Comms Dealer

Former Frontier Voice & Data Sales and Marketing Director Michael J Thornton is to reprise his role at reinvigorated iHub, bringing much industry experience including stints at Orange PCS, Sierra Wireless and Uniworld.

At Frontier Voice & Data he developed a high profile channel and brand under the MyFrontier product and services portfolio.

Thornton said: "The intention to grow a multi-platform hosted service provider business that has a channel only focus is a great opportunity.

"Our aim is to have best in class portal and web access, a comprehensive products and services portfolio and the best in class customer services programme that the channel needs."

Thornton's appointment follows a 'business change process' in recent months, noted Steve Day, CEO of iHub . "With strong investment and a focus on becoming a multi-platform hosted provider iHub will be well positioned to provide the channel with what it needs to succeed in this important technology growth space," he stated.

"With this in mind we have sought to bring on board a strong team to take the business forward."

New appointments include the hire of Andrew Coulson as Chief Financial Officer. Educated to MBA level and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAEW) he has more than 20 years management experience gained within the UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific having operated in a variety of roles including Chief Financial Officer, Finance Director & Financial Controller with extensive experience in M&A.

He brings commercial and financial expertise to the group from a range of markets including the private equity and technology sectors.

In another key move, Lord St John of Bletso has been appointed as Chairman of iHub.

Anthony Tudor St John qualified as a lawyer in South Africa and obtained a Masters in Law from the University of London before going on to work as an oil analyst at County Natwest and thereafter as a senior consultant to Merrill Lynch.

He was Chairman of Spiritel between 2004-2012 and has also been a non-executive director of Regal Petroleum, Sharp Interpak Limited and Pecaso Group.

He has served on the advisory boards of Infinity SDC, Chayton Capital and Ariya Capital with a focus on agriculture and African business opportunities.

He is currently a non-executive director of Albion Ventures LLP and Chairman of the Governing Board of Certification International. Lord St John was on the House of Lords Communications Select Committee from 2009-2014.

In its financial results for the fiscal fourth quarter and fiscal year 2015 (which ended June 30th) ShoreTel has posted record revenue and profitability in Q4 2015, with total revenue at $94.4m, up 7% on to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014.

Non-GAAP net income, which excludes stock-based compensation charges, amortisation of acquisition-related intangibles, other adjustments and related tax changes, for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015 was a record $7.8 million, or $0.12 per diluted share.

This compares with a non-GAAP net income of $4.9 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. GAAP net income was $4.8 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015, compared with a GAAP net income of $2.1 million, or $0.03 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014.

"Fiscal 2015 was a year of strategic investments, geographic expansion and a significant shift towards recurring revenue," said Don Joos, president and CEO of ShoreTel.

"We will rollout ShoreTel Connect later this quarter, and achieving this key milestone is an important step in realising our vision of delivering a single solution to all customers whether they choose to operate in the cloud, onsite or in a hybrid environment."

Mike Healy, SVP and CFO of ShoreTel, added: "During the fiscal year we continued to achieve revenue growth, expand our non-GAAP gross margins and generate record non-GAAP profitability which collectively strengthened our balance sheet. We are increasingly well positioned, competitively and financially, to execute our strategic plan in fiscal 2016."

Fourth Quarter of Fiscal 2015 Financial Highlights
Recurring revenues, which consist of all hosted and related services revenue plus support revenues, represented 48 percent of total revenue in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015 and reached an annualised value of $180 million; an increase of 16 percent compared to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014.

Non-GAAP total gross margin, which excludes stock-based compensation charges, amortization of acquisition-related intangibles and other adjustments, for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015, was 63.8 percent, compared with 61.1 percent in the year-ago period. GAAP gross margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015 was 63.2 percent compared with 59.6 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014.

Hosted revenues of $28.5 million were up 19 percent year-over-year and 5 percent sequentially. Non-GAAP hosted gross margin increased to 51.6 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015, compared with 43.7 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. GAAP hosted gross margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015 was 46.7 percent, compared with 39.4 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014. The total number of installed customer seats increased 18 percent over the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014 to approximately 178,900. Hosted revenue churn dropped to approximately 4 percent annualized in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015.

Product revenues of $47.2 million were flat year-over-year and up 20 percent sequentially. Non-GAAP product gross margin was 65.9 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015, compared with 64.6 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. GAAP product gross margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015 was 67.8 percent, compared with 64.0 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014. The fourth quarter 2015 GAAP gross margin includes a benefit of $0.9 million related to the settlement of a patent dispute previously reserved for in the fiscal third quarter of 2015.

