AT&T is partnering with Polycom to deliver cloud-based video conferencing across any device for businesses.
AT&T will bundle the service with AT&T Business Exchange for conference bridging, MPLS, Internet access options and wireless, leveraging the Polycom RealPresence Platform, a software infrastructure for supporting interoperable, universal video across applications, devices and network protocols.
“Together with AT&T, we are reshaping and expanding the capabilities of cloud-delivered video communications, making it easier for businesses to connect and collaborate with each other,” said Andy Miller, president and CEO of Polycom. “We’re creating video solutions for customers that are as simple, reliable and as universal as dialtone, so they can collaborate without worrying about vendor, device or network-specific restrictions. It just works.”
AT&T will first incorporate RealPresence as part of the AT&T Telepresence suite in the Business Exchange to deliver telepresence as a managed service, and will integrate it into its MPLS AT&T VPN offering as a value-add. Other joint solutions will follow.
“AT&T and Polycom’s announcement is a big win for customer choice and interoperability, and it will help accelerate video collaboration as businesses increasingly look to cloud-delivered options,” said Zeus Kerravala, principle analyst at ZKResearch. “In addition, this agreement opens new revenue streams and business opportunities for AT&T, and demonstrates the momentum Polycom is having with service providers and in the video cloud market.”
