Get three services for $100/mo
March 19, 2007 9:00 AM PDT
Microsoft wants to power the small-business phone, too
- Related Stories
-
Microsoft turns to telephony
March 6, 2007 -
Microsoft Office finds its voice
March 6, 2007
The software maker is announcing Response Point, a computer-controlled phone system expected later this year. Microsoft has developed the software and is partnering with a number of device makers, including Uniden, D-Link and Quanta Computer, which will make the actual phones.
Jeff Smith, a senior product manager at Microsoft, said the new phones are designed to be simple enough that anyone who can run a PC can set up and manage the phone system. Rather than have multiple buttons for transferring calls and for checking voice mail, a single button will enable users to speak to identify the function they want. No need to remember extensions either, Smith said, since the software will know all the names in the company directory and be able to sync with Outlook desktop and Exchange server software.
Smith would not go into the pricing for the new phone system, which requires businesses to buy all-new equipment. For the past eight months, Microsoft has been testing the system with small businesses that have been using it free of charge.
Earlier this month, Business Division President Jeff Raikes offered more details on Microsoft's plans to tackle the corporate telephony market. For that market, Microsoft is expanding its Live Communications Server's corporate instant-messaging product into Office Communications Server, a tool that can also manage large-business phone systems.
Smith said the two efforts share some technology underpinnings but Microsoft decided it made sense to offer a separate product to address small-business needs. The company is announcing the new phone product at its second annual Small Business Summit. Microsoft will have about 300 people on hand at an in-person event for day one of the summit, while the remainder of the five-day affair will take place as a series of Webcasts.
See more CNET content tagged:
small business,
communications server,
Microsoft Corp.,
software company,
server
Microsoft's ideas do make it sound like a good move however. There are too many buttons on many phones as well as large companies with hundreds of extentions, and often the phone systems that allow names per extention get outdated quickly. Using Outlook and Live would simplify the update system and could probably automatically forward calls when the person moves to another desk permanently.
Nice Job Microsoft
I do want to get a bit of prior art in first. If Microsoft tries to patent the idea of letting the user pick his or her hold music, I thought of it first.
It's doomed to fail.
Problem: Microsoft introduced XP at the turn of the century and the Microsoft Phone (MP-900)was not compatable with the new Microsoft O/S (XP). Microsoft refused to provide support for their own product. It did not work with XP.
My PERFECT telephony system instantly became obsolete TRASH. Will Microsoft support this new telephony system better than it did for the
MP-900?
condoms I wonder?
* Delayed patches for the voicemail "Ski-ski-ski-pping-pping"
problems . . .
* Just think - These phone systems might actually "Squirt" . . .
* The opportunity to pay your phone bills by purchasing
"Microsoft Points" from "xBox Live" . . .
* The recently patended "Blue Voice of Death" . . .
"Weeeeeee!" . . . . (^0^)/