NEC Enterprise Solutions has launched two new cloud-based Unified Communications packages in the UK. UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “WITH” Microsoft Teams and UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “FOR” Microsoft Teams are for customers who have deployed Microsoft Teams in various capacities
Customers can choose between integrating the power of UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT within the Microsoft Teams application or using a Microsoft Teams-specific version of UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT to work side-by-side Microsoft Teams to enhance their business communications, depending on their unique business needs.
UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “FOR” Microsoft Teams integrates reliable PBX functionality into a Microsoft Teams application and is ideal for customers who want to make all calls through their Microsoft® Teams app without needing advanced features like call centre.
UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “WITH” Microsoft Teams adds all advanced features of an enterprise PBX, including contact centre, to a Microsoft Teams environment, while still using Microsoft Teams for collaboration, chat, meetings and file management.
“These two packages come fully integrated with NEC’s recently introduced comprehensive, cloud-based Unified Communications solution, UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT”, says NEC UK & Ireland Sales Director Andrew Cooper.
“They combine the best of both solutions by enabling customers to use Microsoft Teams for collaboration and NEC UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT for business-grade, cloud-based phone system features, such as contact centre, and advanced call routing”,
UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “WITH” Microsoft Teams
UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “WITH” Microsoft Teams is designed for businesses that have oriented their collaboration around Microsoft Teams but require the advanced telephony features of an enterprise PBX.
Customers can continue using Microsoft Teams to manage chat, file sharing, and video conferencing while taking advantage of UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT for all phone-related services, including advanced call routing, directly within Microsoft Teams.
To ensure a user-friendly, confusion-free experience, all UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT collaboration features (i.e., chat, meetings, and file sharing) are disabled. Single sign-on (SSO) capabilities also allow users to seamlessly sign into UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT using their MS365 credentials.
- The right apps for the right services: Users will continue to work within Teams for chat, meetings, and files, while using the CONNECT desktop and mobile applications for all phone related services.
- Easy-to-use: All CONNECT collaboration features (chat, meetings, and file sharing) are disabled, so users aren’t faced with confusing options.
- Advanced capabilities: In addition to communicating through an enterprise-grade cloud PBX, organizations have access to Business SMS, Call Centre and CRM integrations at no additional cost.
UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “FOR” Microsoft Teams
UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT “FOR” Microsoft Teams is designed for businesses looking to add reliable PBX functionality into their Microsoft Teams application.
By integrating UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT PBX within Teams, users gain access to enhanced, enterprise-grade telephony features, including unlimited local and long-distance calling, voicemail, call history, and basic calling features.
Customers continue using Microsoft Teams for collaboration (i.e., chat, file sharing, and video conferencing) while benefiting from the advanced PBX features of UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT, including auto attendant, call queuing, automatic company-wide call recording, and more.
All calls are managed, routed, and placed using the familiar Microsoft Team interface, making it highly user friendly with no training required.
- Seamless end-user experience: Users will be able to manage calls through the native Teams applications, with no additional training required.
- Advanced capabilities: Leverage CONNECT’s enterprise-grade calling features, including auto attendant, call queues, automatic company-wide call recording, and more within the Teams applications.
- 24/7 support: Industry-leading 99.999% uptime SLA.
“FOR” and WITH” Microsoft Teams Comparison
| FEATURE | CONNECT WITH TEAMS | CONNECT FOR TEAMS |
|---|---|---|
| AZURE® AD SINGLE SIGN-ON | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| NATIVE CONNECT CALLING EXPERIENCE | ✔️ | ❌ |
| BASIC PBX | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| ADVANCED PBX + CALL CENTER | ✔️ | ❌ |
| BUSINESS SMS | ✔️ | ❌ |
| 3RD PARTY CRM INTEGRATIONS | ✔️ | ❌ |
| CONTACT SYNC | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| PRESENCE SYNC | ❌ | ✔️ |
| E911 | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| INCLUDES FREE PHONE | ✔️ | ❌ |
| REQUIRES MICROSOFT PHONE SYSTEM/COMMON AREA PHONE SKU | ❌ | ✔️ |
“Microsoft Teams saw a tremendous uptick in user adoption in 2020 and succeeding months. Knowing that many of our customers use Microsoft Teams, developing a solution that complements Microsoft Teams was a natural next step for our UNIVERGE BLUE CONNECT platform,” said Ram Menghani, President of Product Development for NEC Enterprise Communications Technologies.
“By combining the strengths of UNIVERGE BLUE and Microsoft Teams, our customers get the best of both products with industry-leading cloud-based collaboration, contact centre, and telephony capabilities.”
