IP Based Communication: Convergence of Telecom, Computer and Media

“One of our customers, not very important, called our office to place an order of over 100 devices, an amount which could turn them into our main customers. When they called I was away from my office and I checked my mobile phone voice mail only. Therefore, only when I returned to the office, I knew about the order, but a two week deadline had passed,” said a vice president of sales of a world leading technology group.

 

It is possible to realise that highly qualified staff members are often on business trips, away from their offices or their teams. Experts say enterprises, ranging from large-sized to medium-sized and small-sized, are wasting not small amount of budget as they bought communication tools and applications for their staff members. However, their work effectiveness remains low let alone the fact that their enterprises miss opportunities because partners cannot reach them, just like the case of the above-mentioned vice president.

 

From a point of view of unified communication systems, Manjula Talreja, Sr. Director, Customer Business Transformation, Voice Technology Group, Cisco Systems, said that even though business partners and customers contacted each other via telephone, fax, mobile phone and other conference tools with various media content, the communication tools were not effective enough. As a result, business decisions, process and effectiveness may be affected.” Talreja said that unified communication systems could address the problems. The convergence of networks, transmission devices, end-points and applications would connect users with each other, instead of connecting tools of users.

 

In a research work by Sage Research in 2005, 86 per cent of companies, using unified communication solutions, reported higher business benefits and effectiveness. Over 60 per cent of surveyed enterprises said that they had saved three working hours per week for each of their staff members. The research results affirmed that the conversion to unified communication solutions has offered enterprises opportunities of rapid payback and strong reduction of overhead costs. Enterprises may combine the use of modern applications, such as video conference, voice and web conference, IP mobile phone and voice mail. Experts from Cisco said that unified communication systems would help save time and control operation costs, thus helping increase the effectiveness and competitiveness of enterprises.

 

FPT is one of the leading companies in Vietnam to launch IP telephony services in Vietnam. Nguyen Xuan Viet, director of the Technology Center, FPT Information System, said before 2003, FPT maintained separate voice and data systems. However, since mid-2003, FPT had piloted IP phone services in two representative offices and since 2006, FPT has launched its comprehensive IP Phone services. Talking about the effectiveness of IP Telephony, Bui Quang Ngoc, CIO (chief information officer) of the FPT Corporation, said that IP Phone was not only a technology but it was a communication solution for an effective enterprise management. This is a good development of the information and communication technology, and evidence of the information technology in the digitalisation of the social life and economic activities.

 

There have not been any statistics on the deployment of IP phone services in Vietnamese enterprises. However, most enterprises are interested in the hi-tech service. With a priority that enterprises may hire purchase infrastructure facilities, which is given by solution and product suppliers, alongside on the spot technology transfer, in the near future, IP telephony services will become a main communication tool between Vietnamese enterprises with the world. Sharing ideas with representatives from Vietnamese enterprises, James Chia, general director of Cisco Systems Vietnam affirmed that Vietnam would join the World Trade Organisation (WTO), so Vietnam had to pay attention to technology trends in the world, especially a fast growth of IP communication. Many companies in the world have applied IP communication and gained certain benefits.”

 

Sixty five per cent of costs of the whole Vietnamese telephony market go to small and medium-sized enterprises. It is possible to say that Vietnamese enterprises, in particular, small and medium-sized enterprises, have paid more attention to new technology. Nguyen Phong Nha, deputy head of Telematics department under MPT, said that in the near future, two-person telephone service would be just one of many communication services among many people. Developing along with the world trends, Internet, telecommunication and transmission networks for communication in Vietnam will be soon integrated in a network.

 

According to the evaluation by the Synergy Research Group, in the first quarter of 2006, Cisco was the leading IP communication technology in the world for companies and small and medium-sized enterprises. At present, up to over 38,000 customers in the world have used unified communication systems of Cisco. Over 130 customers have deployed over 5,000 IP phones within their own networks and over 40 customers have had over 10,000 IP telephones. Over 70 per cent of Fortune 500 famous companies in the world have used unified communication systems of Cisco.