Corporate executives have changed their approach to implementing business phone systems during the last several years, as traditional land line offerings are no longer deemed relevant. In many cases, decision-makers are opting for IP or cloud-based technologies, as these solutions are more flexible, agile and can improve internal and external performance.
The hosted PBX system in particular is gaining momentum in the private sector as cloud and colocation technologies continue to be adopted by companies of all sizes. A recent study of more than 100 IT professionals by Internap found that businesses across industries are beginning to implement cloud, hosted and colocation services, often in one hybrid package.
Internap noted that cloud adoption is still on the rise and will have an impact on the colocation market, encouraging more organizations to implement multi-tenant environments while keeping some solutions on-site. This allows companies to move tools like the office phone system to the cloud, while keeping storage repositories containing highly sensitive information within the in-house data center.
What’s so interesting about cloud-like colocation services?
The study found that 88 percent of respondents like hosted colocation technologies because they provide decision-makers with the ability to monitor bandwidth and server health levels, Internap noted. In doing so, executives can be sure no anomalous behavior or identities tamper with overall performance. This is especially important for organizations using hosted phone systems, as impaired bandwidth or performance can mean downtime and the inability to communicate with individuals outside the office.
Internap revealed that more than half of respondents are interested in a hybrid IT model in which they can leverage both cloud, colocation and general hosting services.
“Colocation, with its capex model, security, control and customization advantages, continues to be a critical infrastructure choice for many organizations. While cloud services are another important option, an all-cloud strategy isn’t appropriate for every situation,” said Raj Dutt, senior vice president of technology at Internap. “As a result, there’s growing interest not only in hybrid infrastructure solutions but in redefining the limitations of traditional colocation services by integrating the benefits of the cloud.”
Why consider using the cloud?
While the cost benefits of the cloud are often recognized as the technology’s most important characteristic, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, 23 percent of survey respondents said the scalability associated with the cloud was their top reason for considering the public cloud. This capability means decision-makers will be able to deploy more phone system features and support more endpoints when the platform is hosted in the cloud without worrying about maxing out bandwidth or experiencing downtime.
A separate report by Infonetics Research said the business continuity features of the cloud make it a particularly appealing technology for growing companies that want to ensure they are able to perform at a top level in the long run. By using a cloud PBX, phones can easily be relocated in the event of an emergency, allowing the company to keep communications intact and stable.
When high maintenance solutions are hosted off-site, organizations will also reduce the time and expenses needed to keep those tools running, as virtually all management tasks are carried out by the service provider off-site.
As the cloud continues to develop, the private sector will continue migrating applications to the hosted environment, taking the technology’s traits and converging them with other emerging or long-standing trends. This will introduce a whole new host of offerings in the coming years with the cloud at the center of them all.