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Polycom (News - Alert), a global provider of telepresence, video and voice communications solutions, today publicized the expansion of voice over IP (VoIP) interoperability for its SpectraLink 8000 Series wireless telephones using Session Initiation Protocol (News - Alert) (SIP).

 

As a major player in open, standards-based IP phones, Polycom is building upon SpectraLink's traditional integration with top VoIP proprietary protocols by extending interoperability to open VoIP standards.

 

Verified interoperability between the SpectraLink 8000 Series handsets and SIP-based call servers enables customers to deploy best-of-breed Wi-Fi telephony solutions that are efficient and dependable.

 

Polycom's SpectraLink 8000 Series telephone portfolio have been tested for interoperability with a variety of enterprise call servers including IP telephone systems from 3Com, Digium, Mitel (News - Alert), and Toshiba. SIP interoperability testing is a continuous program to support new call server platforms and feature releases as they become available.

 

"Wireless telephony is an important part of our patient care and has proven to be business-critical," stated Angela Burgess, chief information officer at Randolph Hospital in North Carolina.

 

"When we evaluated the options for expanding our wireless telephone system, we felt that Polycom offered the best overall solution in terms of voice quality, battery life and overall user experience. An additional benefit of the SpectraLink wireless telephone system is that it allows us to leverage our existing infrastructure without any major overhauls or additional network investments -- the fact that Polycom seamlessly interoperates with our SIP-based Mitel call server really sealed the deal for us,” added Burgess.

 

"SIP interoperability testing and verification is critical to meet the market's growing demand for open standards-based IP telephony solutions," said Abner Germanow (News - Alert), director of IDC's Enterprise Communications Infrastructure research. "Standards-based clients enable customers to deploy a mix of wired and wireless endpoints to fit a variety of user demands without having to compromise for any particular user profile."

 

SIP interoperability for Polycom's SpectraLink 8000 Wi-Fi handsets allows the wireless telephones to work as extensions of the VoIP call server, and includes the most traditionally used business telephone features including dial by extension, conferencing, call transfer, call forwarding, and caller ID. These call features are essential for mobile employees in the workplace where real-time telephone communication is mission-critical in applications such as healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, and retail stores.

 

"We continue to lead the market by being proactive and engaged with both our customers and partners," said Ben Guderian (News - Alert), vice president of product management for Polycom's SpectraLink. "As Wi-Fi and VoIP standards evolve, it makes sense for Polycom to offer open, standards-based solutions across our product portfolio. This move to broaden interoperability on our Wi-Fi phones enables our customers to deploy mixed-vendor, best-in-class solutions."