Avaya Inc. and Verizon have agreed to collaborate in offering to small- and medium-sized businesses a suite of communications solutions that include systems, applications and services from both companies.
The companies will bring to market integrated hardware, software and service offers that simplify the overall service packages smaller businesses use while leveraging the growth in small business data usage and opportunities for voice/data convergence. Together, the two companies are offering those businesses one-stop shopping from Verizon for various communications needs.
Under the agreement, Verizon will offer two suites of Avaya products to the small and medium business market - both single and multi-site - in retail and wholesale trade, transportation, and other industries. The product lines Verizon will offer include:
* Avaya IP Office, which is an all-in-one office communication solution that brings together voice, data and communications applications for small and mid-sized businesses and includes applications such as mobility, customer contact centers and conferencing features,
* Partner Advanced Communications System, which is a key system with advanced telephony features such as e-mail and voice mail access and management from a single PC mailbox, and connectivity to digital subscriber lines (DSL) for high-speed Internet access and voice over DSL.
The companies say their collaboration will enable additional small and medium companies to enhance their operations with advanced telephony applications. According to Access Markets International (AMI) Partners, an industry analyst firm, spending on IT and telecommunications among small and medium businesses worldwide is expected to grow more than 7% annually, and exceed $1.1 trillion by 2008, with IP telephony spending among small and medium firms worldwide estimated to grow more than 40% annually and exceed $4.5 billion by 2008. In the U.S., small and medium businesses, on average, are spending almost 7% more on IT, which includes hardware, security, and information management software.
Avaya Inc., based in Basking Ridge, NJ, designs, builds and manages communications networks. For more information visit www.avaya.com.