Skype integration with ShoreTel Phone Systems can save thousands
Posted on Mon, Nov 29, 2010 @ 04:20 PM
Skype may be considered the world’s largest VoIP network, though many would pass it off as a “not for business” option. Realizing that a large percentage of its hundreds of million monthly users are utilizing Skype services for business, Skype developed Skype Connect.
Skype Connect enables businesses to connect with the Skype community via the Internet and works directly with existing PBX and unified communications systems.
In 2009, ShoreTel became Skype’s first partner in its Skype for SIP enterprise-focused offerings, allowing ShoreTel customers to use Skype to direct outbound calls from devices on ShoreTel’s UC system to landlines and mobile phones – and at a fraction of the cost (about $.008 for local and $.02 for international calls).
Desktop phones can be Skype-enabled with a Skype name that is mapped to the business’ main number or an individual telephone extension, allowing Skype users to call that number for free.
Skype Connect also allows businesses to add Click and Call buttons to their websites, allowing customers to call on Skype for free.
ShoreTel customers can use the product to direct outbound calls from devices on ShoreTel’s UC system to landlines and mobile phones using Skype’s low rates, saving money on calls.
To get started using Skype for SIP with ShoreTel, businesses must create and register a Skype business control panel for their organization, and then follow instructions to configure Skype for SIP to work with existing SIP-enabled unified communications systems. We can help our new and existing ShoreTel customers get Skype set up and ready to use on their phone system.
The features of Skype for SIP include:
- Web-based tool allows businesses to control Skype usage from a single point
- Centralized billing
- Easy allocation of skype credit
- Subscriptions and online numbers to users
- Reporting about usage and spending
- Management of internal employee accounts – Find out who uses Skype and which features they use
Maxim integrated products, a fortune 1000 company, deployed Skype for SIP desktop software for more than 2,000 employees in 70 locations and has saved hundreds of thousands of dollars on long-distance calling.
Maxim first rolled out Skype for SIP using ShoreTel PBX in its Dallas office, configuring 22 concurrent channels for domestic calling.
“Our Skype deployment has already turned Maxim into more of a real-time organization where we get our work done better, faster and cheaper,” said Walter Curd, CIP of Maxim integrated Products.
Skype Connect is supported on seven brands of phone systems, including ShoreTel. For businesses without a phone system that supports Skype, gateway solutions are available. One such solution is VoSKY Exchange.
VoSKY Exchange is the world’s first Skype-certified solution to work with PBX systems. Business class PBX gateway for Skype allows businesses to connect to the world’s largest VoIP network and make free or low-cost calls through Exchange and Skype.
Whether through a Skype-supported unified communications system, such as ShoreTel, or a gateway solution like VoSKY, VoIP integration with Skype can save a business hundreds of thousands of dollars on local and international call.
Adam Smith, Account Executive at Xtelesis shared this example of how one of his customers uses Skype for business:
Customer A has approximately 5,000 employees distributed around the world; faced with high international long distance bills and little support for their mobile workforce, they turned to Xtelesis for a solution.
Xtelesis worked with Customer A to integrate their IP PBX to the global Skype network which allowed the international and mobile users to dial back into the phone system using Skype and avoid costly long distance charges. Customer A saved many thousands of dollars annually in long distance telecom costs and it gave them an innovative solution that resulted in additional features as Skype rolls out their Enterprise platform.
Think Skype isn’t for business? Think again.
To learn how your business can cut costs by using Skype Connect paired with ShoreTel, or to get started using Skype for SIP with your ShoreTel phone system, contact us.
For more information on Skype Connect, check out this article published by UCStrategies.com.