Cisco, a global giant and provider of IT, networking and cybersecurity solutions, has announced that it has received the final regulatory approval for a $4.5 billion agreement to purchase Acacia. The merger was reportedly approved by the Chinese government’s State Market Regulatory Administration (SAMR) on Tuesday. The consent from SAMR was the last hurdle to clear for Cisco to complete the deal. Cisco’s plans to acquire Acacia Communications were first announced in July of 2019. The deal was on a fully diluted basis to buy the company for $70 per share in cash for a total of $2.6 billion. Cisco had then received the regulatory go-ahead from the United States, Germany and Austria. Cisco has received the approval under certain conditions. According to SAMR, the deal could progress as long as Cisco and Acacia continue to fulfill existing contracts in China, as well as supply Chinese companies in…
The voice over IP vendor 8×8 Inc., has announced that the Anaheim Ducks National Hockey League (NHL) team and the Honda Center, one of the nation’s top entertainment and sports venues, have chosen 8×8 as their official cloud communications provider. They will use 8×8’s integrated cloud voice, team chat, meeting and contact center solution to help enhance the experience for their employees, partners and customers. The Anaheim Ducks and Honda Center decided to give a boost to their digital transformation efforts across the organization and recognized the need to abandon the old, on-premises communication and contact center systems. It is not surprising that they made the decision to move away from the legacy connections given the elevated profile and visibility of cloud technology during the pandemic. Steve Seger, Chief Revenue Officer at 8×8, Inc., commented: “Organizations of all sizes, including professional sports teams like the Anaheim Ducks, have…
In an era dominated by advanced communication technologies, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) has emerged as a revolutionary solution that has transformed the way we connect and communicate. However, beyond its well-known benefits, there exist a plethora of intriguing facts about VoIP that often go unnoticed. From its historical origins to its impact on businesses and individuals, delving into these lesser-known aspects of VoIP unveils a fascinating realm of innovation and efficiency. Here is a list of facts about VoIP you might have missed. The first VoIP call was made in 1973. The call used an early version of the Internet called ARPANET and it was carried out as a part of a communication experiment. The first VoIP call was made between the Institute of Information Sciences and the Lincoln Laboratory in the United States. The first VoIP call in 1973 was a little…
Vonage, a global provider of VoIP business communications, has been selected by global appliance maker Fisher & Paykel to promote customer service communications to their clientele in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, United Kingdom and the US. The company now uses Vonage’s messaging API to offer customers on-the-spot support notifications for maintenance via SMS. The API also helps businesses improve post-sales, especially regarding the way customers can provide feedback when services have been completed, so that the company can continually improve their services. In addition, the Vonage Messages API, built into the Fisher & Paykel platform, provides automatic and instant SMS confirmations and reminders for all technician appointments. This platform also includes self-service links for customers to easily cancel or reschedule an appointment. Fisher & Paykel Appliances EVP Marketing and Customer Experience, Rudi Khoury, commented: “Today’s customers want to be responded to instantly. They want regular updates from businesses…
Finding the best VoIP phone systems for your business is an important task, especially if you plan to compete with more experienced industry participants or to expand business internationally. When choosing a VoIP phone for your office, it is essential to select one that best fits your company. Now it is a great time to move from a traditional service provider to a VoIP solution, considering the new technologies and advances in VoIP business phone systems. Benefits of VoIP phone systems There are many benefits in switching to a VoIP telephone system. In fact, every business stands to greatly benefit by implementing this sophisticated communications technology. Here are some of the advantages that VoIP can bring to your business: Lower costs VoIP telephone system utilizes Internet Protocol for voice traffic instead of using telephone lines, and all communication data is sent over the IP network. Because the data is sent…
Microsoft is expanding in the communications market with the introduction of their Azure Communication Services. This new service is a fully managed communication platform for integrating calls, chats and SMS into business organizations and their applications. Azure Communication Services allows users to develop new communication solutions or integrate them into existing applications, avoiding high costs, complexity, or time wastage. Voice and video calling, as well as chat services will be available immediately, while SMS and phone numbers will be released in October. Over the past few years, Microsoft has gained a wealth of experience in this area, thanks to the large success of their Teams service. Azure Communication Services also uses the same secure platform that runs Microsoft Teams and is built natively on Azure. Scott Van Vliet, corporate vice president for Intelligent Communication at the company, commented: “Azure Communication Services is built natively on top of…
VoIP provider Dialpad has announced the acquisition of a video conferencing company, Highfive. The purpose of the purchase is to add room-based video to Dialpad’s suite of services, including computer video conferencing. Neither of the two companies released financial details of the acquisition. Dialpad is the company that developed the popular video conferencing service UberConference. UberConference does have a built-in video conferencing feature, and this acquisition will add enhancements to their existing video capabilities. To date, UberConference is mostly known for its calling features. Dialpad not only offers its users conference call solutions and a VoIP platform, but also has a contact center solution. As stated by Dialpad, by using Highfive technology, any home office or office space can become a smart meeting room. Best of all, this service will work with existing hardware and SIP-enabled conferencing providers. Craig Walker, CEO of Dialpad, believes that this acquisition…
IPFone, a provider of cloud-based business unified communications and telephony services, together with Ribbon Communications Inc., a global provider of real time communications software and network solutions to service providers, enterprises and critical infrastructure sectors, announced that they are making use of Ribbon‘s Intelligent Edge portfolio to ensure that their customers are able to seamlessly work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ribbon‘s EdgeMarc 2900, deployed at several IPFone sites in various states, helps support IPFone’s business customers as the company experiences an increase in its network usage. EdgeMarc devices are located at the edges of the customer network to ensure the successful deployment of IP-based communications services that improve voice quality, security and visibility on the customer network. Also, the EdgeMarc 2900 allows IPFone to easily adapt to the smallest or largest customer installations, while providing secure service delivery capabilities. This architecture enables the company to proactively keep…
Yeastar Information Technology, a leading provider of cloud-based and on-premises VoIP PBX systems and VoIP gateways for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has announced that its S-Series VoIP PBX, Cloud PBX, and K2 IP-PBX can now fully integrate with Microsoft Teams collaboration hub in Office 365. This integration enables Teams users to make and receive internal and external calls directly on the Teams App. Moreover, users can now access regular extensions on the Yeastar PBX system and enjoy a variety of advanced calling features. In a statement to the press, Yeastar said that the Yeastar PBX system is an award-winning UC-enabled VoIP phone system designed for SMEs, and seeks to help the enterprise do more with less effort. Yeastar’s solution will provide Teams users with an easy, quick and cost-effective way to integrate the business phone system with Teams without any disruption to their existing phone service. According to the company, Teams users…
The Dublin, Ireland-based company AirSpeed Telecom has partnered with Intellicom, an international business telephony and contact center provider, to integrate new Voice over IP (VoIP) solutions into the telecommunications products and bandwidth services provider’s existing product portfolio. AirSpeed Telecom said that this integration will assist end-users in their quest to achieve superior operational excellence and offer an enhanced customer experience. According to the statement, the new VoIP solutions encompass a full-featured business telephony and contact center system that carries voice and other multimedia traffic across broadband networks. AirSpeed Telecom noted that by leveraging the power of IP networks, businesses can improve customer service, increase workplace mobility and enhance remote working solutions, and also reduce telecommunications costs. “Our customers’ needs are changing and at AirSpeed, we like to think that we’re able to innovate to meet those developing requirements. While best known for high-class connectivity, AirSpeed is increasingly offering business-class…