West Positioned as a Gartner UCaaS Magic Quadrant Leader for Third Consecutive Year

OMAHA, NE, September 9, 2014 – West, a leading provider of technology-enabled communication services, announced today that Gartner, Inc. has positioned the company in the Leaders Quadrant of its August 28, 2014, “Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS), Multiregional” for a third consecutive year. The recognition is based on West’s ability to execute and the Company’s completeness of vision in the UCaaS space.

West provides its midmarket and large enterprise clients with a complete unified communications cloud-based platform consisting of, enterprise voice, conferencing and collaboration, network management, messaging and presence, contact center and client application integration solutions. The company has extensive experience in designing, deploying and managing UCaaS solutions as well as the ability to provide superior long-term support to its clients.

“We believe this recognition from Gartner, for the third year running, is a strong indicator of the value that our clients continue to experience with our powerful applications and services, our expertise in deploying Unified Communications solutions and the outstanding support that we are able to deliver in the rapidly evolving UC market,” said Todd Strubbe, President of West’s Unified Communications business segment. “We remain focused on providing our clients with the industry’s best cloud-based communication applications and services. West recognizes that empowering our clients to transform the ways they do business, which can give them new competitive advantages, requires that we aggressively reinvent both our products and the enveloping services.”

West delivers best-of-breed telephony and conferencing cloud infrastructure—interconnected with proprietary and partner collaboration and messaging tools—to create transformative communications solutions. The company has expertise in a variety of areas including public cloud, private cloud and hybrid cloud deployments.

According to Gartner: “Vendors in the Leaders quadrant have been delivering complete UCaaS solutions for more than a year, have clients with more than 1,000 subscribers and have more than 100,000 total endpoints in service. These vendors offer comprehensive and integrated UCaaS solutions that directly, or with well-defined partnerships, address the full range of market needs, including the ability to service large accounts. These vendors have defined migration and evolution plans for their products in core UCaaS areas and are using their solution sets to acquire new clients, as well as to expand their footprints in their client bases to new functional areas.”
For a copy of the report, please click here.

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About InterCall

InterCall, a subsidiary of West Corporation, is the largest conference and collaborations service provider in the world, and a leading provider of global cloud-based unified communications services. Founded in 1991, InterCall offers telephony, messaging, conferencing and collaboration tools for businesses of all sizes, from large global enterprises to small or regional companies. With a global footprint and broad service capabilities, InterCall’s flexible models for hosted, managed and on-premises communication services help companies get the most out of their business processes.
InterCall's strong U.S. presence, including four call centers and 26 sales offices, is bolstered by operations in Canada, Mexico, Latin America, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, China, India, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan. For more information, please visit www.intercall.com.

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About the Magic Quadrant

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in our research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

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About West Corporation

West Corporation is a leading provider of technology-driven communications services.  West offers its clients a broad range of communications and network infrastructure solutions that help them manage or support critical communications.  West’s customer contact solutions and conferencing services are designed to improve its clients’ cost structure and provide reliable, high-quality services.  West also provides mission-critical services, such as public safety and emergency communications.
Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, West serves Fortune 1000 companies and other clients in a variety of industries, including telecommunications, retail, financial services, public safety, technology and healthcare.  West has sales and operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Latin America.  For more information on West Corporation, please call 1-800-841-9000 or visit http://www.west.com/.

Everest Communications, LLC and LifeSize Combine to Offer Powerhouse Video Conferencing Business Tool

DAYTON, OH - Everest Communications, LLC, a private audio, web and video conferencing services wholesaler since 2003, announced today it is now an authorized reseller of LifeSize Cloud, the easiest, most user-friendly cloud video conferencing service that immediately connects the user to a video meeting in a conference room of choice or any mobile device.

Lifesize HD Conferencing, a division of Logitech (NASDAQ – LOGI), delivers end-to-end cloud video conferencing that is as easy, as lifelike and as remarkable as meeting in person. The company’s technology achieves this by connecting its award-winning room video systems and mobile apps to a radically simple cloud service. Now everyone, regardless of location, is just one video call away from having a seat in a meeting.

The marketplace references the Everest/LifeSize partnership as a solution that makes the conference room experience easy, accessible and frustration free for up to 25 video participants per call.  Further, when the enterprise considers that each participant can be either an individual or an entire conference room full of people, the video conferencing marketplace sees new possibilities through the richness and appeal of crystal clear, collaborative video communication.

Everest Communications, LLC, founder Kenneth Charbat says, “All you have to do is plug in the Everest/Lifesize Icon video system to the Internet and connect it to the cloud.  From there you can invite your team to participate in your video call and join together as many people on the call as you’d like. Once Lifesize Cloud is downloaded onto a laptop or mobile device, users can connect to their meetings anywhere, anytime, on any device.”  Charbat continued, “We are thrilled to be partnered with LifeSize - the preeminent video conferencing enabler in the world today.  The commitment we have to our customer base in the area of effective, affordable collaborative communications is validated with this worldwide-reaching partnership.”

