Nearly Three Out of Four Companies Have Adopted Unified Communications As SIP Usage Rapidly Expands

The Requirements and Benefits of Deploying Session Border Controllers for Real-Time Communications Also Grows

Key Takeaways:

The 2015 Unified Communications, SIP, and SBC Plans and Priorities study comprises a global response from 150 respondents whose companies represent a minimum of 10,000 employees.
Unified Communications (UC) continues to be widely adopted within enterprises according to the report published by Webtorials Editorial and Analyst Division and commissioned by Sonus.
72% of study respondents had either partially or fully deployed UC solutions within enterprise environments.
65% of UC deployments are premises-based, but demand for Cloud solutions will likely result in hybrid UC solutions emerging as the go-forward standard.
The number of respondents who are “extremely familiar” with Session Border Controllers (SBC) has grown 84% since 2012.

WESTFORD, Mass.– Sonus Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: SONS), a global leader in enabling and securing real-time communications, today announced the results of a new report entitled “2014-2015 Unified Communications, SIP, and SBC Plans and Priorities: What’s Hot and What’s Not,” indicating that the adoption of Unified Communications (UC) continues to increase, with a major shift toward UC solutions being implemented via SIP. Furthermore, results of this study show that there is a clear indication that Session Border Controllers (SBCs) are expected to be the enabling technology that provides the necessary interoperability, security and reliability for a highly functional network.

The report was conducted by the independent Webtorials Editorial and Analyst Division and underwritten by Sonus. This report mirrors the “2012 Mobile Unified Communications State-of-the-Market Report,” conducted by Webtorials, and offers a unique comparison on how the SIP trunking market has influenced the adoption of UC and SBCs over the past two years.

Key highlights include:

The percentage of respondents who had either partially or fully deployed UC solutions has moved from 68% to 72% with the balance of respondents largely in or soon be in the planning phase.
Roughly seven out of ten UC and enterprise voice deployments are premises-based, though this figure is projected to drop as more future deployments move to the Cloud. According to the study, hybrid deployments are the preferred approach to UC in the future.
Respondents continue to indicate a desire to move from proprietary to standards-based solutions, although the movement toward that goal is not happening rapidly.
The biggest change since the 2012 study was the increase in the use or planned use of SIP for various functions.
As an integral component to secure and enable the real-time features of UC, the functions of SBCs are becoming much more recognized, with an increase from 14% to 25% among respondents who claim to be extremely familiar with these capabilities. The primary reason cited for SBC deployment is security, while ensuring a high quality of service also shows great importance.

To learn more, listen to Sonus and analysts from Distributed Networking Associates and Nemertes in a webinar examining this report. The session reviewed enterprise UC trends, the growth of adoption, and how companies are getting the most for their money as they move to SIP. For more information, click here.

Quotes:

“The ‘2014-2015 Unified Communications, SIP, and SBC Plans and Priorities’ report shows that two years later, enterprises continue to seek the advantages that come along with unifying their communications,” said Steve Taylor, editor-chief and publisher for Webtorials. “The shift we are seeing in UC today, however, is the move toward SIP-based solutions, future plans to move to the Cloud, and the understanding of importance that Session Border Controllers bring to securing real-time communications.”

“We’ve seen Unified Communications evolve from voice and video, to incorporate real-time collaboration tools which improve productivity. The explosive growth among enterprises implementing SIP Trunking has further enabled the ability to knit together previously disparate technology platforms,” said Wes Durow, vice president of Global Marketing, Sonus. “When deploying these new communications services, the ability to leverage Session Border Controllers improves the security, interoperability, and quality of service challenges often faced when working across multi-vendor networks.”

Other Facts:

This study mirrors a study Webtorials performed in December 2012, also underwritten by Sonus, surveying IT professionals in organizations with more than 1,000 employees to determine their plans and priorities for UC as well as their attitudes toward the inextricably linked SIP and SBCs.
Sonus was positioned in the Leaders Quadrant of the “Magic Quadrant for Session Border Controllers,” published October 21, 2013 by Gartner, Inc.

Additional Resources:

To download a copy of the “2014-2015 Unified Communications, SIP and SBC Plans and Priorities” report click here.
To download a copy of the ‘2012 SIP Trunking' State of the Market report click here.
Click here to download electronic versions of Sonus’ educational guides, published in partnership with John Wiley and Sons, Inc., publisher of the world’s best-selling For Dummies® reference series: Lync Enterprise Voice for Dummies, SIP Trunking for Dummies, Session Border Controllers for Dummies and WebRTC for Dummies.

Tags/Keywords:

Sonus, SONS, Webtorials, Unified Communications, UC, SIP, study, trends, session border controller, SBC

About Sonus Networks:

Sonus enables and secures real-time communications so the world's leading service providers and enterprises can embrace the next generation of SIP and 4G/LTE solutions including VoIP, video, instant messaging and online collaboration. With customers in nearly 100 countries and nearly two decades of experience, Sonus offers a complete portfolio of hardware-based and virtualized Session Border Controllers (SBCs), Diameter Signaling Controllers (DSCs), policy/routing servers and media and signaling gateways. For more information, visit www.sonus.net or call 1-855-GO-SONUS.

Important Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

The information in this release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding future events that involve risks and uncertainties. Although Sonus believes that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, readers are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are only predictions and are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this report are forward-looking statements. Our actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with Sonus' business, please refer to the "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and "Risk Factors" sections of Sonus' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements represent Sonus' views only as of the date on which such statement is made, and should not be relied upon as representing Sonus' views as of any subsequent date. While Sonus may elect to update forward-looking statements at some point, Sonus specifically disclaims any obligation to do so, except as required by law.

For Sonus Networks:

Wendy Tullo, +1 -978-614-8167
wtulllo@sonusnet.com

North America/Lois Paul & Partners
Siobhan Nguyen, +1-617-986-5784
Siobhan_Nguyen@lpp.com

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Louise Andrews
sonus@emlwildfire.com

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Cheryl Tan
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