Thinking Phone Networks has acquired Whaleback Managed Services, bolstering its status in the emerging Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) market.
Portsmouth, N.H.-based Whaleback has focused on providing managed, cloud-based services--including telephony, conferencing, messaging and contact centers--to medium-sized businesses.
Its offerings have resonated with a mix of verticals such as healthcare, financial services, real estate, specialty retail and non-profits across the U.S.
"Whaleback has a strong managed services business that it brings to Thinking Phone Networks along with just additional scale," said Diane Myers, Principal Analyst, VoIP, UC, and IMS for Infonetics, in an interview with FierceTelecom. "Many of the hosted providers today need to continue to build scale of their customer base and are looking towards acquisitions and mergers to help accelerate it."
During the transition, Thinking Phone said that Whaleback users won't experience any service interruptions, but will be able to gain access to its suite of enterprise-class mobile services, integrated text messaging, an expanded web portal, business analytics, video and enhanced contact center integration. In addition, customers will continue to be able to access support services from Whaleback's New Hampshire-based Managed Service Center.
"Our mission is to empower our business customers to capitalize on the disruptive shift in communication that is being driven by mobility in the enterprise," said Steve Kokinos, Thinking Phone Networks' president and CEO, in a release. "The team at Whaleback shares this vision and the combination of the two companies will further support our ability to innovate and grow as a leader in the space."
Financial terms of the deal were not revealed.
It appears that Thinking Phone Networks wants to cash in on the growing UCaaS market. According to Synergy Research Group, UCaaS is growing annually at a rate of nearly 30 percent and currently accounts for about 8 percent of all managed and hosted business voice subscribers.
For more:
- see the release
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Updated article on Aug. 15 with quote from Diane Myers, Principal Analyst, VoIP, UC, and IMS for Infonetics.