Phon e Plus Collaborate: Industry News

Posted: 2/2003

Industry News

Epana Launches Conferencing
Services

Epana Networks will release Web and
audio conferencing services this month. The service, called "Audio
Conferencing Solutions," will allow customers to arrange and hold meetings
using voice-activated and online tools, without additional software and
hardware. Epana will leverage its private voice and data network to offer
competitive rates for domestic long-distance and international calling.

The product was developed to target
professional services firms with high-volume usage and intricate account
management needs. It integrates with existing contact management applications
and selected out-of-the-box customer relationship management (CRM) applications,
says the company.

"Audio conferencing use at
professional services firms is the lifeline of these businesses," said Elie
Seidman, CEO of Epana. "To the extent that we can offer a solution that is
easier to use, easier to manage and saves corporate users up to 75 percent off
their current conference calling bills, Epana can provide its customers with a
significant competitive advantage while delivering substantial savings to the
enterprise."

Bantu Integrates WebEx Service
into IM platform

Bantu Inc. has integrated WebEx
Communications Inc.’s Web conferencing and collaboration services into its
instant message and presence platform. This means Bantu customers can launch
interactive WebEx sessions directly from the Bantu platform.

Bantu combines instant messaging
with presence (the ability to see who’s online). Using the WebEx Interactive
Platform’s application programming interface (API), Bantu has created a meshed
system where users can create, host and attend WebEx meetings directly from
their Bantu contact list or an active message session. The registration of users
on the WebEx network also can be tied directly to a Bantu registration event,
allowing users to move between the two without re-entering login information.

The integrated platform also lets
users to see if their associates are online and available to instantly enter a
WebEx session, making it faster and easier to launch and join Web-based
meetings. The Bantu alerting engine can be used to deliver interactive
notifications to give users a direct path to scheduled or ad-hoc WebEx meetings.

The integrated platform targets
enterprises with geographically dispersed work groups or need for real-time
document sharing, client meetings or distance training.