Support and services revenues of $18.7 million were up 8 percent year-over-year and 2 percent sequentially. Non-GAAP support and service gross margin was 77.3 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015, compared with 75.9 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. GAAP support and service gross margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015 was 76.8 percent, compared with 75.4 percent in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014.

As of June 30, 2015 the company had $90.2 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments and no outstanding debt. The company generated $6.5 million in cash flow from operations in the quarter ended June 30, 2015.

Fiscal Year 2015 Financial Highlights
Total revenues for fiscal 2015 were $360.7 million, up 6 percent compared to fiscal 2014. Recurring revenues, which consist of all hosted and related services revenue plus support revenues, represented 47 percent of total revenue in fiscal 2015 compared to 42 percent in fiscal 2014.

Non-GAAP total gross margin, which excludes stock-based compensation charges, amortisation of acquisition-related intangibles and other adjustments, for the fiscal year 2015, was 62.6 percent, compared with 61.1 percent in fiscal year 2014. GAAP total gross margin for the fiscal year 2015 was 60.6 percent, compared with 59.4 percent in fiscal year 2014.

Hosted revenues for fiscal 2015 were $106.4 million, up 19.4 percent compared to fiscal 2014. Non-GAAP hosted gross margin was 47.3 percent in fiscal 2015, compared with 42.0 percent in fiscal 2014. GAAP hosted gross margin for the fiscal year 2015 was 42.4 percent, compared with 37.7 percent in the fiscal year 2014.

Product revenues for fiscal 2015 were $181.3 million, down 2 percent compared to fiscal 2014. Non-GAAP product gross margin was 65.9 percent in fiscal 2015, compared with 65.2 percent in fiscal 2014. GAAP product gross margin for the fiscal 2015 was 65.1 percent, compared with 64.6 percent in the fiscal 2014.

Support and services revenues for fiscal 2015 were $73.0 million, up 11 percent compared to fiscal 2014. Non-GAAP support and service gross margin was 76.8 percent in fiscal 2015, compared with 75.2 percent in fiscal 2014. GAAP support and service gross margin for the fiscal 2015 was 76.1 percent, compared with 74.3 percent in the fiscal 2014.

Non-GAAP net income for the fiscal year 2015 was a record $20.6 million, or $0.31 per diluted share. This compares with a non-GAAP net income of $14.7 million, or $0.23 per diluted share in fiscal 2014. GAAP net loss in fiscal 2015 was $4.3 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, compared with a GAAP net loss of $1.0 million, or $0.02 per diluted share in fiscal 2014. The fiscal 2015 GAAP net loss includes $10.2 million in unusual charges, $8.4 million in stock-based compensation charges and $7.0 million in amortisation of acquisition related intangibles.

PSU Technology Group (PSU) has launched a dedicated new cloud platform called Reliance, which increases the performance, value and range of hosting options the firm can provide to their customers.

With complete control over its hosting environment PSU can now support a much wider mix of business technologies, applications and services and offer stronger security assurances.

With freedom to work independently across the platform, PSU can respond even faster to client requests. The platform's enhanced flexibility and performance also allows customers to get new accounts, applications and services up and running quicker.

PSU has already migrated the systems of their customer Meridian Business Support to the new hosting platform. The new hosting environment also provides the future proofing they need to install the latest technological advancements and keep ahead of their competitors. This is essential in a fast paced industry like recruitment.

PSU's Professional Services Director, Rob Deacon, said: "In today's highly competitive markets with razor-thin margins, it is more important than ever to have agile processes and systems that are aligned with the needs of your business. Our new cloud environment provides this. It allows our customers, like Meridian, to service the needs of their customers faster than ever before, giving them a real competitive edge."

A Gateshead-based IT firm is riding the crest of a wave after winning a contract to provide IT and security technology for a new £15m surf complex in Wales.
 
The undisclosed six-figure work will see Advantex installing a Wi-Fi infrastructure at Surf Snowdonia to deliver and support IP telephony, access control and intruder alarm services.
 
Surf Snowdonia opened at the beginning of August on the site of a former aluminium factory on the edge of the Snowdonia national park and the river Conwy, and generates the world's longest man-made surfing wave - up to 2m high - every minute.
 
Built around the installation of high performance Internet cabling, the IT infrastructure will meet the needs of hundreds of staff and thousands of visitors at a site encompassing shops, cafes and accommodation pods on a plot roughly the size of six football pitches.
 
All the necessary broadband and telecoms infrastructure, which has specifically been designed to accommodate future upgrades as the surfing and water sports park gears up to meet the expected increase in future visitor numbers, will be installed by Advantex.
 
The move is the latest success for the Follingsby Park-based firm, which predicts turnover of £4m to grow by 20% by the end of the year.
 
