By Charlene OHanlon

Once upon a time, communications and networking vendors told a tale of wireless communications networks that would enable users to move effortlessly between networks without ever losing a call in the process. The promise was that an employee could take a call on a cordless phone connected to the fixed corporate network, and the call would move to a Wi-Fi or cellular network when the employee left the building or campus.

The technology would be so pervasive that the lines between business communications networks and personal communications networks would be forever blurred.

Some 10 years later, were still waiting for that technology to become pervasive.

Fixed mobile convergence (FMC) has not caught fire in the enterprise the way communications providers imagined; from a carrier perspective, it has sputtered along as consumers struggled to find a need for the technology.

In the enterprise, however, FMC presents an opportunity for solution providers willing to jump in with both feet and do the necessary legwork to create the ROI for their customers.

FMCs Mixed History. By some accounts, FMC is a technology considered ahead of the curve in the United States, instead experiencing more popularity among consumers in the United Kingdom, France and other European countries. In fact, in 2004 six companies British Telecom, NTT, Rogers Wireless, Brasil Telecom, Korea Telecom and Swisscom formed the Fixed-Mobile Convergence Alliance to encourage the seamless integration of mobile and fixed-line telephone services. The alliance gained traction in the communications space, enjoying a roster of 32 members by 2008, but in early 2010 the FMCA disbanded after a series of small victories in Europe most notably BTs Fusion offering, which used a Vodafone handset capable of making calls through the ADSL line via a local wireless connection. That service was discontinued in April 2009.

The majority of the FMC movement in other countries has focused on the consumer space, enabling users to enjoy seamless network transition between their home lines and their mobile networks. However, most deployments have been discontinued due mainly to lack of interest.

In the United States, communications and networking vendors have been moving forward with their own plans for FMC, focusing squarely in the business communications market. Cisco Systems Inc. in early 2000 announced its FMC solution called the Cisco Internet Mobile Office, a precursor to its current Cisco Mobile Office FMC offering. On the communications side, Avaya Inc. in 2005 announced its FMC initiative, which focused more on using cell phones as PBX extension phones. The technology enabled Nokia 60 smartphones to connect to the company network and essentially act as another extension of a users desk phone, with one phone number and one voice mailbox. Another partnership with AT&T Inc., announced earlier this year, utilizes Avaya technology in AT&Ts Mobile Extension service to enable the same features on iPhone, BlackBerry and Windows Mobile smartphones.

Other vendors, too, have developed their own flavor of FMC, including Siemen Enterprise Communications, Mitel Networks Corp., Vocera and ShoreTel Inc., to name a few. Indeed, the landscape of vendors involved in some flavor of FMC is too crowded to mention them all.

Finding ROI in FMC. The many flavors of FMC  each vendor has its own version of what FMC is  is one factor contributing to the problem of lack of adoption, says Mike Jude, program manager of Consumer Communications Services at Frost & Sullivan.

Fixed mobile convergence is basically a converged application it is data-centric in many respects, so Cisco would make the argument that it starts in the data center,” he said. Avaya, on the other hand, would make the argument that it starts in the communications infrastructure.”

Because FMC cant be categorized as a data service or as a communications service, Jude argued that companies dont easily see the value of the technology. And channel partners havent done a good job selling FMC, partly because its not an easy technology to sell on its own. Fixed mobile convergence is a solution in search of a problem for many companies that notion of being in touch all the time regardless of where you are and what device youre using,” he said. The real hurdle has been for companies looking at it they wring their hands and find it hard to monetize the benefits.”

Paul DeBeasi, research vice president at Gartner Inc., pointed out there are three flavors of FMC:

Fixed mobile convergence began as a voice thing and the original FMC vendors promoted their solution as a way to save money. That really hasnt caught on,” he said. But during the last three years, as the technology has evolved, so has the smartphone and now it has lots of capabilities that lend themselves to this technology. Really, the moniker of mobile unified communications is a better one because it reflects more of the benefit rather than the fixed to mobile convergence.”

But regardless of the name, DeBeasi said, it really comes down to integrating the technology. And therein lies the opportunity for channel partners in FMC, Jude said.

Superficially FMC looks like another gizmo and its value proposition isnt clear to the enterprise,” he said. Thats where VARs can step in, but they should correlate the technology to revenue production. Any new technology should be an adjunct to doing that. Channel partners have the capability of understanding the technology, and because they know their clients and their clients business they can help the planners make the value case for the technology.”

Katie Else, mobility practice manager at solution provider CDW Corp., said she sees the opportunity for channel partners in the FMC space, but cautions that solution providers cant enter the space without doing their fair share of homework first.

Expertise in all of the solutions surrounding FMC is important,” she said. If a solution provider only has expertise in one aspect of the solution, it will be more difficult to sell a complete solution. Identifying clients who can benefit from the efficiency and productivity gains of FMC is the first step. The next step is to help that client justify the ROI on the initial upgrade costs, enabling them to maximize those productivity gains.”

