Microsoft Unveils Phones for Office Communications Server 2007tle

Published: May 16, 2007

by Alex Woodie

At the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) 2007 in Los Angeles yesterday, Microsoft unveiled 15 phones and communication devices that are compatible with Office Communications Server 2007, Microsoft's main entry into the voice over IP (VoIP) space, as well as Office Communicator 2007, Microsoft's VoIP client interface.

Microsoft is one of several IT vendors leading the charge to include the standard office phone as part of the fabric of the next generation of digital communications. The central part of that strategy is embodied in Office Communications Server 2007, which is still undergoing beta tests with general availability expected later this year, along with Office Communicator.

"Today's office phone is marooned on an island, separate from the rest of the communications tools that information workers rely on to do their jobs," said Jeff Raikes, president of the Microsoft Business Division. "By weaving the business phone together with e-mail, instant messaging, presence, conferencing, and the productivity software people use most, we are putting voice communications back into business."

Microsoft is working with a raft of vendors to develop phones and other communication devices that will work with Office Communications Server 2007 and Office Communicator 2007, including ASUSTek Computer, GN, LG-Nortel, NEC, Plantronics, Polycom, Samsung, Tatung, and Vitelix.

These companies have developed a series of VoIP phones, phones that plug into Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports, wired and wireless headsets, conferencing phones, LCD monitors, and laptops. Microsoft says 15 products from these nine vendors are nearing the end of the Microsoft qualification cycle.

The type of phone an organization buys for there VoIP system can affect the project's bottom line. According to Gartner, handsets represent 40 to 45 percent of the total cost of a VoIP installation.

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