Comms Dealer

WebRTC is a transformative technology that puts the application and ease of use centre stage, a development that is redefining UC and collaboration, enabling greater integration between comms platforms and levelling the playing field for new leaders to emerge. Small wonder WebRTC is tipped as the next big industry game-changer.

WebRTC is fuelling the trend towards open, universally accessible web-based collaboration, and the new technology has implications for all those operating within the UC ecosystem, according to Rob Pickering (pictured), Managing Director, IP Cortex. He believes that WebRTC will bring changes to the comms industry that are more profound than the move to SIP. In preparation for the expected transformation, IP Cortex has invested in advancing the technology and publicly demonstrated its first WebRTC PSTN interoperability through its software in 2012.

However, progress of the formal WebRTC standard through industry bodies has not been so timely, but we are on the cusp of standardisation, noted Pickering. "Browser support in one or two of the most important browsers is beginning to stabilise," he said. "The next major release of our VoIPCortex software will therefore deliver on our effort to enable full WebRTC-based features."

For end users this means video chat, screen sharing and peer-to-peer file transfer within a browser-based Open Communication Manager (OCM), with no plugins or downloads required. Users can also choose to enable the OCM soft phone module so that they can place and receive calls directly in-browser without being tied to a desk or desktop soft phone. "Software developers who have customised their applications to interact with VoIPCortex via our API can enable calls directly into their web-based applications just by adding a couple of lines of Javascript to their existing code in many cases," explained Pickering.

Most notably, WebRTC offers an opportunity to move away from limited internally-focused systems, or problematic web-based collaboration using technically brittle plugins. "Modern organisations excel by enabling easy and rich communication with customers and suppliers, along with the more flexible deployment of resources," commented Pickering. "This means that collaboration tools can no longer stop at an organisational boundary. They must be intuitive for all users."

As applications become just as important as the PBX behind them, resellers will need to be open to new ways of piecing together solutions that will fall outside of the traditional UC remit. "Creating and selling solutions in this way will either require investment in development resource in-house, or the formation of strategic partnerships with external application developers," added Pickering.

SME resellers will mostly be selecting the best of new generic packaged web-based communication and collaboration services that will emerge. Enterprise, integrator and developer partners will be helping their end customers add value to the experience by incorporating open building blocks from companies like IP Cortex into their internal workflows and end user web presence. "They will play an important role in identifying and articulating changing end user requirements, challenging what's possible and carving out a competitive advantage as a result," added Pickering.

WebRTC is on the cusp of changing the way people interact with one another on the web. It offers the most potential in contact centres, but it is also a game-changer for UC and collaboration, agrees Andy Litherland, Head of EU Channels, Avaya. "Ease of use means it is bound to have an impact on business communications and collaboration," he said. "WebRTC will ultimately result in more UC capabilities embedded into other applications. Instead of voice and video being applications themselves, they will become more of a feature. Organisations will therefore look to consume UC in a different way and both resellers and vendors will need to accommodate this shift."

WebRTC forms part of Avaya's overall approach to future communications. The vendor's strategy is to embrace WebRTC and its R&D teams at Avaya Labs are already integrating the technology into existing suites of software in the contact centre and UC space. "Once WebRTC becomes commonplace businesses will want security, recording and compliance for their WebRTC-enabled voice and UC functionality," stated Litherland. "They will be looking for entire packages and this will play to Avaya's strengths as we already offer this functionality and will have it integrated into our WebRTC-enabled solutions."

Employees and consumers are now familiar and comfortable with online video calls. If online video or chat was seamlessly embedded into applications people would use it even more, believes Litherland. "In the near future you might be shopping for clothes online when you get a prompt asking if you'd like to hold a live video chat with a fashion consultant," he noted. "WebRTC makes it easy for businesses to add voice or video to any website or application. For businesses it offers a whole new level of customer and employee engagement."

Employees will soon be using applications that leverage WebRTC when connected to the corporate network in the same way that they access applications via the network today. "CIOs and IT managers should be thinking about the impact of WebRTC on their business, and in particular their network," advised Litherland. "Working with vendor partners, resellers are in a perfect position to start that discussion, providing valuable advice and consultancy."