Currently employing 45 people, directors Stephen and Dave O'Connell expect further investment in the workforce over the next six months to support growth and meet the continuing demands of other regional and national customers.
 
These include hospitality group Fat Brewer, five star hotel and golf complex Rockliffe Hall and car dealership Simon Bailes Peugeot.
 
Advantex won the Surf Snowdonia contract in the face of competition due to its cost effective solution, networking skills and IT expertise, enabling it to ensure that the work will be completed ahead of the park's August opening.
 
Although the brief was for infrastructure and security technology, Advantex will also be providing a project management service as part of an overall package of IT consultancy expertise and aftersales product support.
 
Stephen O'Connell said: "This contract is a massive boost for us, strongly reinforcing our position as one of the top suppliers of advanced network solutions.
 
"It clearly demonstrates we have the ability and expertise to deliver any size of project, anywhere on time, within budget and to the highest specification regardless of location."
 
Advantex was established in 2002 and achieved the prestigious ISO9001/2000 industry quality mark within its first year of trading and holds the IOS9001/2008 mark.
 
The firm is an accredited Microsoft, Cisco and Mitel partner.

BT has won a new contract with the European Commission to deliver voice services across 21 major European institutions, agencies and bodies including the European Commission, the European Council and the European Defence Agency.

The framework contract runs for up to seven years and is worth over €15 million. This is the second European Commission framework contract awarded to BT in 2015.

BT will provide fixed line voice services at sites in Belgium, Luxembourg and Strasbourg using the BT One Voice portfolio.

The new solution is based on BT One Voice SIP, which allows customers to consolidate their communications infrastructure and prepare the ground for Unified Communications and Collaboration (UCC) tools such as instant messaging (IM), presence and video.

Corrado Sciolla, President Europe and Global Telecom Markets, BT Global Services, said: "This contract aims at improving fixed line communications within those institutions. Voice services might sound old fashioned, but they are absolutely critical to everyone. By modernising the technology, we enable the EU to manage its communications infrastructure much more effectively, combine voice with other media streams and achieve cost-savings. We are looking forward to again putting our global expertise at the service of the EU, its institutions and its citizens."

Last March, BT signed another contract with the European Commission, estimated at €55.7 million over five years. That contract included the delivery of dedicated internet access to all major European institutions, agencies and bodies across the 28 member states.

BT has been providing services to the European Union for more than a decade, building on its expertise in serving the needs of regional, national and international government organisations around the world.

avsnet has been awarded both Cisco's Master Collaboration Specialisation and Polycom's RealPresence Services Specialisation, becoming the only provider in the UK to hold both accreditations.

Graham Fry, Managing Director at avsnet, said: "To hold one accreditation is impressive, to have both is clear evidence of our long-standing dedication to improving our customers' businesses.

"Many providers say they understand best-in-class technology, however very few have the certification to support their claims."

Following tough pre-application reviews and validation processes, avsnet passed a number of stringent on-site audits to achieve these accreditations, including detailed analysis and assessment of the company's sales capabilities, technical skills, support practices, service offerings and customer experience.

Angela Whitty, Managing Director, UK Partner Organisation at Cisco, said: "This confirms avsnet's commitment to be an excellent and highly valued Cisco partner and demonstrates the highest level of knowledge, service and dedication within this field."

Dave Winchcombe, Area Services Sales Vice President at Polycom added: "This accreditation demonstrates the quality and breadth of avsnet's engineering and technical talent, the strength of its operational processes and the company's network management experience."

avsnet is one of only seven organisations to hold Cisco's certification and one of only six to hold Polycom's.

Gigaset certified Gold partner Simplecall Business has supplied a comms solution for McLellan, an independent consulting company which has since reduced call costs by 65%.

McLellan has worked on over 3,500 projects and has around 60 core employees. However, during projects staffing can increase dramatically with teams needing to relocate to other countries for many weeks.

McLellan found its legacy telephone system was no longer suited to the dynamic nature of its international operations and flexible remote site requirements. The legacy system suffered from high running costs, limited mobility and an inability to scale in line with the business need.

Initially, Simplecall Business took over McLellan's ISDN circuits saving the consultancy around 40% on its existing call charges.

The next step was to upgrade the company's legacy PBX to a Simplecall cloud-based Enterprise IP PBX seamlessly integrated with new Gigaset telephones.

Finally, Simplecall Business replaced McLellan's old ISDN connection with SIP trunking enabling the consultancy to retain UK telephone numbers while routed international calls would benefit from lower cost local call charges.

This reduced McLellan's ongoing call charges by a further 25% and allowed free calls between offices while retaining complete control of its outgoing number presentation.

