Microsoft Boosts VoIP With JahJah Partnership

JahJah is providing Microsoft with SIP trunking services, a key unified communications technology that connects OCS 2007 R2 to carrier networks and enables phones calls made from PCs, VoIP phones and mobile devices to reach their destinations. SIP trunking also reduces infrastructure costs at the gateway and enables companies to move to a standards-based infrastructure.

Microsoft released OCS 2007 R2 last December, and while it has had the most traction in enterprises, solution providers believe SIP trunking could help spur OCS adoption in the midmarket and SMB segments, particularly in light of the prohibitive cost of T1 lines needed to drive PBX environments.

This is the initial foray into enterprise IP telephony for JahJah, which also offers a service tailored to the online dating industry that includes anonymous phone calls, SMS and voice-mail.

Microsoft finds itself in an increasingly pitched battle with Cisco Systems in unified communications, fueled in no small part by the software giant's $180 million global initiative to work with Hewlett-Packard to deliver integrated unified communications and collaboration solutions.

Meanwhile, demand for UC solutions continues to grow. Forrester Research recently estimated that 84 percent of enterprises in North America and Europe are evaluating, piloting or implementing UC and collaborative solutions. Forrester expects the UC market to grow at a rate of 35.9 percent annually through 2015.

This article updated at 4:32 PT 8/25/2009 to remove inaccuracies over Microsoft and Cisco support for SIP trunking