SAN FRANCISCO - Genesys last week announced a voice-over-IP software upgrade for its call center software that will let businesses distribute call center features beyond a single central site, via the Internet, to call center agents in remote or branch offices, or agents working from home.
The VoIP Option software for Genesys' G6 suite essentially lets users run a call center over a converged voice/data network. The VoIP Option could also let businesses better integrate call centers in different parts of the country by connecting the centers over the Internet.
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The ability to set up IP-based call centers is important to users with e-commerce sites, as many carry out Web-based chat sessions with customers or prepare responses to incoming e-mail about the products or services their corporation markets.
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"Genesys traditionally has [been installed] with traditional PBXs to provide call center applications on top of circuit-switched networks," says John Boyle, voice-over-IP product manager for Genesys. "With VoIP Option for G6, [contact center agents] will receive calls over an IP infrastructure, which could include customers calling over the [public switched telephone network] or the Internet."
In a corporate deployment, the G6 call center suite with the VoIP Option software runs on a Unix or Windows NT server. A circuit-switched PBX interacts with the Genesys server through an H.323 gateway that connects the PBX to the IP network, with users on the network using regular or IP phones. Calls made to the PBX are sent to the IP network through an H.323 voice-over-IP gateway, where the call is packetized. The G6/VoIP Option server receives and routes the packetized calls to the appropriate queues in the call center workflow where they are received by call center agents.
The company plans to release a version of the software compatible with session initiation protocol (SIP) gateways within the next two quarters. SIP is an emerging voice-over-IP protocol, similar to H.323.
The G6 call center suite was announced in October and provides businesses with phone contact center management and workflow setup. The suite includes tools to set up call-routing schemes, automated outbound contact tools and click-to-talk Internet support for contacting call agents via a button on a Web page.
By 2003, call center systems will make up almost 30% of the worldwide voice-over-IP revenue, projected to be $1.4 billion, according to market research firm IDC. Enterprise phone systems will account for 65% of the revenue, while hardware and software bought by voice service providers will account for the rest, IDC reports.
The VoIP Option software is available now and costs $400 per seat. The G6 suite is also available now and starts at $1,600 per user.
Genesys is an independent subsidiary of Alcatel and has been in business for 10 years. The company counts Mercedes Benz among its largest customers.
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