For some companies, the ROI is in the cost savings. For others, its the potential productivity gains. The trick is to find the ROI that best fits the customer. According to The CIOs Guide to Fixed Mobile Convergence,” a white paper released by Research in Motion Ltd., makers of BlackBerry devices, FMC can help a company in five critical areas: productivity, security, future planning, competitive advantage and cost.

Mapping FMC to Business Processes. Although the ROI benefits can be applied to any company, the true driver of FMC can only come from knowing the ins and outs of a clients business processes.

It basically involves understanding how a company makes money. If you think of their business as input, output and steps in between, and then think about how those steps can be enabled through FMC, you can build a value case on that basis,” Frost & Sullivans Jude said. Start from clear understanding of process, map a value and assess what improvement you can derive from it.”

When you start the FMC discussion, everyone talks about single voice mailbox, single number, presence and instant messaging,” said Gartners DeBeasi. But thats the technology. What if you were a physician working at a hospital, and the IT person brought in an Agito system and said they were going to install a fixed mobile convergence solution? The doctor might say, OK, thats interesting. And it might get used or it might not.

But what if a solution provider came in and talked to the nurses and the doctors about what they need, and it turned out that the nurses couldnt find doctors to consult with patients, speak with family members, etc. The solution provider could work with the hospital to implement new procedures with the technology like when doctors are in surgery they use a specific away message, or when they are available to talk to family members,” he said. The nurse can check on the status of the doctor and say, Hes in surgery, but I sent a message.”

DeBeasi also noted an example in which a retail store could use FMC to get instant information for their customers. A salesperson working with higher-end customers can use instant messaging to check on whether a dress is available in a certain size or whether a suit can be altered immediately,” he said. These are scenarios that a vendor might not think of, but a solution provider pretty much lives and dies on. They understand the business and the problems. Thats how a solution provider can really help the customer improve their ROI by getting in and understanding how it could be used and making suggestions how it can be used.”

Jude noted an example from Avaya in which FMC was deployed in a manufacturing facility. Telemetry was layered over the entire manufacturing process and if at any time any step in the process was not performed correctly, the people involved in that process automatically would be notified and teleconferenced together. This communications-enabled production” helped reduce lost time and resources during the manufacturing process, saving the company money.

A simpler  and more widespread  use of FMC can be for mobile workers, who begin their day in the office and then hit the road to meet with clients. FMC would provide those employees with the ability to take calls in the office and leave for appointments without having to cut their calls short. Salespeople are able to float and be where their customer is, yet stay in touch with prospects. That can generate increased sales and, consequently, ROI,” Jude said.

Another example of FMC would involve companies that have tiered technical support staff. Although Tier 1 technical support employees the most basic level normally answer most questions, occasionally a deeper knowledge base is needed. Such Tier 2 or Tier 3 subject matter experts must be reachable whenever and wherever. FMC can facilitate that availability, ensuring that customers are serviced promptly and correctly. In a large enterprise, where orders typically run into the tens of thousands of dollars, that availability can be crucial to making a sale or keeping a customer.

Jude also noted that FMC technology could be used as insurance” in disaster recovery planning, when getting in touch with the right people anytime could be critical. In this case, the ROI is only apparent when something bad happens,” he said.

Rupert Wever, principal consultant of wireless and mobility at Dimension Data, a global solutions and service provider, noted that his company has seen success in implementing FMC in the financial vertical, as well as companies that have an international footprint. The benefits that we go after are really the cost savings those companies with high phone costs,” he said. If you look at those companies, their employees go from country to country and the roaming costs for their cell phones can be outrageous. For them to be able to go to their different offices and utilize the Wi-Fi, or even utilize the Wi-Fi at their hotel to make calls and stay connected can be a huge cost savings.”

For some companies, however, FMC can be difficult to monetize, even after the planning, strategy and analysis have taken place. Its not a technology for every company,” Jude said. FMC is more appropriate for some companies and it can be a fairly expensive proposition. Essentially youre talking about upgrading the entire communication infrastructure and extending instruments. There are few companies that can make the case for limited instances.”

Luckily, with those companies that do have an interest and a need for FMC, channel partners have a real advantage over vendors in selling solutions. That is why there is a low-key war going on between VARs and vendors VARs are looking for opportunities to generate margin and services generate that margin. The close relationships VARs have with their clients are an advantage,” Jude said. As a VAR, its the argument I would make to my customer: Because Im not tied to a single vendor I can help you make sense of this more easily and probably cheaper [than a vendor].”

As the technology matures, the promise of FMC increases for customers and channel partners alike. In the meantime, partners can best serve their customer base by getting to know their clients business intimately and discerning ways to help them save money and increase efficiencies in other words, be their trusted adviser. From there, the leap to selling FMC becomes much less difficult.

Charlene OHanlon is a freelance writer specializing in the technology channel.