporates
messaging with multiple filters to actively help protect
video conferencing. businesses’ inbound and outbound e-mail
from spam, viruses, phishing scams and Microsoft Office Communications
e-mail policy violations. Server 2007 Hosted VoIP
The most extreme collaboration possibilities
Microsoft Exchange Hosted Archive come from Office Communications Server,
Exchange Hosted Archive provides storage and in this case, hosting is an option, as
and retrieval of both old e-mail and instant well. As part of the UC platform, Office
messages. Communications Server 2007 offers users the
ability to access features such as secure instant
Microsoft Exchange Hosted Continuity messaging with multiple third-party products
Exchange Hosted Continuity is a business such as Yahoo!, MSN and AOL; OCS voice
continuity solution that helps protect and services that allow users to use VoIP for com-
provide continuous access to e-mail. munications or call controls for their existing
corporate phone system; plus hosted meeting
Microsoft Exchange Hosted Encryption services using Live Meeting technology inte-
Exchange Hosted Encryption is a convenient, grated within an optional video device called
easy-to-use e-mail encryption service that Microsoft Office RoundTable.
helps safely deliver your confidential business The major feature release of this new plat-
communications. form for hosted solutions is the support for
12 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
16. FEATURE: Hosted Solutions
Microsoft
RoundTable
A new device
from Microsoft, Microsoft Virtual Server. Previous versions of Communications platform product.
RoundTable creates Office Communications Server, such as Live Common uses for Live Meeting include sales
panoramic video of
Communications Server, had the ability to presentations, company meetings and job
the meeting place
run on a virtual server environment, but this interviews. The built-in recording feature
and includes
solution was not supported. With OCS 2007, allows you to record the entire session
eight microphones
and software for Microsoft now supports a fully hosted model inclusive of video, data and voice and allows
tracking the flow running on Microsoft’s advanced virtual for posting recorded meetings for later
of conversation software, Microsoft Virtual Server. Running on-demand access. Complete with user
among speakers. OCS on a virtual environment provides interfacing polls, a Questions Answers
organizations with the power of real-time panel, and support for Internet Audio
communications tools with the flexibility of Broadcasting, Live Meeting also supports the
a hosted model. Microsoft RoundTable device to share
panoramic video and active speaker controls
Hosted Meeting Services with making your remote meetings more effective
Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2007 than ever before.
Microsoft Office Live Meeting provides users
with the ability to present information, share Putting It All Together
video and provide online real-time demon- Each of these hosted elements creates new
strations across firewalls. Live possibilities for enterprise organizations and
Meeting comes in two forms, both a hosted SMBs. Taken together, the technologies can
model using the Live Meeting online service open up huge opportunities for productivity
or hosted through Microsoft Office gains while holding steady, or even reducing,
Communications Server, another Unified •
overall infrastructure costs.
14 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
17. Is managing Exchange a giant headache?
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get a premium Exchange infrastructure with 99.99% uptime SLA and 24x7 expert support.
Visit us at www.intermedia.net or call 1-800-379-7729 for a 30-day risk-free trial.
18. FEATURE
PREACHING
CONVERGENCE
Microsoft is finally getting real about a one-stop strategy
for e-mail, voice mail, IM and Web conferencing—and that’s
creating plenty of opportunities.
By Lauren Gibbons Paul
hen Bill Vollerthum got a call from Microsoft last year asking
whether he wanted to be one of 15 companies on the Partner
Advisory Group for Microsoft’s soon-to-be-announced Unified
Communi-cations (UC) strategy, he found it hard to suppress his glee.
After all, Vollerthum’s company, Enabling Technologies Corp., a Gold
Certified Partner, had years of experience with conventional PBX-based
telephony and had dabbled in voice/data convergence. Getting the early
scoop on Microsoft’s UC plans would position Vollerthum to be one of
the first partners aboard the official UC train.
