Active Voice and Sphere Communications Announce Strategic Agreement
PR Newswire - February 01, 2000 06:15
Sphere Selects Unity for its New Training Center
SEATTLE, Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Active Voice Corporation (Nasdaq: ACVC), a global provider of unified messaging and computer telephony software solutions, today announced an agreement to market and sell Unity(TM), its true unified messaging solution, with Sphere Communications' Sphericall PBX. Under terms of the agreement, the two companies will work cooperatively on marketing programs, sales activities, and continued product integration.
"The Sphericall PBX and Unity are a natural fit," states Ken Myer, Active Voice executive vice president of sales and marketing. "The Sphericall PBX is an advanced voice over data network telephone system that offers Quality of Service and scalability, and Unity is a true unified messaging solution that fits snugly into an organization's network environment. Together, they will provide customers with an advanced communications solution that is dependable, feature-rich, and cost effective. We are equally pleased that Sphere Communications was so impressed by Unity's performance in their testing labs that they are deploying it in their new state-of-the-art training facility."
"Our customers know the value of intelligent voice applications and what these solutions add to productivity and return on investment," says Frank Brletich, Sphere Communications president. "Our alliance with Active Voice will give customers a fully integrated platform for the best telephony service in the industry."
The Customer Benefits from Unity's True Unified Architecture Unity, which recently won Computer Telephony magazine's "Unified Messaging Shootout" and received Windows NT magazine's "Best of Show" at the Microsoft Exchange Conference '99, is a Windows NT(R)-based communications solution that delivers voice mail, unified messaging, an automated attendant, and a fax server in a true unified environment. Unity gives users the power to access and manage all their messages-voice, fax, and e-mail through a touchtone telephone, a desktop PC, or over the Internet.
Unity's true unified architecture fits seamlessly into an organization's data network and can significantly lower an organization's total cost of ownership. Unity stores e-mail, voice mail, and faxes in a Microsoft Exchange(R) server. A single message store simplifies administration and eliminates synchronization problems. In addition, Unity's single LDAP directory service means administrators only need to maintain one address book for all message types, and can make adds, moves, and changes just once for all media types.
About the Sphericall PBX
The current Sphericall PBX scales to 2500 users per installation, leading the industry in "Net Generation" telephone systems with guaranteed QoS (Quality of Service) voice on a data network. Sphericall customers can interface to the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) using analog, T1 CAS, or ISDN PRI interfaces in easy to install, rack-mounted gateways. The Sphericall PBX provides these and many other key features:
-- LAN and WAN components: easy configuration and installation of PSTN and
phone lines with external network-based components.
-- Easy Windows NT administration: setup, moves, adds, and changes to
lines all through Windows NT graphical user interface (GUI).
-- Convergence now: the Sphericall PBX delivers working systems
now-combine voice, data, and video on one network to save on
infrastructure, maintenance, and future expansion.
About Sphere Communications
Founded in June of 1994 and privately held, Sphere Communications is located in Lake Bluff, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Sphere is a leader in the emerging field of network telephony, focusing exclusively on the development and marketing of its Sphericall product line. Strategic technical and marketing partners include Microsoft Corporate, Marconi, IBM, and other hardware and software companies. Sphericall sells and supports Sphericall through qualified resellers and distribution relationships. Visit Sphere Communications' home page at www.spherecom.com.
About Active Voice
Founded in 1983, the Seattle-based Active Voice has offices in Australia, Canada, China, France, Sweden, The Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. With more than 85,000 systems installed in virtually every kind of business in over 60 countries, Active Voice develops technology that helps businesses communicate better. Active Voice solutions are sold through a global network of independent telecommunications dealers, telephone equipment manufacturers, and computer resellers. More information about Active Voice and its products is available at the company's Web site, www.activevoice.com activevoice.com.
For more information, photographs, and interviews please contact the following:
Public Relations: Monica Drake, 206-441-4700, ext. 1154,
pr@activevoice.com
Investor Relations: Amy Thomas, 206-441-4700, ext. 1197,
ir@activevoice.com
Today's News on the Web - PR Newswire on the Internet with Hyperlinks to
your home page.
URL: prnewswire.com
NOTE: Brand and product names in this document are trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE Active Voice Corporation
/CONTACT: public relations, Monica Drake, 206-441-4700, ext. 1154, or
pr@activevoice.com, or investor relations, Amy Thomas, 206-441-4700,
ext. 1197, ir@activevoice.com, both of Active Voice Corporation /
/Web site: spherecom.com
/Web site: activevoice.com
I'm not sure what this brings to the ACVC table.
Jack |
