Software giant Microsoft Corporation last week held its local launch of a product aimed at reducing the cost of the average corporate VoIP (Voice over-Internet Protocol) system by half.

The Fortune 500 firm is using its Unified Communication software to streamline workplace communications through the collaboration of four interactive applications on one platform. The four applications are:

José Ramon-Diaz, product marketing manager of Microsoft Caribbean and Central America, addresses the audience at the launch of the company's Unified Communication software, held at the Hilton Kingston Hotel on Wednesday. (Photo: Alty Benjamin)

. Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007: A software that delivers VoIP, video, instant messaging, conferencing, and presence within applications such as the Microsoft Office system and upcoming versions of Microsoft Dynamics ERP products and the Microsoft Dynamics CRM which is expected to be released later in 2008.

. Microsoft Office Communicator 2007: A client software for phone, instant messaging, and video communications that works across the PC, mobile phone and web browser.

. Microsoft Office Live Meeting: An advanced conferencing service that enables workers to conduct meetings, share documents, utilise video, and record discussions from any computer; and

. Service pack update of Microsoft Exchange Server 2007: A email, voice mail, calendaring and unified messaging application

José Ramon-Diaz, product marketing manager of Microsoft Caribbean and Central America, told Sunday Finance that the new system, by enhancing the collaboration process, will lead to more efficiency at the workplace.

"What unified communication is trying to do is to get all these channels of communication - email, data, voice, text phone call etc - all together into one platform," said Ramon-Diaz. "This is trying to simplify and speed up the process of communication as it pertains to you.

"It will be like an internal corporate secured (communication) application, where there are different things going on at the same time," he added.

Ramon-Diaz said that the Unified Communications software will be distributed on the Jamaican market through the company's local partners; companies such as InfoTech Caribbean and CommNett Jamaica.

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