Today, BT demonstrated its leadership in the collaboration marketplace by showcasing a fully integrated collaboration and unified communications experience. The collaboration event included a video conference that linked approximately 20 locations using different technology suppliers, equipment types and network connectivity.
Video sites in New York, Philadelphia, Denver, Atlanta, multiple London sites as well as additional UK sites in Brighton and Hawkurst incorporated multi-vendor immersive, high-definition, legacy standard-definition, desktop units and software codecs across multiple networks including corporate LAN and the public internet. Audio and Web conferencing services
were included to provide participants with a true unified communications experience. The event was streamed live over the internet to expand the experience to online participants.
Aaron McCormack, CEO, BT Conferencing said, “This innovation further demonstrates the value BT’s managed services bring to our customers. We enable organisations to connect over multiple networks using various equipment types, ensuring that our customers’ technology investments are maximised while extending the reach, quality and effectiveness of communications.”
This combination of video interoperability plus audio, web, and streaming services will be commercially available in December from the BT Global Video Exchange Family of Services, which provide managed and hosted communication services for a range of platforms from high level immersive room systems to enterprise desktop units utilizing enterprise and business-to-business communications. Flat rate pricing will also be offered across these services for additional customer convenience.
BT provides a menu of offerings geared to the customer’s requirements with a focus on making unified communications easy to use, reliable and cost effective. Central to these communication services is BT’s Onward Management System, which manages the different network connections, bridging infrastructure and new TIP protocol from Cisco to facilitate the video interoperability capability. BT provides a simple interface as part of its management service, which automates the process via a single scheduling platform regardless of the customer’s technology.
A full list of networks and technologies used in the interoperability demonstration are summarized below:
Multiple Diverse Networks
- multiple private enterprise MPLS
- corporate LAN
- public IP
- PSTN
Infrastructure
- MSE 8000
- TIP protocol
- Clustering – backplane cascading
- Telepresence Server/ ISDN GW
- Cisco CUCM
- Cisco Session Border Controller
- TANDBERG VCS Control
- TANDBERG VCS Expressway
- TANDBERG TMS
- Polycom Video Border Proxy (VBP)
Immersive Technology
- Cisco CTS 3000, CTS 1000, CTS 500
- Polycom RPX 408
- Polycom RPX 208
- TANDBERG T3
HD / SD Technology
- Lifesize 200
- Polycom HDX 4002, ViewStation 384
- TANDBERG T1700
Desktop Devices (appliance & software)
- Polycom HDX 4002
- TANDBERG T1700, Movi