“I was very excited. I saw that this could be ucts under the UC umbrella were released in
a very positive revenue stream for us going 2007 (see “Product Stack,” p. 19). In a public
forward,” says Vollerthum, president and Executive E-mail message in June 2006,
CEO of the Glen Arm, Md., company. Things Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates predicted
moved quickly after Microsoft publicly that such Unified Communications innova-
unveiled its UC products and vision in June tions will “dramatically streamline the way
2006. Enabling Technologies has worked on we communicate at work and stay in touch
five beta adoptions of Exchange Server 2007 with friends and family at home.”
Unified Messaging (UM), which gives users a Though Microsoft didn’t invent the
single identity for access to voice, fax and e- concept, UC/UM is a rather revolutionary
mail data from the office and the road. It also approach. The idea is giving people one
allows them to manage their e-mail, calen- way to communicate, for work and for play,
dars and personal contacts by telephone. that transcends the current pitfalls we all
So far, “the product is living up to the put up with on a daily basis. The classic,
hype,” says Vollerthum. “It has been unbeliev- simple example is calling a colleague
ably stable. We’re seeing a real buzz in the about an urgent matter. You get her voice
marketplace about this product.” mail, so you leave a message. Then you send
Exchange Server 2007 was released to an e-mail. Next, you try her cell phone. All
manufacturing last December; other prod- to no avail.
16 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
19. RCPP
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20. FEATURE: Hosted Solutions
would automatically forward to her cell
phone (assuming that you’re on her list of
THE COMPETITIVE high-priority contacts) and, within moments,
you should be speaking with her. (Embedded
LANDSCAPE business rules allow you to prioritize calls—
such as those from your boss or best client—
Microsoft has never been afraid of moving onto turf already and to indicate your presence, or immediate
populated by other industry heavyweights, and its approach availability, to some people but not others.)
to Unified Communications is no different, according to Irwin Another example: You’re having an
Lazar, principal analyst for Nemertes Research Inc. in Chicago. instant-messaging (IM) exchange with a co-
Microsoft’s chief competitors in this space: Cisco Systems worker. During the discussion, you realize
Inc. and IBM Corp./Lotus , says Lazar. Cisco’s Unified you need to escalate to a phone call. Thanks
Communicator client competes directly with Microsoft’s to integrated VoIP telephony, you could initi-
Office Communicator. Meanwhile, Lotus Notes (now owned ate the call right in the IM client. Then you
by IBM), which pioneered group collaboration, now has could bring in another client or colleague
Unified Communications features. and review PowerPoint slides together, thanks
But Lazar doesn’t view Unified Communications as a seri- to integrated Web-conferencing capabilities.
ous horse race. “It’s not going to be a winner-take-all,” he “[Unified Communications] is about in-
says, noting that many companies will use Microsoft desktop, context transitions that enable productivity,”
IM and Web-conferencing products, “but will want to inte- says Michael Khalili, Unified Communications
grate that into their Cisco telephony system.” Getting corpo- product manager for Microsoft. “It’s about
rate America to accept Microsoft as a telephony expert will be breaking down the walls between voice mail,
a harder, though not impossible, sell. Time will tell just how fax and e-mail. It’s about choosing the tool
well Microsoft can demonstrate its chops in telephony. that’s the most appropriate for the context.”
So far, Lazar thinks Microsoft has done an excellent job of
educating the market on its Unified Communications strate- Too Many Devices, Too Little Time
gy. “[Microsoft has] gotten people talking. [It has] shown In speaking about Microsoft’s Unified
people what is possible,” he says. “[The company has] a Communications strategy in June 2006,
chasm to cross to get an enterprise to consider a Microsoft Microsoft Business Division President Jeff
telephony system, but [it] will make it in some cases,” partic- Raikes quoted research indicating that the
ularly among smaller organizations. —L.P. average organization has 6.4 different types
of communications devices and 4.8 different
communications applications per user. As the
The UM aspect of UC provides a single number of devices and applications grows, of
identity across all modes and devices, greas- course, productivity is likely to decline.
ing the wheels of communication, at least to Unified Messaging to the rescue!
those with whom you want to communicate. People used to have to have multiple
So, using the previous example, you wouldn’t devices and applications because of the sys-
waste time e-mailing your colleague because tems’ limitations, says Marc Sanders, group
you’d see at a glance that she isn’t online. product manager for Microsoft Unified
When you dialed her work number, your call Communications. “Now, we’re putting people
in control of their systems. It’s about produc-
tivity and convenient access and faster
We believe Unified Communications response times.”
