A new report analyses five important developments that will be impacting this market over the next twelve months. Whilst concerns over green IT, employee productivity and the economy may inhibit investments in some emerging technologies, Datamonitor believes that these issues will make unified communications a compelling business proposition for enterprises.

The continued media focus on green IT is also likely to affect the unified communications market positively. Vendors will continue to market solutions from this perspective, helping to reduce businesses’ carbon footprints. Video conferencing can be used instead of long-distance travel to meetings; whereas presence and unified messaging can help keep home workers connected, meaning less time is spent commuting. There is now a wide variety of high-end video conferencing solutions, including Telepresence from Cisco and Microsoft’s RoundTable, and these developments mean that there is now a feasible alternative for global business meetings. Considering the current economic climate, enterprises will be encouraged by the cost saving benefits from reduced travel.

Internet-based technologies such as IM, Skype and social networking sites are becoming more widespread in the home. Demand from users will see that these technologies also have a role in the workplace and enterprises need to adapt to keep up with changing consumer trends. Despite initial worries about employee productivity, there are clear business benefits for using these technologies. Integrated contacts, presence and the sharing of information online will be high on enterprises’ IT agendas.

In addition, working patterns are changing and employers are beginning to accommodate flexible working. In order to support home workers, a combination of mobility and unified communications solutions needs to be deployed to allow them to work effectively with colleagues in different locations. Consequently mobility is also likely to play a more vital role in this market.

Mobility is becoming a more significant factor in unified communications from a productivity and cost savings point of view and is likely to help drive investments. To achieve the full benefits of presence, integrated directories and messaging, employees need access to the same functionality on the mobile device as they have on the desktop.

Further Reading: 2008 Trends to Watch: Unified Communications
Related Conference: Telepresence World 2008 Conference, September, Boston, USA