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Broadband Access
UK-based VNO Adds Voice to IP VPN Mix
Sirocom Details its Voice Strategy
by Ken Wieland
Sirocom, a UK-based virtual network operator (VNO) that had hitherto focused solely on providing managed IP VPNs for business customers’ data needs, officially launched its voice strategy today. “We can now offer a fully converged managed VPN,” says David MacFarlane, Sirocom’s CTO. “We’re seeing traction [for voice/data convergence] in the marketplace and we are responding to it.”
As a VNO offering managed IP VPNs, Sirocom has always argued that its main competitive advantages over carriers who own networks are price and flexibility. By leasing capacity from multiple providers and taking advantage of bulk purchasing to drive down prices as low as possible -- as well being able to offer a variety of network technologies (it has no network assets of its own to sweat) -- Sirocom has managed to build up a 500-client strong subscriber base. The company now believes that the time is right to extend the economies of scale that the VNO model brings to voice.
“We’re not saying to enterprise customers [that already have a managed IP VPN service or are considering migrating towards one] that lower call charges brought about by voice over IP VPN will necessarily justify ripping out existing PBXs,” says MacFarlane. “PSTN prices have dropped considerably, which weakens that argument. Instead, what we are offering is a way for customers to migrate to voice over IP at their own pace and which makes sense for their business.”
The voice strategy that Sirocom outlined today is dubbed ‘Voice with Vision’ and comes in three phases. The first phase is called ‘Spend Converge’ where enterprises, instead of purchasing their voice and data services separately, will hand over the entire kitty to Sirocom. Then, by using regulatory mechanisms such as CPS (carrier pre-selection) and WLR (wholesale line rental), Sirocom can scout around for the best voice deals from different suppliers by exerting its bulk purchasing power (in much the same way as it does for data). In his presentation of the ‘Voice with Vision’ strategy, MacFarlane argued that a company spending £825,000 on voice per year (lines, calls and support) could reduce that to £700,000 with ‘Spend Converge’ -- a 15 per cent saving.
The second phase is VoIP Blend where TDM over IP gateways are deployed in order to shift call traffic over IP networks (so customers don’t have to replace their legacy PBXs if they don’t want to). There is also the option to deploy IP-enabled handsets in this phase, which allows customers to take advantage of other functions associated with VoIP, such as directory services, dial-by-name, integrated messaging and ‘follow-me’ functions.
The third and last phase of Sirocom’s voice strategy is IP Central. This is where companies opt for a fully hosted VoIP service in which Sirocom leases capacity and functionality from ‘Tele-Hotels’ to provide this service. By going down the IP Central route, MacFarlane argues that the £825,000 bill example can come down to £565,000.
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