Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Subscribe
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Subscribe
    Home Latest News
    • Networking

    Avaya Brings Communications to the Cloud With Zang

    Written by

    Jeff Burt
    Published March 10, 2016
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      Avaya is moving deeper into the cloud with a new communications platform that not only offers customers ways to more easily collaborate but also enables developers to quickly develop collaboration applications.

      In addition, the company has expanded and rebranded its DevConnect development platform for building unified communications (UC)-enabled apps and is launching an online store for business communications apps.

      Avaya officials announced the moves this week during the Enterprise Connect 2016 conference in Orlando, Fla., saying the announcement of the Zang cloud communications platform and Breeze development solution are part of a larger push by the company to rapidly expand the capabilities and reach of its collaboration technologies.

      “This marks an important milestone in the execution of Avaya’s vision and strategy,” Gary Barnett, senior vice president and general manager of Avaya Engagement Solutions, wrote about Zang in a post on the company’s blog. “Our vision is of Avaya Everywhere: embedding communications capabilities into as many apps and mobile devices as we can.”

      UC and collaboration technologies continue to move into the cloud as businesses demand more flexibility, scalability and cost efficiency in their environments, and most vendors are making pushes into the cloud to meet those demands. Synergy Research Group analysts in a recent report said that in the fourth quarter of 2015, revenues from hosted and cloud solutions grew 10 percent over the same period last year, while revenues from on-premises-based systems fell 3 percent.

      With Zang, Avaya not only is rolling out a cloud-based platform, but also is making it easier to create the apps for the platform or that can be embedded into other applications.

      The last part is particularly interesting, according to Zeus Kerravala, principal analyst with ZK Research.

      “It’s my firm belief that users do not want more UC applications,” Kerravala wrote in a post on the No Jitter blog site. “Everyone has enough of them, and switching between business and UC applications is frustrating on a desktop but completely untenable on a mobile device. UC needs to evolve into a platform that enables companies to drop UC functions into the applications we already use. Picture a retail application in which I could click to call, message, or video directly from the application instead of having to leave the application, go to a dialer, initiate a call … and then go back to the application when the call is done.”

      Avaya is making Zang a subsidiary of the larger company, with the key application components being the communications platform-as-a-service, application development environments, embedded applications and persistent spaces application, Avaya’s Barnett wrote in his blog.

      “Smart apps built on Zang allow people to define how they want to work and connect,” he wrote, noting click-to-connect communications that includes video, chat, SMS, voice and document sharing from mobile devices, desktops or the Web. “Unlike other solutions that offer rudimentary APIs, Zang’s highly interoperable platform provides complete workflow automation and sophisticated application development capabilities.”

      Through those features, developers and users can run Zang apps with communications apps like those from Spark from Cisco Systems, Microsoft’s Skype for Business and Google Hangouts, he wrote. While the apps can be embedded into other applications, they also can be used stand-alone. The platform also comes with software development kits (SDKs), sample apps and the ability to use third-party communications apps.

      With Breeze, Avaya is rolling out the next generation of its Avaya Engagement Development Platform that makes app development easy to use. In addition, the company’s Snapp Store will be a marketplace for communications apps built by third parties for Breeze.

      Breeze includes an open framework, a development platform that can help drive down the amount of time needed to build new workflow-based applications from months to hours or days, and open connectors and APIs for easier integration with existing enterprise communications services.

      Jeff Burt
      Jeff Burt
      Jeffrey Burt has been with eWEEK since 2000, covering an array of areas that includes servers, networking, PCs, processors, converged infrastructure, unified communications and the Internet of things.

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.