While VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) telephony solutions offer significant cost reductions to businesses, shifting to a new VOIP system can impact negatively on the company budget and productivity levels.
Moving away from traditional analogue phones, for example, can cost from R600 per phone. For small and medium enterprises (SMEs), this can be a prohibitive expense and a stumbling block in turning VOIP theory into reality.
SS Telecoms, a South African telephony manufacturer and distributor for over 21 years, recently launched a simple, cost-effective solution to the South African SME VOIP problem: the Mediatrix iPBX. Developed by leading global VOIP telephony brand, Media 5, the Mediatrix iPBX allows companies to retain their existing analogue infrastructure while routing calls through VOIP trunks. The Mediatrix iPBX offers all the benefits of a VOIP system, while eliminating the capital outlays usually associated with a change in telephony infrastructure.
“Companies want to switch to VOIP as fast and as painlessly as possible, and they are also vary wary of losing the value of existing analogue investments,” says Kevin Greig, Sales and Marketing Manager at SS Telecoms. “The Mediatrix iPBX allows them to get this right with minimal fuss. The system routes simply to a VOIP service provider, allowing the company to retain its legacy phone and fax infrastructure. The Mediatrix iPBX easily routes conventional G3 fax traffic, so it's a comprehensive solution to what has become a sticky time and expense equation for mid-size companies.”
Built on the foundation of Media 5's acclaimed 4100 series platform, the Mediatrix iPBX can also be implemented as a complete replacement for a current PBX system. It features a large range of productivity-enhancing features, including Voice Mail, IVRs, Conference Bridge and Call Detail Reports, among others. Integration with existing analogue devices is simple and transparent and covers phones, faxes, modems and point of sale terminals.
“Bandwidth costs are falling all time, which means VOIP has become a very important area of cost reduction for businesses of all sizes,” says Greig. “The key for mid-sized businesses is to realise that there are effective gateway options out there that minimise the capital outlay involved, and that allow the company to carry on doing business at normal levels through the transition. If they partner with the right service provider and utilise the appropriate product, decision-makers should be able to meet their VOIP needs without incurring massive costs or disrupting operations.”
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