Lifesize video conferencing solutions are used by a wide array of customers, from the largest of enterprises down to small businesses, and across several industries such as education, financial services, manufacturing, design, government, technology, retail, health care, construction, real estate, public utilities, legal services, arts organizations, nonprofits, transportation, media and entertainment.

Owner, Founder and CEO of Everest Communications, Kenneth A. Charbat, is a collaboration industry veteran of over 25 years.  Starting in sales at American Teleconferencing Services (ATS), Lenexa, Kansas, and sales management for Premiere Global Services, Inc. (NYSE - PGI), Charbat learned the value of virtual collaboration by serving Procter and Gamble and other Fortune 500 company’s years before the positive economic impact of effective group communication became not only fashionable, but necessary for business in today’s global marketplace.

Everest Communications, LLC, embodies and defines the American success story.  From the company’s inception in a basement in Kettering, Ohio, $125 capital investment and an undying passion for the power of collaborative technology, the company has grown in reputation and revenue year over year since 2003.  Today Everest serves customers in 49 countries around the globe.  Despite its place as a leader in the virtual collaboration space, the company’s mission is steadfast in the belief that personal relationships are requirements for success in any line of business.

For more information, please visit Everest Communications, LLC online at www.everest-communications.com. 

Contact:

Ken Charbat, President

Everest Communications, LLC
937-293-1842
kc@everest-communications.com

GLOBAL DIFFERENCES PREVENT CONFERENCING STANDARDIZATION AND STABILITY

MNCs have to realize that global coverage raises the investment requirement The North American numbering system may be dated, but it has provided a consistent, standard model for telephony services. It can be considered both a blessing and a curse, in that it applies only to the North American market: other parts of the world have different number plans and policies,
and these can vary by country and by region. The variations in dialing plans, phone number allocation, use policy, and number distribution add to the challenge of providing the voice connectivity required for a global conferencing platform.

In the US, it is very easy to get the voice infrastructure necessary for national coverage with just a few large carriers. The US carriers all have networks with strong coverage, and provide interconnection between themselves as well as with all the major mobile operators. Customers have long forgotten about the roaming issue, as all the major mobile operators have gone to a blended usage model, without extra charges for mobile roaming. The simplicity of the US system makes it easy to deploy and maintain voice infrastructure for conferencing services. Unfortunately it is much more complex to expand to the global coverage required by most MNCs and large enterprises.

Outside North America, many more carriers are required to provide the necessary connectivity for global conferencing coverage. In many regions, multiple carriers are required within a single country to cover the geographic, mobile, and regulatory divisions. Sourcing and managing all these carrier
relationships can quickly consume all of an enterprise’s internal network staff resources, leaving its other internal IT priorities at risk.

In countries such as India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, the incumbent telecoms provider controls most of the infrastructure, and has a great deal of sway with the regulatory bodies. Enterprises looking to extend their conferencing capabilities into such countries face many uncertainties, ranging from parsing the nuances of regulations, through to the actual physical
connections. The complexity increases exponentially when enterprises attempt to set up multi-country conferencing systems. In fact, it seems as if the one constant for enterprises looking to build out their own global conferencing infrastructure is that there is another unknown lying in wait around every corner.

In addition to the increased number of direct carrier relationships, multi-tier carrier relationships are needed in order to get the global coverage necessary for conferencing services. In many cases the coverage will require a number of small, regional carriers that can provide the needed interconnection or reach. This complexity is one reason that many enterprises turn to conferencing partners
that have already navigated the waters of multi-carrier, multi-country relationships.

It is almost impossible for an enterprise without a good handle on its conferencing volume by region or country to design and build out the network infrastructure or carrier commitments needed to manage the costs and traffic volumes effectively. Many over-build their networks for conferencing, or have to expand their networks at the last minute. This is both costly and difficult to manage, and in some regions network expansion can take as long as 90 days. This means that the service
is either blocked or unavailable until the network expansion is completed.

Other issues enterprises face when building out conferencing capacity include the need to plan for predictable, but difficult to manage, spikes in volume. For example, cultural norms mean employees typically schedule conference calls on the hour or the half hour. This results in heavy spikes in conferencing volumes twice an hour during business hours.

Managing existing capacity and forecasting the need for additional network infrastructure for conferencing services can often expand beyond the customer’s budget, staffing, and expertise. This is another reason for enterprises to turn to a trusted partner with experience in forecasting requirements, understanding the elasticity available to enterprises, and managing the multiple carrier relationships
required to meet shifting conferencing demands.

-Ovum

'Telepresence' Technology Tested at West Virginia Elementary School

Ghostly concept allows students to feel as if they are part of a place far removed from their actual location...

On National Digital Learning Day Wednesday, students at Hollywood Elementary School in Beckley,
W.Va., got a little training in the ghostly sounding concept of “telepresence.”