3CX is a forerunner in the adoption of WebRTC. The company first used the technology in its web conferencing solution, 3CX WebMeeting, launched in August. "We will be extending our use of WebRTC in 3CX Phone System 12.5 which will be launched shortly," said Nick Galea, CEO and founder, 3CX. "This latest version will offer click-to-call and video calling by providing each user with their own WebRTC call link. As inbound calls via the click-to-call function are effectively free, businesses can significantly reduce, or remove, the cost of operating expensive 0800 number calls which can add up for a contact centre."

That WebRTC is a game-changer for UC is becoming universally recognised. "The use of WebRTC has started to take off and we are already seeing how the new technology will disrupt the market," added Galea. "WebRTC has essentially transformed the web browser into a communications platform, levelling the playing field and thereby removing the dominance of any one operating system or device type. Because WebRTC is browser-based it will bring to an end issues of interoperability and compatibility. By removing the need for a client WebRTC will also push expensive proprietary UC vendors from the market. Those providers that cannot adapt will not survive the surge in opposing technology."

WebRTC goes beyond VoIP and web conferencing and moves towards ultra-personalised real-time customer interaction for brands. It's a huge business opportunity with far reaching implications that can impact everything from customer service and engagement to sales and conversions. "Businesses that embrace WebRTC will see commercial benefits and gain a competitive advantage, not least better customer engagement, boosted sales, improved communication and reduced call costs" added Galea. "At last, we are getting towards unified communications for all."

WebRTC technology works well on low network speeds like 3G, meaning good quality voice and video communications are possible. In terms of businesses, the fact that WebRTC is Open Source means there is no one owner who will be receiving royalties from the sale, potentially pushing the cost of development of the technology lower than in previous platforms. "This, alongside the in-built security of WebRTC, will assist in speeding up the adoption of BYOD policies," stated Robert Keenan, Head of Portfolio Management at Unify. "We will see companies embrace new ways to work with greater gusto, empowering the remote worker and enabling a completely flexible and modern business."

Ease of use is another WebRTC plus-point. And the challenges associated with supporting a range of operating systems no longer apply as WebRTC is platform agnostic. It is currently fully supported on Mac machines, which is something that the industry has struggled with until now. "WebRTC enables innovative and agile companies to gain significant market share," added Keenan. "This will shake-up the entire market and we will see new communications leaders emerge."

The largest benefit for resellers will be around the reliability of its deployment as WebRTC overcomes many of the challenges resellers have struggled with for years. "UC adoption regularly involves complicated installations with a large numbers of drivers, something that can easily lead to integration issues," commented Keenan. "WebRTC removes this difficulty."

Unify has embraced WebRTC and its recently released Unify Circuit - a next generation communications tool that brings together voice, video, file sharing and messaging - is based on the technology. This means that regardless of device, Circuit users are able to communicate and collaborate wherever they are. "WebRTC and Circuit enables employees to work in new ways and has the potential to revolutionise office life," commented Keenan. "We believe that technology should be constructed around what people want - this is what WebRTC delivers."

After 15 years at the helm Pinnacle Technology's founder and Chief Executive stepped down in December 2013 following a sharp dip in revenues, from £12.7 million in 2012 to £10.1 million. His successor, Nicholas Scallan, took over the reins in March and quickly became a visible force behind a no-nonsense business turnaround game plan.

Scallan has masterminded an all-embracing recovery plan that marks the beginning of Pinnacle's post-decline era and return to growth. "Focusing the business and paring back unnecessary expenditure is at the centre of our strategy," he commented. "To maximise growth and streamline operations we continue to simplify the structure, sharpen our focus and put an improved customer experience at the heart of what we do."

Scallan's 'business fitness' plan has positioned the Group nicely for its next development phase. This achievement came faster than observers were perhaps expecting, probably because strong foundations were already in place. "Since joining Pinnacle I have been greatly encouraged by our impressive customer base, passionate employees and exciting product capabilities," said Scallan. "We have been reviewing the company with three key aims in mind - accelerating a return to profitable revenue growth, concentrating on core business and continuing to reduce costs. Progress in turning the business around will take time to achieve, but looking ahead we believe that this review will result in a leaner, more focused organisation that we are confident will return to profitable revenue growth. The early signs of trading improvement are evident in recent months."

As an ambitious young man with qualifications on his mind Scallan also showed early promise. He studied electrical and electronic engineering at university before becoming a chartered engineer and a member of the Institute of Engineering and Technology. He counts himself 'lucky' to have been given a summer placement with a start-up telecoms company, a break that sparked Scallan's 'passion' for comms, and a door-opener that led him to the next stages of his career. "Everything leading up to becoming CEO of Pinnacle Technology has been informed by those different stages, and I wouldn't be where I am without those key experiences," commented Scallan.

