MSP News

Whaleback Enables Unified Communications Mobility through Integration with Bria 3 Softphones

By Laura Stotler
MSPNews™ Contributing Editor

Whaleback Managed Services is extending its unified communications mobility features to tablets and smartphones, the company announced at the ITEXPO East 2012 event, which began today in Miami, Fla. Whaleback's CrystalBlue Cloud-based Managed Voice Services will now be available on mobile devices, offering users enhanced productivity and convenience.

The new capabilities are made possible through integration with the Bria 3 next-generation softphone from CounterPath Corporation. The integrated softphone enables CrystalBlue customers to use tablets, smartphones and laptops to conduct business from wherever they are located. This increases customers' mobility, efficiency and productivity.

The integration enables users to send and receive calls from anywhere in the office, even if cell phone reception is poor. Users may also return calls while on the road or away from the office through the use of office callerID. Finally, they are able to avoid expensive international cell phone fees as well as take advantage of free WiFi from wherever they may be located.

Whaleback is demonstrating the new capabilities at ITEXPO East 2012 this week. Participants can see a display of the company's services by visiting Booth 543. Company President and CEO Karil Reibold will also participate in a panel discussion, "Make your Smart Device Smarter on the Road," on February 2 at 3 p.m. The session will discuss how companies are enabling workers to perform outside of traditional office environments, as well as how new managed services enable employees to take their corporate phone services with them while traveling.”

The Bria 3 softphone application enables users to manage their communications directly from a computer desktop. It replaces or complements a hard phone by enabling users to make VoIP and video calls via IP. They may also see when contacts are available, send instant messages and easily transfer files.

The phone is built on SIP and other open standards and is interoperable with many industry standard platforms and services. Features may be deployed within an enterprise environment by either manual configuration through the phone's GUI or through a provisioning server. Based on Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and .net for Windows and Cocoa for Mac, the phone is also available for Linux.

The enhanced mobility services from Whaleback will be available in Q2 this year. The company is also showcasing the recently announced Polycom VVX 500 at ITEXPO East. The all-in-one business phone offers one-touch access to multimedia and unified communications using Whaleback's CrystalBlue Managed Services for improved productivity and cost savings.

“We continue to reap the rewards of our long-standing partnership with CounterPath, the world’s best-of-breed softphone provider, adding new mobility that makes business communications for our customers simpler and more convenient,” said Reibold. “Bria 3’s ability to operate on any tablet, smartphone or laptop will allow CrystalBlue customers to gain maximum productivity, enabling a workforce that is more mobile, dynamic, and able to connect wherever they are – at the office, job site, home, hotel room, field office, or on the road.”

Want to learn more about Managed Service Providers? Then be sure to attend MSPWorld, collocated with TMC’s ITEXPO East 2012, happening NOW in Miami, FL. Since its inception, MSPWorld has been the only event with a single, vendor-agnostic focus of supporting Managed Service providers and their respective ecosystems. MSPWorld in Miami will delve into the most pressing channel and end-user issues that MSPs and their customers confront every day. For more information on registering for MSPWorld click here.