IP Telephony is a type of technology that allow the use of TCP/IP networks to transport telephone calls.   More than 90% of all new phone systems sold today are IP-based systems and they are quickly replacing legacy, TDM-based systems because of their overall lower cost of ownership.

Telephony Technologies:

As far as telephony technologies go, IP telephony is a mix of traditional telephony and advanced networking technologies that brings the best of both technologies to allow businesses to maximize their communications functionality while minimizing overall cost of ownership. It is unique because like the mix of technologies it uses to deliver phone calls, the people who design, implement, integrate and support these phone systems must have knowledge of BOTH traditional telephony and advanced networking techniques.

Often, a vendor will know one technology in depth, but only know a small amount about the other technology. For example, a phone vendor may a have an in-depth knowledge of traditional telephony concepts, but may only have a basic knowledge of networking.  On the other hand, a network vendor may be able to build a network capable of  supporting IP telephony, but are not able to make the proper connection to the phone provider for high quality phone conversations.  In those cases, an IP telephony system will not function correctly because critical pieces of an IP telephony solution are missing. Since BNICG Communications fully understands not only BOTH of these technologies, but the requirements unique to IP telephony systems, we are able to successfully implement all types of IP telephony systems to help companies realize the true benefits of the technology.

Benefits:

• Simpler administration: IP telephony devices are administrated similar to other network devices. Adding a phone, for the most part, is as simple as plugging it in to any network connection.  The systems will automatically configure the phone themselves, or with very little human interaction.
• Easier integration with data systems: Because the phone system is already connected directly to an IP network, it makes integration with other IP-based data systems MUCH easier.
• Reduced costs of ownership:   In enterprise IP telephony implementations, the underlying communications infrastructure (i.e. the company LAN and WAN) are already in place, thus saving the money that would normally be spent on having a separate voice and data cabling plant and connections links.  Also,the monthly costs of inter-site communications are significantly reduced.  Inter-site data links are already in place, and can be used to route calls between sites instead of using dedicated lines between sites.  Instead of having two separate infrastructures for voice and data, the two technologies are combined into a unified communications network, thus saving those monthly costs.