Prior to his role at Pinnacle Scallan was Director of Customer Solutions at Virgin Media Business, a job he was given after a nine year tenure at Virgin Media fulfilling a number of commercial and operational roles including P&L management of the data products portfolio, customer engineering and overseeing a number of organisational restructuring activities. Before joining Virgin Media Scallan completed a stint at Energis where he was responsible for broadband, data and Internet related programmes. In The Netherlands, he held the position of Networks Director for Enertel NV and was involved in the sale of the business to a Dutch venture capital group.

Despite its recent troubles Pinnacle has also achieved some notable successes such as providing services for major events like the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations and the Olympic Games. "Those were huge events in UK history and it makes me proud that we were at the centre of them," added Scallan. "Early indications from our renewed strategy demonstrate that we can replicate such successes. A number of clients are seeking professional services from Pinnacle as well as renewing their existing technology solutions. Further opportunities have been identified including telemarketing and greater sales resources, core infrastructure and systems, as well as cost reductions, while providing general working capital that will act as a buffer for day-to-day purposes."

Pinnacle Technology Group focuses on the business market for IT and communications services across the UK. Having grown since inception both organically and through a series of acquisitions, the Group offers a range of IT managed services and solutions including managed support services, unified communications and collaboration, IT security, voice, broadband and mobile communications, hosted services and infrastructure services. It operates as a value added reseller and integrator, and is focused on providing these services both as an integrated offering to the SME market and more broadly to the mid-market and public sector.

An important aspect of Scallan's turnaround plan is to ensure that the company's portfolio is aligned to the demands of the market. "Some of the main trends we have seen include the growing importance of cyber security and the need for all organisations to have a strong IT security capability to deal with threats," he stated. "This has been clear in the mid-market and public sector for at least the last couple of years, however it is increasingly relevant to small and medium businesses now."

Data security and backup is also top priority, but Scallan emphasised that the solution does not always need to be cloud-based, rather a data strategy and backup solution that is appropriate to the particular needs of individual customers. "We will continue to grow our IT services and security propositions, driving the shift to professional and managed services," noted Scallan. "These will be underpinned by strong and valued voice, broadband and mobile offerings. These days telecommunications is about the convergence of multiple technologies that enable greater productivity and collaboration. These trends, coupled with providing managed IT and cyber security, enable B2B providers like Pinnacle Technology to provide a client's complete communication needs."

This capability is particularly relevant in the small and medium business space, a core market for Pinnacle. The firm also has a strong proposition for the mid-sized enterprise and public sector markets, particularly where customers have buying expertise and want to work with a partner that provides best-of-breed services. "Our view is that technology should be an enabler," added Scallan. "We provide customers with consultancy and professional services. We source best-of-breed solutions and therefore become the customer's trusted advisor.

"To be successful we must engage with a broader range of stakeholders when assessing the prospect's needs. The IT director is important but the technologies we provide touch many parts of an organisation. We find ourselves needing to engage with, and understand, many other parts of the company."

Focusing on consultancy and areas like data security and backup is just part of the story. A significant theme in Pinnacle's rewritten narrative is an ability to react fast to the evolving needs of the market. "Our people are critical to this," commented Scallan. "We have almost 50 staff and they are key to our strategy for growth. Having a good team that is passionate about their job is essential. We can also react quicker because we're a streamlined business that can see the whole picture. The bigger the company, the more time it takes to manoeuvre. Furthermore, we welcome challenges because they come hand in hand with market opportunities."

Openreach is certain to garner CP plaudits following the introduction of additional resources and service enhancements that reference actual demand from CPs.

At the heart of developments is the re-launch of WLR PSTN Premium, an Optical Spread Connection offer and the Enablement Library, designed to make information relating to Openreach's products and services more accessible. The Enablement Library is already a big hit having gained widespread approval from beta users, according to Caroline Hughes (pictured left), GM Portfolio Marketing at Openreach. "The feedback so far has been phenomenal," she said. "We are planning to expand the content and expect the site to become a critical resource for our customers."

WLR3 PSTN Premium now offers three in-tariff features (Premium Business Helpdesk, Business 2 Plus and Smart Divert), plus two bolt-on options (available at exclusive premium line discounted prices). "Businesses rely on connections and being out of touch with customers is something they cannot afford," said Hughes. "WLR Premium offers fast, prioritised repair times, call divert capabilities, dedicated service management centre support, tighter appointment slots and named engineer services."

