Instant, ubiquitous, encrypted, authenticated mobility with a WebRTC to SIP gateway is available to enterprises right now. Because this is browser-based, it is not about devices, it is about a different BYOD: Bring Your Own Display. For IT managers, this is much less expensive and less complex to deploy and maintain than proprietary, app-based solutions. Depending on the use-case, the investment in this gateway can be recovered in three to nine months. For enterprises that have work-at-home employees, the recovery of investment is typically at the lower end of the spectrum. This is accomplished by eliminating expensive, dedicated, analog, VoIP or wireless circuits for voice communications to employees homes.
The logical components are Web browsers, media services, signaling services, Web servers, 911 elements and security elements. There are dozens of manufacturers that have productized these components. Session border controller manufacturers have combined media and signaling services into widely available products (some have figured it out better than others). Web servers are already available in enterprises and they simply need to be enhanced with a directory page (the Web server only supports signaling, not media relay). Also, 911 elements are already embedded in any enterprise that uses VoIP. Chrome and Firefox for fixed or mobile devices are ubiquitously available and other security elements like firewalls, authentication components, policy execution platforms and interactive connectivity establishment (ICE) components are widely available. Assembling these components and developing the small amount of software that makes them work in harmony is the art of the communications trade.
All of the major unified communications manufacturers know this. The reason that you do not see them in the market is because of the revenue disruption that they will incur once they make these products available to enterprises. Licensing revenue for proprietary mobility tools, proprietary telephones and proprietary VoIP client software in the office or in employees’ homes all become substantially reduced. For some legacy manufactures these are nine-figure businesses. Asking a Board of Directors to inflict a revenue reduction of 90 percent for end-points would likely get the messenger fired on the spot. In short, if you are an enterprise communications manager, then do not expect the benefits of WebRTC to be made available from your incumbent PBX vendor. If you want the savings and flexibility of Web Real-Time Communications from Google or Microsoft, then you are going to have to build it yourself or buy it from one of the 70+ WebRTC startups that have emerged in the last 18 months.
Build or Buy? Before entertaining this question, enterprises need to figure out the use-cases for WebRTC. Start with questions like:
- Are there high cost components of the enterprise communications systems that can be replaced with less costly, web-based solutions?
- Are there use-cases that would improve productivity or accelerate decision making processes?
- Is the current infrastructure optimized for disaster recovery? Is it worth it to spend money on legacy systems to improve this profile or; alternatively and inexpensively, duplicate the legacy infrastructure on the web?
While these question will lead to some valuable conclusions, the most important question for enterprise information and communications managers is this:
If you plan to execute “call control” (session control) on web-based communications in the future, then where will this be done: your legacy switch (PBX) or your session border controller (SBC)?
If you chose your SBC, then you are among a rapidly growing group of enterprise telecommunications managers that is implementing selected services to reduce the expenses imposed by 130 years of monopolistic and government regulation. From a carrier perspective, this effort will place you in a position to manage the delivery of these new technologies rather than being displaced by them.
Edited by
Stefania Viscusi
