ITEXPO East 2009 Wrap-up

 SLIDESHOW [1]: The opening of ITEXPO East 2009, Feb. 2 

ITEXPO East 2009 opened in Miami, Fla., Mon., Feb. 2. FierceVoIP was on site to witness the event and catch up with many of the companies and people in the IP communications area. Crowds were healthy and attendees were cautiously optimistic about prospects during the second half of 2009.

To see some of the people we saw and met at the show, click here. [2]

SLIDESHOW [3]: IT EXPO East, Day 2, Feb. 3 

More pictures of the people Fierce met with at IT Expo here [3].

STORIES FROM ITEXPO East 2009

Cbeyond adds mobile workforce management with SaaS offering 

IP communications service provider Cbeyond has added to its portfolio of applications with Mobile Workforce Manager, a mobile location-based and resource management application suite using Xora software.

Designed for companies with field services operations - in other words, businesses that dispatch trucks - the new offering is designed to reduce operating costs and increase revenue opportunities by allowing companies to keep track of their mobile employees for more efficient and quicker dispatching.  Cbeyond says the result of reduced payroll and overtime costs, fewer fleet miles and increased mobile employee productivity can reach around $1,500 per employee per year.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE [4] 

Microsoft goes official with Response Point SP2

Microsoft officially announced SP2 (Service Pack 2) for its Release Point SMB IP PBX. The company also added two new certified service providers for the show.

New features/enhanced incorporated into SP2 include support for intercom and paging capabilities, analog phone support, VPN support, an automated night receptionist scheduler, multi-subnets and additional trunk devices.

For web 2.0/mash up junkies, there's support for URL/HTML customization, so a "trained specialist" can trigger and populate web pages to pop up based upon caller ID information. Speaking to Fierce in Miami, Response Point officials characterized the addition of web page support as a feature to let people understand what is possible in terms of extending the basic platform and leaving the job for extensive template creation and customization in the hands of VARs, the aforementioned "trained specialists."

READ THE FULL STORY HERE [5] 

U4EA and Omnia Technologies team up on Remote Agent Application

Omnia Technologies selected U4EA's Fusion 500 multi-service business gateway for its remote agent call center application. The pairing allows Omnia to handle inbound and outbound calls made by remote agents utilizing IP telephony to access remote call center applications.

For more: U4EA and Omnia Technologies team up [6].   

Taqua supports Voice over WiFi in MobileWorks

The Taqua MobileWorks solution can now support voice services over Wi-Fi networks simultaneously in conjunction with other IP-based or TDM services through the Taqua 7000 Class 5 switching system. MobileWorks allows wireline or wireless service providers to extend existing service offerings to mobile subscribers when utilizing their dual-mode WiFi phone within range of a WiFi network. Mobile subscribers can now download an applet onto their dual-mode phone that will seamlessly connect their calls onto the service provider's network via IP, terminating across Taqua MobileWorks to their network of choice.

For more: Taqua talks about MobileWorks new functionality here [7].

VoIP Logic announces financial and corporate milestones

VoIP managed services firm VoIP Logic announced the company now employs 35 people, had an 82 percent increase in annual revenue between 2007 and 2008, and added 40 carrier managed services customers. Also, eight new retail service providers now use the company's Cortex OSS. The company now provides services to more than 160 carriers and service providers worldwide.

Allworx rolls out System 7.0 and new IP Phone

Allworx officially introduced its latest software release for its phone systems and a new IP Phone. Available in Q2 2009, Allworx System Software 7.0 adds class of service definitions, a programmable dial-in plan, call monitoring/call intrusion, and user and handset import/export. There's also an onboard packet sniffer function for diagnosing/troubleshooting. Meanwhile, the new Allworx 9224 IP phone supports up to 96 programmable function keys.