Hewlett-Packard and Alcatel-Lucent are partnering on a series of unified communications solutions, part of the 10-year technology alliance the two companies announced almost a year ago.
HP and Alcatel-Lucent officials announced May 24 a mix of solutions and services from both companies designed to make it easier for enterprises to migrate to a UC (unified communications) environment, which officials from both companies say could have significant positive impacts.
The partnership “will enable enterprises around the world to ddrive down costs, improve productivity and optimize the customer’s experience,” Tom Burns, president of Alcatel-Lucent’s Enterprise and Strategic INdustries business unit, said in a statement.
The offerings will be built atop HP’s UC consulting services, which will help enterprises make the move, from planning through implementation, design and training. The services will be available either on-site or via outsourcing.
A key part of the effort will be helping enterprise migrate from a multivendor and legacy PBX environment to an IP layer that includes Alcatel-Lucent’s open IP Telephony architecture. HP will use Alcatel-Lucent’s Genesys Customer Interaction management platform, UC-connected offerings and OmniTouch Instant Communications Suite and IP Telephony product, the OmniPCX Enterprise.
The Genesys Intelligent Workload Distribution offering automates workflow and workloads within business processes.
In addition, HP will use Alcatel-Lucent’s Advanced Communication Server as the foundation for creating an open UC integration layer aimed at specific industries, such as healthcare, financial services, utilities and government.
“Clients want an open, holistic approach to services delivery that maximizes their investment in [unified communications and collaboration],” Gary Budzinski, senior vice president and general manager of technology services at HP, said in a statement.
HP and Alcatel-Lucent announced their 10-year alliance June 18, 2009, a partnership that analysts said bolstered the efforts of both companies in their competitions with Cisco Systems. Officials with both companies said the partnership was an effort to take advantage of the ongoing convergence of IT and communications.
HP officials estimate the alliance could generate billions of dollars in revenues.