The end-to-end IP solution includes a Simplecall Business Enterprise PBX Box and 65 Gigaset DE410 IP PRO phone systems to manage its professional call handling and group phonebooks.

The system offers Wideband HD sound and up to six SIP accounts for flexibility. The integration allows the DE410 units to streamline operation of the full set of telephony features such as international call forwarding, queues, follow me and conference calling all from the intuitive built in LCD display.

"Apart from the obvious cost savings from cancelling the previous ISDN channels, Gigaset SIP phones now allow a flexible approach to better communication. This was instrumental to keeping the mobile roaming costs low, saving thousands of pounds per year," said Saif Ahmed, Director, Simplecall Business.

Poole-based VoIP Unlimited has completed interoperability and certification testing between its services and telephone systems from new partner Gigaset pro.

Gigaset pro undertook the testing process for its Hybird 120 phone system to ensure all features were compatible with the VoIP Unlimited network, including capabilities such as voicemail and call transfer.

Gigaset Hybird 120 is a communication centre for small and medium businesses with up to 20 users and includes IP, ISDN and traditional analogue interfaces with additional features such as voicemail, auto attendant and home office functions to manage calls, redirection and conferences via a browser interface.

Matthew Marchant, technical sales manager for Gigaset pro, said: "Our certification testing was successfully carried out against the VoIP Unlimited service, and we welcome the diligence shown by our partner in ensuring that all features and functions are delivered in line with customer expectations."

Mark Pillow, MD at VoIP Unlimited, added: "Regular certification testing is an important process that ensures we can deliver the best possible service to our partners and customers, and we appreciate the timely and professional approach offered by Gigaset."

New research into the country's disaster recovery habits has revealed that over a quarter of businesses' outages in the UK are a result of unreliable power supplies - followed by software (21%) and hardware failures (19%).

Most respondents (39%) stated that the cost of per minute of their downtime runs into the £10,000-£20,000 bracket - meaning that such frequent power outages present a significant financial risk for UK businesses.

he study, conducted by Timico, provides insights into the disaster recovery habits of IT managers in the UK and revealed the most common causes of IT outages. Alongside power failures and hardware and software issues - other common causes of an outage were human error, natural disaster and even malicious activity.

The research was initiated as Timico launched its Disaster Recovery as a service (DRaaS) solution, a cloud-based service which protects businesses from costly downtime by replicating a secure secondary environment in the cloud.

Andrew Fox, Director for Managed Networks and Cloud & Hosting at Timico, said: "Whatever the cause of an outage, protecting the business from downtime should be a top priority. Our entire DRaaS solution is designed to mitigate against a drop in power - so it's the perfect fit for businesses that simply can't operate without the entirety of their IT solutions.

"DRaaS is particularly effective for customers whose existing production VMware environment sits 'off-platform' within their offices, where power redundancy protections won't be at the same level as those found in a certified data centre.

"Providers such as Timico have uninterruptable power supplies thanks to onsite back-up generators - so with full replication to a commercial data centre environment, outages due to power failure need never be an issue again."

The study also found that only 5% of respondents were completely confident that their disaster recovery plan would be successful in the event of an emergency.

Despite this, only 6% made the commitment to testing their disaster recovery plans more than once a month.

Daisy Group has strengthened its public sector portfolio following the extension of its government offering.

The business communications and ICT provider has been awarded places in 10 different lots under the UK Government's new Network Services framework agreement (RM1045), as announced by the Crown Commercial Service.

As a supplier of services to the public sector Daisy had already been selected under the previous PSN agreement and also G-Cloud.

The Public Service Network is the foundation of the Government's ICT Strategy, a programme designed to provide an assured network for sharing services - including many G-Cloud services - and encouraging efficiency and collaboration across the public sector.

The announcement enables Daisy to provide a range of services that will improve cost efficiencies and stimulate collaboration between public organisations, ultimately meeting the objective of delivering a more effective experience to citizens.

Daisy will continue to supply public sector bodies with solutions and services. These range from telephony, contact centre and collaboration, through to network-centric IT services such Local Area Network management, hosting, gateway and web services wide area connectivity.

Daisy has also announced that the Pan Government Accreditor has accredited its communications for PSN telephony services. As part of the accreditation, the business was recognised for maintaining ISO 27001 in our office and data centre environments and achieving the CAS(T) certification that is governed by GCHQ.

Andy Riley, Head of Local and Central Government and Frameworks Director, said: "We are delighted to be part of this new iteration of the framework agreement. This means that as well as continuing to help public sector bodies introduce innovative solutions to meet demanding savings targets, we are able to make available our market leading portfolio to all public sector organisations."