News & Events

NEC UNIVERGE® SV8000 series communications servers get Skype Connect certified

Hilversum, 11 August 2011 - NEC Unified Solutions (NEC), a leading provider and integrator of advanced communication and IT solutions, today announced that its UNIVERGE SV8000 Series communications servers has been certified with Skype Connect, a business solution that can enable companies to save on monthly communications costs and connect employees with the global Skype community.

NEC’s award-winning UNIVERGE SV8000 Series Communications Servers can provide companies of all sizes reliable IP telephony and other unified communications features, which give employees tools like presence and messaging to become more productive. With NEC and Skype Connect, companies can now connect customers with the click of a Skype button on their Web sites.

To obtain interoperability certification with Skype Connect, NEC’s products were tested by an independent firm, tekVizion Labs™. By being interoperable with Skype Connect, NEC customers with NEC’s UNIVERGE solutions will be able to:

• Make outbound calls from UNIVERGE systems to landlines and mobiles worldwide billed at Skype's business calling rates

• Receive inbound calls from Skype connected users worldwide by placing Skype's Click & Call buttons on their Web sites

• Receive calls in UNIVERGE systems from landlines or mobile phones that call Skype online numbers that a company has purchased separately

• Manage Skype calls using existing UNIVERGE features such as call routing, automatic call distribution, conferencing, auto-attendant, voicemail, call recording and logging

NEC continues to certify its SIP-enabled UNIVERGE communications solutions with solutions, such as Skype Connect, that can offer its business customers cost savings. Similar certification tests for Skype Connect interoperability with NEC’s SIP@Net / iS3000 communication server have been planned for the coming months.

“By certifying its communications platforms with Skype Connect, NEC is giving its business customers the ability to reduce operating costs and connect with millions of Skype users worldwide,” said Barry Castle, Skype Connect Product Marketing Manager. “We believe the addition of NEC to our global partner community is further validation of the value that Skype Connect provides in the market for business communications solutions.”

"We have confirmed NEC's UNIVERGE communications portfolio successfully passed the rigorous guidelines necessary for interoperability with Skype Connect," said Chakra Devalla, VP of Operations, tekVizion Labs. "Our interop standards are designed to help ensure business customers can expect reliable, consistent service and a positive quality of experience."

"Based on demand we're seeing from our business partners and the market in general, and by consequently achieving this certification, NEC has shown it is committed to giving its customers the ability to leverage the functionality of Skype Connect and lower their communications costs through standards-based SIP solutions like Skype Connect ," said Ronald Rubens, Vice President Portfolio & Applications NEC EMEA.

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For more information please contact:
NEC Unified Solutions
Robert van Amerongen
Tel: +31 35 689 1521
Email: [email protected]

About NEC Unified Solutions
NEC Unified Solutions specialises in providing communications solutions to small, medium and large enterprises in both the private and public sectors. Designed for open connectivity, high availability and flexible growth, these solutions incorporate the latest voice, data and video technologies and enable real-time, collaborative working, increased productivity and significantly improved customer satisfaction. Serving customers through a network of direct sales organisations, business partners and value-added resellers, NEC Unified Solutions fosters a company-wide culture of customer dedication, flexibility and excellence throughout the EMEA (Europe, Middle East & Africa) region. For more information, please visit: http://www.nec-unified.com.

NEC is a registered trademark of NEC Corporation. All Rights Reserved

About tekVision Labs
tekVizion Labs™ manages the interoperability needs for both the Skype Connect and NEC Univerge Partner Programs. tekVizion Labs is a professional services firm focused on delivering VoIP, Video and Unified Communications to businesses and service providers. tekVizion's core services include consulting, custom applications, integration, support, and testing through tekVizion Labs -- the first interoperability certification lab of its kind. tekVizion Labs offers a full suite of verification services including interoperability, solution, conformance, and deployment testing. tekVizion leverages its real-world, multi-vendor integration and test experience and proven processes to provide vendors, enterprises and service providers with full deployment life-cycle services. tekVizion's headquarters is within the Telecom Corridor(R) in Richardson, Texas.

Skype is not a replacement for traditional telephone services and cannot be used for emergency calling. Skype Connect is meant to complement existing traditional telephone services used with a corporate PBX, not as a stand-alone solution. Skype Connect users need to ensure all calls to emergency services are terminated through traditional fixed line telephone services, connected to the local exchange, or through other emergency calling capable telephone services.

Skype, associated trademarks and logos and the “S” symbol are trademarks of Skype Limited.