HD Voice Deployments:Experience with HD

ConferencingDavid Frankel, CEO

www.ZipDX.com

dfrankel@zipdx.com

Agenda

• Why Conferencing & HD?

• Technology for HD Conferencing

• Marketing HD Conferencing

• Results & Observations

• Outlook & Conclusions

Why HD Conferencing?

• Conferencing is a great HD application– Easier to identify who is talking– Better understanding of accented speakers– Distinguish words during double-talk– Overcome noise & other impairments– Better recordings (webinar playback)

• Less repetition

• Less fatigue

HD is Less Critical Point-to-Point

• Often, you know the other person

• No confusion about who’s talking

• Typically less background noise

• Conversations are usually shorter

Access via IP & PSTN

WidebandVoIP Phone

POTS

Wireless

HiFi Softphone

IP 650

Public SwitchedTelephoneNetwork

Public SwitchedTelephoneNetwork

SIP /Internet

SIP /Internet

Redundant Facilities

• NAT Traversal• Firewall Compatibility• Bandwidth-Friendly

ConferencePhone

ConferenceService

IP-PBX Opportunity

SIP /Internet

SIP /Internet

ConferenceService

IP-PBX

Public SwitchedTelephoneNetwork

Public SwitchedTelephoneNetwork

Routed via PSTN:NARROWBAND

Routed via IP:WIDEBAND!

By trapping conference numbers in the IP-PBX

and routing them via IP, we can quickly implement

wideband.

HD Voice “Ecosystem”

• Endpoints: Aastra, AudioCodes, Avaya, Cisco, Gigaset, Polycom, snom, & others

• IP-PBX’s: Adtran, Asterisk, Avaya, Broadsoft, Cisco, Shoretel, & others

• Conferencing Service: ZipDX

• Interop/Best Practices: HDConnect

• “Meeting” @ bridge easier than peering

Marketing HD Conferencing

• Challenges:– Gatekeeper often not a big conferencer– Not perceived as a “must have”– Buried under other priorities

• Opportunities:– Many have already installed HD Voice– End-users love it when they hear it– Can be cheaper than traditional conferencing!

Does it Really Matter?

• Everybody loves HD when they hear it

• Most people don’t think it’s NECESSARY

Most people are aware of impairments that make it difficult to read. Audio impairments can be just as debilitating, but are not commonly recognized (at least consciously).

MOST PEOPLE ARE AWARE OF IMPAIRMENTS THAT MAKE IT DIFFICULT TO READ AUDIO IMPAIRMENTS CAN BE JUST AS DEBILITATING BUT ARE NOT COMMONLY RECOGNIZED AT LEAST CONSCIOUSLY

Positioning HD Voice

• Sell BETTER conferencing– Most businesses already spend

$10-25/employee/month on conferencing– HD Voice alone is rarely a reason to switch– But it can be readily bundled with features:

• “No codes” conferencing• Call-me capability• On-screen updates & dashboard• WebSharing & Security

Results & Observations

• Conferencers love HD Voice– At least two parties must be HD-equipped– Contrast with narrowband becomes obvious

• Peer pressure to join in HD– Convenience still dominates (mobile phone)

• Calls go on longer– Less time spent repeating, but…– More enjoyable, less fatiguing

Outlook & Conclusions

• Large installed base of HD phones to tap

• Take advantage of what’s already there

• Deliver HD Voice seamlessly

• Use caution in demanding a premium

• Initial deployment in med/large enterprise

• Eventually all phones & calls will be HD!