Ericsson adds IP to PBX line

(Telephony) Ericsson Enterprise today said it has launched a new version of its MD110 phone system that integrates a number of enhancements, including the addition of IP-voice capabilities.

The BC11 version of the company’s PBX system also incorporates much of the same basic functions as the original MD110. However, in the latest version, Ericsson is aiming to let enterprise users include both IP telephony and mobility to create a virtual enterprise.

“Although it’s a very basic step forward, it has a dramatic effect on the way a company manages communications,” said Mike Hinton, portfolio manager at Ericsson Enterprise.

The new version of the MD110 continues an evolution for Ericsson, which intends to integrate 3G mobile services into the PBX and migrate the current hardware platform into an open, multiserver architecture, utilizing existing feature spectrum on operating systems like Unix, Solaris and Linux.

When IP voice is included in the package, the company also is integrating its system with LANs. However, unlike the pure-IP approach favored by many vendors, Ericsson’s system doesn’t automatically connect all voice calls through a gateway.

“If an IP telephone talks to another IP telephone across the LAN, you’re not using that gateway or media resource,” said Hinton. “In that way, we’re optimizing the way the IP gateway is being used. It also improves the IP LAN traffic within a LAN environment.”

Among the other key features in the new MD110 is the ability to scale down to 48 users using an “all contained module” designed for small/medium businesses and remote branch offices. At the top end, the system can support as many as 35,000 users.