The Premium service is available on a per-line basis and according to Hughes it offers better value for money compared to buying individual service enhancing bolt-on products separately. She also noted that the Premium Business Helpdesk offers CPs a dedicated team of experts who will case manage complex or problematic jobs through to resolution.

This team of UK-based WLR service experts are available at all times and CPs can deal with the same person. The Premium repair service, Business 2 Plus, prioritises faults over other faults with the same SLA. "Repairs are made within two days and if Openreach fails it will pay CPs one month's line rental for every day or part day beyond this (for total loss of service)," added Hughes. "With Premium, CPs also get our call diversion service for free. They can forward to any UK fixed or mobile or 0800 number, and some overseas numbers, so no call is missed."

As well as the in-tariff features CPs gain discounted access to two bolt-on options: More Focused Appointments (64% cheaper as part of WLR Premium) that provide access to two hour early morning or late afternoon appointment windows; and Named Engineer (50% cheaper as part of WLR Premium) which identifies the engineer that will attend the appointment slot, 48 hours in advance. This information is increasingly required by secure and sensitive sites.

Openreach's round of enh-ancements also proposes an Optical Spread Connection offer, launched on 1st November, enabling CPs to spread the upfront cost of an OSA Optical circuit over 12 months with no additional charges. The scheme runs until 31st March 2015. "This offer is driving serious interest among smaller CPs," noted Hughes. "It helps them to take their first step into the optical space and compete with bigger companies.

"It makes the investment decision to adopt our highest bandwidth services easier than ever, and helps to ensure no customer is locked out from meeting the latest market needs. With optical products now more accessible CPs can win new business and meet growing bandwidth requirements."

In more good news that will also bring predictably positive results for CPs, Openreach has unveiled an online tool that makes customer facing collateral, educational material and training resources easy to find. "The Enablement Library allows anyone to quickly locate, save and share brochures, fact sheets, videos and other resources on our range of products and services," commented Hughes. "With over 130 product, service and solutions pages on our website it can be time consuming for customers to find material or notice additions. The eLibrary provides everything in one place and has a powerful search capability along with other features requested by CPs."

Dr Frank Heinricht (pictured) h as been named Chairman of Sennheiser following the departure of 70-year-old Prof. Dr. Jörg Sennheiser on 1st January 2015.

Heinricht has been Chairman of the Board of Management of Schott AG since 2013 and became a member of the supervisory board of Sennheiser five years ago.

"Dr. Heinricht has a profound technical expertise and brings experience in managing large family owned companies to his new role.

"We are very happy that he is taking over as chairman of the supervisory board of the Sennheiser Group," said Daniel and Andreas Sennheiser, CEOs and shareholders of Sennheiser.

In withdrawing as Chairman of the supervisory board, Jörg Sennheiser is placing the management of the company fully into the hands of the third Sennheiser generation.

His sons Daniel and Andreas Sennheiser have been running the firm as CEOs since July 2013.

Jörg Sennheiser said: "My goal has always been to pass a healthy, thriving company on to the next generation.

"The family is committed to pursuing its strategy without any influence from third parties, a strategy that focuses on absolute customer orientation, technical innovation and quality.

"This is an aim I have always pursued, and it is the basis of the decades of success that we have enjoyed and will enjoy in the future."

Jörg Sennheiser became Sennheiser's Director of Technology in 1976 before taking over management of the family business as executive shareholder in 1982.

During his time at the helm, Sennheiser developed to an internationally successful brand. This involved setting up new manufacturing facilities in Ireland and the USA, while at the same time expanding production in Germany.

In addition, Sennheiser internationalised its sales organisation during this time.

Sennheiser today has over 2,500 employees across the globe and is active in more than 60 countries.

Nimans' in-house football team is celebrating success after winning the league title in their inaugural season.

The team play in a Monday night 'JP Business League' at Salford Sports Village - 11-a-side matches against other local Manchester companies. In their first season they won Division 2 and have now been promoted to the top division.

They played eight matches, won seven and lost one. The team scored 41 goals and conceded 10.

The team is made-up of staff from across the business, including the Warehouse, Purchasing and Credit Control.

Chairman Julian Niman was on hand to officially present the trophy at the Group's Christmas Party.

Access Technology has bolstered its hosting capabilities and SaaS and cloud suite of products following the acquisition of StratoGen.

