The Enterprise Networks division of Siemens Information and Communication Networks announced two new applications that take advantage of converging and native IP (Internet Protocol) communications networks for real-time and non-real-time communications.

Last week, they invited CommWeb down for a fast (very fast) demonstration of these applications: one we found nice; the other really did knock our socks off, even though we're not exactly sure what we saw.

What We Think We Saw

Both products, according to Siemens, "erase the boundary between the mobile phone and office phone, reduce redundant communications, help users be productive and responsive while mobile, and automate routine communications transactions such as scheduling."

The schematic below points to Siemens' overall HiPath enterprise convergence portfolio: the box on the left is all the pieces of this portfolio; the box on right is Siemens' current status as they attempt to cover the different, modular application areas. Until just now, they were missing the corresponding products for "Work From Anywhere" and "Communication Portal"; now they have them.

The first new product, the HiPath CorporateConnect application, lets employees use a single telephone, telephone number, and voicemail box for all corporate voice communications. Mobile phone users, for example, can use the enterprise telephone network and have access to dialing, conferencing, and least cost routing while on campus or off. The same set of over 30 features is available to remote and nomadic workers. The HiPath CorporateConnect application allows mobile phones (or voice-enabled PDAs) to be monitored for usage and cost as are other devices on the corporate network.

During the demo, one thing we noticed is that CorporateConnect actually does supervised transfers to off premise extensions. This means it sits on the line, allowing users access to true PBX switching features even though they're sitting at home in the den.

One company that has already taking advantage of the app is Volvo Cars, who uses the solution to tie together 1,200 users on campuses spanning as many as 100 square kilometers and scattered throughout Sweden.

"Implementing the Siemens HiPath CorporateConnect solution has allowed us to make the mobile telephone the only telephone that our employees have," notes Bill Houghton, CIO at Volvo Car. "The call tracking system allows us to track calls made on mobile phones as well as through our switchboard. We're also able to transfer calls through our private network."

And Now For Something Completely Different

CorporateConnect is nice and could very well be the much more successful application of the two. But, by far, it was the second new product, HiPath ComResponse, that left us excited from our trip to San Jose.

ComResponse really is "redefining telecom." It's a "web-based communications portal that provides a self-service interface to enterprise business customers and colleagues via touchtone or voice commands." That's how Siemens describes it. We prefer the "virtual you" machine.

During the demo, besides various options given to a caller like leave a message or try me at another location, there was a prompt to "interact with me." Once selected, it allowed, through touchtone or speech rec, the caller to select from a library of documents the individual user had made available, glean web-based info on the fly and make appointments with the person. Essentially, it lets a caller talk to a web page that you, the individual desktop user, design.

This is accomplished by the user by creating an HTML interface that points ComResponse to various options, including scheduling (currently supports access to Outlook); document delivery ("audiotext on 'roids") via fax, over the phone or email; or text-to-speech readback of embedded HTML information (like a local weather report).

The demo was really too quick for us to sort it all out. They've apparently integrated in an HTML reader and app-gen tool that scans HTML and then automatically sets up custom computer telephony call flows that are inherently tied into HiPath's call processing resources. Wild.

We obviously need to see more of this. We did spend a few moments editing the demo portal app with Microsoft Word (you save as .html), but it wasn't crystal clear how simple all this will be (it was likely simpler than we think). Siemens also said they're going to come up with generic applications that can be used for simple web-based IVR (interactive voice response), interactive announcements, automated attendant, and music on hold templates that users can cut and paste together.

Again, extraordinary stuff (no matter how you cut and paste it). The Siemens pitch was that all this was not about the revolution of voice over IP as an "underlying technology infrastructure, but about helping enterprises use that infrastructure to become more productive, more responsive, and more focused on core competencies..." But all we could think of was all the ways we could automate communication between ourselves and the outside world.

In theory, one could imagine eliminating 90% of all human contact; just give us high-speed wireless Internet connectivity and we'll see you at the driving range (Four!).

They'll have to make it simple though, which is something the entire converging communications industry has to do -- especially as we get more and more tools to play with that tie the web and the phone together. For example, who ever though we'd be generating personal on-the-fly IVR (that's what it is) applications with basic HTML tools even two years ago? But if the average user/buyer can't understand it nor figure out how to make it useful, it'll never fly.

HiPath ComResponse starts at $4,100 for the software you'll need to make it work -- there are various options depending on whether speech rec and TTS is integrated. HiPath CorporateConnect starts at $400 per client.

ComResponse is a "web-based communications portal that provides a self-service interface to enterprise business customers and colleagues via touchtone or voice commands." That's how Siemens describes it. We prefer the "virtual you" machine. Basically, HTML scripts generate custom, personal on-the-fly IVR applications for your callers. Wild stuff.

