Market Analysis

The latest figures released by MZA have shown that PBX/Call Control extensions and licenses (excluding Micro PBX products) grew by 1% year-on-year in the calendar year Q3 2014 (July to Septmber 2014 inclusive), representing the first quarterly growth in the global market since Q4 2011.

Research released by Ovum argues that an increase in the influx of customer communication, from phone calls to text messages, emails and tweets, have necessitated a shift towards integrated communications and customer management. Organisations will have to embrace this if they want to drive employee productivity and improve customer experience, said the firm.

Futuristic tools and technologies like augmented reality, virtual holography and the Internet of Everything will shape the office of the future, and the interplay of social and cloud systems with these technologies will drive greater collaboration at enterprises, according to Frost & Sullivan.

The market for UC solutions and services is undergoing a transformation with large enterprises and SMEs turning to new ways of purchasing, deploying and managing business communications technology, according to Ovum, and cloud-based communications services are among the root causes of this transformation, believes the analyst firm which has identified four trends in the UC market that it says will

A poll of attendees at Cloud Clarity, a cloud-focused educational event for end users run by Node4, found that over half of IT decision makers plan to move to a fully cloud-based IT infrastructure within the next five years. But a significant minority of 27% said cloud would be unlikely for their business.

NelsonHall's quarterly IT outsourcing (ITO) Index webcast found IT services spending in Q3 2014 was up 1.5%, driven by spending in professional services (+3%). According to Dominique Raviart Director ITO Research, Q3 2014 was a landmark quarter for ITO.

The telecommunications sector must engage better with customers according to a new report from the Institute of Customer Service. The study found that more customers experience a problem with their telecoms provider than any other, while customer satisfaction in the telecoms sector continues to decline at a faster rate than the UK average.

A new report from Juniper Research has claimed that voice and messaging traffic lost to OTT (Over The Top) players such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Skype will cost network operators $14 billion in revenues globally this year, up by 26% on 2013.