The deal adds around £4m revenue and brings 150 customer base. StratoGen specialises in delivering VMware hosting solutions to an international market.

Access has been on a path of strategic and organic growth since its Lyceum Capital backed MBO in March 2011 with FY14 revenues announced last month of £53.5m, and EBITDA of £11.6m. Underlying these figures is ongoing organic growth of 12%.

Access CEO Chris Bayne said: "Bringing hosting into the Access portfolio extends our control over the delivery environment, enabling us to improve the service provided to our customers.

"This acquisition gives us end-to-end control of our SaaS and cloud based product offering."

Access' portfolio now includes a range of integrated enterprise solutions, managed services, cloud-based point solutions and hosting.

Bayne added: "Our SaaS and cloud platforms are continuing to grow with recurring revenues increasing 323% year on year.

"This acquisition continues our ongoing growth strategy to provide solutions that meet the needs of the whole organisation, from finance and HR, to collaboration tools and CRM, delivering full transparency and visibility of information across every department. We are fully prepared for the future."

Outsourcery's Unified Lync offering has snapped up the 'saaS Solution of the Year' award at the 2014 Storage, Virtualisation and Cloud (SVC) Awards.

Piers Linney, Co-CEO of the Manchester-based Cloud Services Provider commented: "Winning this award is a great achievement which we are all very proud of at Outsourcery.

"We always strive to drive progress in all areas of our business and delivering the best possible SaaS solutions to our customers is at the heart of what we do."

The SVC Awards rewards products, projects and services as well as honouring companies and teams operating in the cloud, virtualisation and storage sectors and the public is invited to vote in recognition of the achievements of end-users, channel partners and vendors alike.

Viatel has enhanced its offering for new and existing customers in Ireland, the UK and throughout Europe following a big investment in new infrastructure and services.

These include the extension of MPLS capabilities into new markets following the initial deployment in the UK and France, enabling Viatel to create bespoke WANs between sites in multiple locations and countries for individual customers.

IP transit and Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) will also become available in Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Zurich.

Viatel engineers have built infrastructure to close the network loop from Milan to Marseille, meaning that Viatel can provide wavelength services with speeds of up to 100G out of Milan and Marseille.

"From a geographical perspective Marseille is strategically important for communications into and out of Europe from Africa, the Far East and Asia," said Colm Piercy, CEO.

"The new infrastructure will enable our customers to choose from a protected range of routes to all strategic cities across the Viatel footprint including Dublin, London, Paris, Amsterdam and Frankfurt.

"Viatel will continue to roll out additional services across the eight countries that we operate in, while providing end-to-end connectivity for the thousands of enterprise and wholesale customers who rely on our network throughout Europe."

Norbain has acquired CMS, a distributor of IT infrastructure, network and safety solutions established 20 years ago.

CMS will continue to operate as a standalone business as part of Norbain. All sales enquiries will be handled directly at the CMS head office, based in Farnborough, Hampshire.

Anne-Marie Salisbury, Marketing Director at CMS, said: "Our portfolio is a great accompaniment to Norbain's range of security products and services."

Edinburgh-based Commsworld Chief Exec' Ricky Nicol has called on the industry to stop profiting from customers who have fallen victim to toll fraud attacks.

Nicol describes the behaviour of telcos making money from the misfortune of end users as 'alarming'.

"I find it extremely difficult to comprehend that any carrier firm will look to make an opportunistic buck on the back of crime carried out on their customers, and I have heard of numerous examples where we are not talking about a small profit," he said.

"Severe attacks have the potential to put firms out of business, therefore it's essential their service providers do all they can to prevent that.

"I would urge all business to take action to prevent toll fraud and to check that their service provider would work on a non-profit rate should they be victim of an attack."

"Toll fraud is similar to computer viruses. It's vital that people and businesses protect themselves by installing anti-virus software, but despite the best efforts of firms like Amazon and Apple, and even the Government, the hackers will keep finding new ways to attack.

"We can prevent the majority of toll-fraud attacks from being successful and we certainly wouldn't look to profit from our customers when a criminal act has been clearly carried out on them, indeed we would as a matter of course and policy credit back any elements of profit (not cost) we would make.

"However, the same could not be said of some of the national carriers. Seemingly it is legally acceptable to profit in this way, but it is surely morally unacceptable to willingly choose to make profit from customers who have had a criminal act carried out on them."