Microsoft’s UC strategy is closely linked to
is the next big messaging app for the its “People-Ready Business” approach, which
aims to amplify business results through soft-
next three years. We’re betting the ware that empowers employees. “There’s a
company on it. direct correlation between a company’s apti-
tude for collaboration and communication
—Bill Volerthum, President and CEO, and its resulting business performance,”
Enabling Technologies Corp. Raikes said during his keynote.
18 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
21. Unified Communications entails converg- The ROI of UC
ing e-mail, IM, VoIP, and audio/video/Web Many companies may have been planning to
conferencing into an intuitive experience put off upgrading to Exchange Server 2007.
that’s integrated with the business applica- But their plans may change when they see
tions—such as Microsoft Office—and busi- what UC can do for their businesses. The
ness processes that employees use every day. most obvious benefit: server consolidation.
The resulting environment is the “new world Vollerthum says many of his early adopter
of work” that Gates often refers to. customers were able to go from separate
servers for voice mail, e-mail and fax service
Unified Communications Lineup down to one that can handle all three func-
Two products are at the heart of Microsoft’s tions. That capability makes administration
UC strategy: Exchange Server 2007 and easier and, over time, reduces hardware costs.
Office Communications Server (OCS) 2007, Replacing the conventional PBX-based
according to Khalili. Exchange Server han- phone system in favor of VoIP is an obvious
dles the asynchronous store-and-forward source of savings, though some companies
communications, while OCS takes care of may be reluctant to do a wholesale migration
real-time communications such as IM, due to service-quality concerns. Exchange
voice and voice conferencing. If the other Server 2007 runs on a 64-bit processor,
party in the live communication doesn’t
respond, the communication becomes
asynchronous and is handed from OCS
back to Exchange. Other forthcoming
Microsoft products contain UM applica-
PRODUCT STACK
tions such as enhanced meeting capabilities Microsoft delivered the components for its Unified
and “soft phones,” software that uses Communications-enabled solutions in 2007.
Internet technology to make calls. RELEASE
Microsoft executives have been quick to PRODUCT DESCRIPTION DATE*
emphasize the important role to be played by
what Raikes calls the “broad partner ecosys- Exchange Server Unified Messaging, messaging DEC 2006**
2007 and communications software with UC
tem” that will use OCS as a platform to add with unified inbox, including Service Pack
UC capabilities to other applications. e-mail, voice mail and faxing inOCT2007
Khalili envisions several scenarios for part- functionality
ner involvement. First, systems integrators
Microsoft Office SIP-based, real-time communi- JUL 2007
that, like Enabling Technologies, have teleph- Communications cation platform with UM capabi-
ony experience will be in high demand as Server 2007 lities; hub for Unified Communi-
companies migrate to Exchange Server 2007. cations solutionsdeveloped
by partners
“There is tremendous opportunity around
the deployment of these systems,” he says. Microsoft Office Conferencing service designed OCT 2007
Integrators that have done other Live Meeting to optimize collaboration
Microsoft implementations would do well to and training
gain the skills needed to play in the UC
Microsoft Office Unified Communications client JUL 2007
world. “We have partners that are having Communicator that works with Office Communi-
extensive success with SharePoint and Office 2007 cations Server 2007 to deliver a
2007 deployments. Our UC strategy allows presence-based, enterprise VoIP
“soft phone”
them to integrate UC into those platforms,”
says Sanders. “[Partners] can expand their Microsoft Office Audio-video collaboration device OCT 2007
competency and add in the advanced RoundTable with a 360-degree camera;
infrastructure expertise. That gives them the combined with Office Communi-
cations Server 2007, RoundTable
chance to be Exchange deployment partners extends the meeting environment
in addition to being a desktop solution part- across multiple locations
ner. They can have a deeper exchange with
S O U RC E : M I C RO S O F T * A L L D AT E S R E F E R TO C A L E N D A R Y E A R
the customer.” * * R E L E A S E D TO M A N U FAC T U R I N G D E C E M B E R 2 0 0 6
December 2007 Hosting Microsoft 19
22. FEATURE: Hosted Solutions
ton on the IM session and the buyer and bro-
THE PARTNER ker’s phones would ring so they could confirm
the transaction” by voice, as per Securities and
PERSPECTIVE Exchange Commission regulations. “This is a
sales manager that says, ‘I can increase my bro-
Time will tell whether Microsoft’s Unified Communications kers’ productivity by 30 percent? Sold,’” says
(UC) play lives up to Bill Gates’ freewheeling vision of reinvent- Tripp. “That’s the stuff we’re interested in.”