Actually, the students in Elizabeth Raney’s classroom used their “telepresence” to digitally
engage three other classrooms simultaneously online.

Telepresence is a technology concept that allows a person to feel as if they are part of a
place that may be far from their true location. In this case, four classrooms in the state
were digitally connected for a lesson led by West Virginia Teacher of the Year Erin Sponaugle.

She showed the students multimedia slides of West Virginia landmarks and symbols. The children
were a part of the interactive lesson and gave input verbally and visually with the main screen
switching automatically to whomever was speaking.

Mary Ann Foster, technology coordinator for Raleigh County Schools, was on hand to help set up
the room and make sure the class stayed connected.

When asked what challenges the special event presented, Foster said, “We haven’t faced a lot
of challenges because we have One-to-One here (and) iPads in the county, so our infrastructure
is great. Our connection has been wonderful. We just had to get distance learning equipment to
make the call.”

Hollywood Elementary Principal Tamber Hodges was happy to participate in Digital Learning Day.

“It’s exciting that our school was chosen to participate in such an exciting event, to be
chosen as one of only four schools in the state. It’s an honor that we were picked to
participate in such a fun learning activity that will hopefully show our students how
important it is to learn digitally.”

According to the Alliance for Excellent Education, a Washington, D.C.–based national policy
and advocacy organization, Digital Learning Day is a nationwide celebration of innovative
teachers and common-sense, effective applications of digital learning in America’s schools
that support teachers, improve learning and provide options for students to achieve at their
highest potential as they navigate the shift to more robust digital learning environments.

Foster gave examples of how the county has been utilizing available technology.

“There is a lot of virtual learning that goes on ... When there are snow days, we have snow
packets and they have lessons that they can do on the iPad. We use Engrade which allows the
teachers to post assignments. Students can take quizzes, they can look at their assignments,
we have many schools doing that with the iPad. The iPad has been wonderful during these snow
days because they’re still getting to have instruction. They’re still able to learn at home in
their own environment.”

Hodges agreed, relaying her own child’s use of the program. “They were able to keep up with
some of those programs and assessments that would keep them going. We weren’t here at school,
but we were still doing some work, we did about two and a half or three hours of work a day.”

Hodges thinks that there have been great successes since starting the iPad curriculum in
third-grade through fifth-grade.

“It’s really made a big difference, I’ve seen an increase of student engagement. Teachers
are really coming out of their comfort zone and trying new projects and new ideas and trying
to see how they can change their instruction to better suit our students for today because this
is what they are going to have to get used to.”

Other schools around the county, though not a part of the teleconferencing lesson, implemented
their own digital projects on a class-by-class basis to celebrate the day.

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©2014 The Register-Herald (Beckley, W.Va.)

Have Something To Say To a Lot of People?

Have something to say to a lot of people?  Why not save significant travel and accommodation costs by using one of our event calls instead.

Whether it’s announcing a new product to the media, presenting to the board of investors or providing training seminars for staff, our Event Service is just the ticket!

Providing you with a friendly operator to assist in all aspects of your call, running a large scale teleconference need not be scary. We provide help with everything from the initial call set up through to introducing speakers on the conference, to any assistance that may be required after the event.

Maintaining the usual professional peace of mind that comes with the security and reliability of a Everest Communications Conference Call, this is the affordable way to get your message to a lot of people quickly.

Thinking global?  With worldwide access, multilingual operators and a handy transcription service this need not hold you back. You can even include web-conferencing or a webcast solution to bring your presentations to life and engage your audience.

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Advantages of Teleconferencing

Teleconferencing among multiple participants in two or more locations is a strategic communication tool deployed by many companies with multiple locations and dispersed employees. Business cyclical shifts and economic downturns tend to see a rise in the use of teleconferencing facilities.  Used judiciously and strategically, teleconferencing can enhance organizational productivity, engage employees at all levels and reduce travel budgets.

Reduces Travel

One of the most-apparent benefits of teleconferencing is reduced travel. Businesses with multiple offices and federal governmental agencies with state offices can hold discussions, share critical information and conduct other meetings with employees through teleconferencing.

Saves Time

Teleconferencing frees up time for company executives to finish tasks and execute assigned roles in their own locations or home bases. Time saved from reduced travel can be used more productively.

 

Streamlines Costs
During economic downturns, teleconferencing sees a resurgence in popularity as an effective communication and interaction tool. Companies report significant savings in travel and human resource budgets.

Enhances Productivity

Teleconferencing allows dispersed employees to communicate with coworkers at headquarters, conduct long-distance meetings and strategic discussions, and share grievances and other human resource issues. Better employee engagement, understanding of roles and effective use of time lead to enhanced productivity.

Short-Notice Scheduling

Teleconferencing systems and toll-free, dial-in access facilities make it possible for companies to schedule short-notice or ad-hoc employee teleconferencing meetings or discussions.

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