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Cisco makes bid for IP-based call centers
Planned $2 billion buyout of GeoTel to provide key products, critical capabilities
By Bob Wallace
04/19/99 Cisco Systems Inc. last week announced plans to buy call center software maker GeoTel Communications Corp. for $2 billion in an effort to offer users more options for handling customers.
Today, most consumers usually dial a toll-free number to reach a call center, but Cisco hopes in the future they'll be able to contact call centers over the Internet or by calling a gateway at the company's corporate network.
Such services will require carriers to continue moving to packet-based IP networks. That's why Cisco recently shelled out almost a half-billion dollars on two start-ups that make products designed to help carriers do that.
Third-party companies will be able to develop voice, data and video applications for the platforms, which Cisco will be offering as an alternative to the proprietary private branch exchange and automatic call distributor switches now used to distribute calls at call centers.
"Some companies will want to move to an IP approach because they'll save money and won't be tied to proprietary hardware that's difficult to upgrade," said Robert Mirani, an analyst at The Yankee Group, a Boston-based consultancy. "But one big obstacle is that call centers are considered mission-critical -- and are being served by switches well today."
That situation suits Cisco and Lowell, Mass.-based GeoTel just fine for now because the latter makes Windows NT-based software that works with the top carriers' networks as well as top call center switch vendors' products. GeoTel's Intelligent Call Router packages route incoming calls to the most readily available customer service agent at any of a company's call centers.
Carriers transitioning to IP will need the advanced call-routing technology in GeoTel's software to bring newer IP networks up to feature-parity with today's circuit-switched carrier networks, said Lisa Pierce, an analyst at Giga Information Group Inc. in Cambridge, Mass.
"Until the networks are equivalent featurewise, users will just hammer on their carriers for better 800 service rates," Pierce said. "They're just interested in pricing, quality and availability."
Cisco also cited the ability to support call center agents at home via the Net and teleweb technology, which allows users on a Web site to click a phone icon and be linked to a call center agent, as an area of interest.
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