The Enterprise Networks division of Siemens Information and Communication Networks announced two new applications that take advantage of converging and native IP (Internet Protocol) communications networks for real-time and non-real-time communications.

Last week, they invited CommWeb down for a fast (very fast) demonstration of these applications: one we found nice; the other really did knock our socks off, even though we're not exactly sure what we saw.

What We Think We Saw

Both products, according to Siemens, "erase the boundary between the mobile phone and office phone, reduce redundant communications, help users be productive and responsive while mobile, and automate routine communications transactions such as scheduling."

The schematic below points to Siemens' overall HiPath enterprise convergence portfolio: the box on the left is all the pieces of this portfolio; the box on right is Siemens' current status as they attempt to cover the different, modular application areas. Until just now, they were missing the corresponding products for "Work From Anywhere" and "Communication Portal"; now they have them.

The first new product, the HiPath CorporateConnect application, lets employees use a single telephone, telephone number, and voicemail box for all corporate voice communications. Mobile phone users, for example, can use the enterprise telephone network and have access to dialing, conferencing, and least cost routing while on campus or off. The same set of over 30 features is available to remote and nomadic workers. The HiPath CorporateConnect application allows mobile phones (or voice-enabled PDAs) to be monitored for usage and cost as are other devices on the corporate network.

During the demo, one thing we noticed is that CorporateConnect actually does supervised transfers to off premise extensions. This means it sits on the line, allowing users access to true PBX switching features even though they're sitting at home in the den.

One company that has already taking advantage of the app is Volvo Cars, who uses the solution to tie together 1,200 users on campuses spanning as many as 100 square kilometers and scattered throughout Sweden.

"Implementing the Siemens HiPath CorporateConnect solution has allowed us to make the mobile telephone the only telephone that our employees have," notes Bill Houghton, CIO at Volvo Car. "The call tracking system allows us to track calls made on mobile phones as well as through our switchboard. We're also able to transfer calls through our private network."

And Now For Something Completely Different

CorporateConnect is nice and could very well be the much more successful application of the two. But, by far, it was the second new product, HiPath ComResponse, that left us excited from our trip to San Jose.

ComResponse really is "redefining telecom." It's a "web-based communications portal that provides a self-service interface to enterprise business customers and colleagues via touchtone or voice commands." That's how Siemens describes it. We prefer the "virtual you" machine.

During the demo, besides various options given to a caller like leave a message or try me at another location, there was a prompt to "interact with me." Once selected, it allowed, through touchtone or speech rec, the caller to select from a library of documents the individual user had made available, glean web-based info on the fly and make appointments with the person. Essentially, it lets a caller talk to a web page that you, the individual desktop user, design.

This is accomplished by the user by creating an HTML interface that points ComResponse to various options, including scheduling (currently supports access to Outlook); document delivery ("audiotext on 'roids") via fax, over the phone or email; or text-to-speech readback of embedded HTML information (like a local weather report).

The demo was really too quick for us to sort it all out. They've apparently integrated in an HTML reader and app-gen tool that scans HTML and then automatically sets up custom computer telephony call flows that are inherently tied into HiPath's call processing resources. Wild.

We obviously need to see more of this. We did spend a few moments editing the demo portal app with Microsoft Word (you save as .html), but it wasn't crystal clear how simple all this will be (it was likely simpler than we think). Siemens also said they're going to come up with generic applications that can be used for simple web-based IVR (interactive voice response), interactive announcements, automated attendant, and music on hold templates that users can cut and paste together.

Again, extraordinary stuff (no matter how you cut and paste it). The Siemens pitch was that all this was not about the revolution of voice over IP as an "underlying technology infrastructure, but about helping enterprises use that infrastructure to become more productive, more responsive, and more focused on core competencies..." But all we could think of was all the ways we could automate communication between ourselves and the outside world.

In theory, one could imagine eliminating 90% of all human contact; just give us high-speed wireless Internet connectivity and we'll see you at the driving range (Four!).

They'll have to make it simple though, which is something the entire converging communications industry has to do -- especially as we get more and more tools to play with that tie the web and the phone together. For example, who ever though we'd be generating personal on-the-fly IVR (that's what it is) applications with basic HTML tools even two years ago? But if the average user/buyer can't understand it nor figure out how to make it useful, it'll never fly.

HiPath ComResponse starts at $4,100 for the software you'll need to make it work -- there are various options depending on whether speech rec and TTS is integrated. HiPath CorporateConnect starts at $400 per client.

ComResponse is a "web-based communications portal that provides a self-service interface to enterprise business customers and colleagues via touchtone or voice commands." That's how Siemens describes it. We prefer the "virtual you" machine. Basically, HTML scripts generate custom, personal on-the-fly IVR applications for your callers. Wild stuff.