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A new unified communication system to reduce mobile airtime costs for small businesses

Tags: British Telecom (LON:BT.A)

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Press release

BT has today announced plans to integrate the BlackBerry® Mobile Voice System (MVS) technology from Research In Motion (RIM) with BT Communications Complete (based on the Cisco Unified Communications 500 Series platform).

The planned new offering will enable BlackBerry® smartphone users to take advantage of Wi-Fi® networks in the office for voice calls. The solution enables users to switch from Wi-Fi to cellular networks, even in mid-call, allowing small to medium-sized business to reduce mobile airtime costs and be more productive.

Business users will be able to enjoy all the out-of-the-office conveniences of their BlackBerry smartphone - access to contacts, calls, applications and email anywhere - when they are in the office, but without the usually higher mobile airtime costs.

With features like a single voicemail box, the development will also eliminate the time wasted listening to and answering messages on multiple voicemails - making users easier to contact and potentially giving them quicker response times to customers and colleagues' queries.

Users can choose to be contacted using just one number and, by incorporating BT's One Plan Plus into BT Communications Complete, firms can make intra-company calls (including mobile calls) without incurring call-forwarding charges.

"The solution will enable the delivery of unified communications tools for small to medium-sized businesses, which previously only benefited larger firms," said Bill Murphy, managing director, BT Business. "Technologies that better integrate key business processes, reduce costs and keep workers in touch with customers regardless of location, help firms to operate more effectively and to be in better shape for the upturn when it comes."

"Small and medium-sized businesses have the same concerns as all of us - driving down costs and delivering a better customer experience. Unified communications can support those two objectives. The new service will bring together the strengths of all three companies - Cisco, BT and RIM - to deliver a great offer for companies of all sizes," said Rick Moran, vice president of marketing, Cisco.