ing how people reach each other at work, at home and from
the road—and what benefits Microsoft partners can expect to Hardware and Software
reap as a result. If your line of business meshes in any way with Opportunities
the UC strategy, you’re likely to find yourself climbing aboard Beyond systems integration and implementa-
the “UC Express.” tion, the field is wide open for ISVs and
If you weren’t one of the elite few tapped last winter to be hardware vendors to leverage the Microsoft
part of Microsoft’s UC group, don’t despair. Most UM products UC platform. “Both Exchange [Server 2007]
haven’t yet shipped and there’s still plenty of time to put and OCS [2007] have a set of APIs that allow
together your own company’s UC plan. for integration with a wide number of appli-
Where to start? First, read up on Microsoft’s new UC products cations,” says Khalili. “We’ll see a lot of real-
and decide which best fit your company’s profile. The next time communications and presence integrat-
step, says Microsoft’s Khalili: “Begin engaging with your part- ed into traditional applications.”
ner contacts at Microsoft to get plugged into the machine.” RADVision Inc., a Fair Lawn, N.J., video-
Because telephony requires a specialized skill set, it may conferencing solution provider and Gold
make sense for consultants and integrators to consider part- Certified Partner, plans to integrate its Click
nering with other companies that have demonstrated track to Meet product line with Microsoft UC
records in those areas. “It can be tough to develop these skills technology, creating a single platform for
from the ground up,” says Enabling Technologies’ Vollerthum. audio/video/Web conferencing. Bob Romano,
“It may make more sense to partner with a company that vice president of marketing for RADVision,
already has the skills.” Meanwhile, keep an eye on the rest of thinks there are great opportunities for chan-
the field (see “The Competitive Landscape,” p. 18). nel partners that provide consulting services
In any case, Vollerthum says, UC is the real deal. “We believe for companies that want to do this.
this is the next big messaging app for the next three years,” he Beating Microsoft to the punch,
says. “We’re betting the company on it.” —L.P. Objectworld Communications Corp. two
years ago created Unified Messaging software
called Unified Communications Server. This
potentially boosting throughput enough to product allows companies to replace their
get past those concerns. PBX phone systems with VoIP with UM
Increased productivity of peripatetic knowl- capabilities on Microsoft Exchange platforms.
edge workers is another key selling point. David Levy, president and CEO of
Unisys Corp., another Gold Certified Partner Objectworld, a Gold Certified Partner based
and member of the UM partner-advisory in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, doesn’t regret
group, has shown clients in vertical industries getting into a market on which Microsoft has
such as financial services. For example, an now set its sights.
investment bank is looking at implementing “We’ve shown Exchange Server 2007 work-
unified messaging for bond-desk traders. ing with Unified Communications Server. We
Traditionally, those traders spent their days fully agree with and foresaw Microsoft’s
with phones crammed to their ears while vision in this area,” says Levy. He adds that
shouting at banks of computer screens. With Objectworld’s offering is a good choice for
UM, “they can use IM to communicate back customers who want to get up and running
and forth with upward of 25 buyers” rather
than just four or five, says Peter Tripp, vice
on UM as soon as possible. •
president of global outsourcing and infra- Lauren Gibbons Paul (lauren.paul@comcast.net)
structure services for Unisys in Blue Bell, Pa. is a freelance journalist who specializes in writing
“Then the seller on the desk would hit a but- about business and technology.
20 Hosting Microsoft December 2007
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