Sangoma Technologies, the provider of unified communications offerings for SMBs, enterprises, OEMs, carriers and service providers, on Wednesday unveiled version 7 of the Switchvox UC software.

Switchvox 7 includes advanced conferencing features for greater collaboration, delivers added functionality for D-Series IP phones with call pickup capabilities, and upgrades the platform’s operating system for improved performance and security, according to Sangoma.

Version 7 marks the first major Switchvox release since Sangoma’s acquisition of Digium, which wrapped in September.

“Sangoma is committed to the Switchvox unified communications platform,” said Bill Wignall, the company’s CEO. “Since the acquisition of Digium, we have invested many resources into making Switchvox an even better solution that provides a greater value to our customer base. It is important for our customers and partners to know that we are dedicated to Switchvox and are relentlessly working to grow the platform, starting with the capabilities added in Switchvox 7. We look forward to continuing to enhance Switchvox going forward.”

The Switchvox Meet Me conference feature has been expanded in Switchvox 7 to allow more transparency for conference-room administrators and to provide them with additional tools for ensuring productive conference calls. A new conference widget shows all conference participants, highlights speakers, and provides the ability to mute or remove participants and end the call. The widget is available for the browser-based switchboard end-user dashboard and for the D80, a HD touchscreen IP phone, giving users access to visual conference control on their computer from any location or from their phone screen.

Switchvox 7 provides a more integrated and collaborative experience for D-Series IP phone users with call pickup capabilities. The new functionality allows users to pick up an incoming call on their Digium IP phone destined for another user’s extension. This ensures calls are never missed when someone is away from their desk, or unavailable, since there is someone monitoring the inbound calls from another IP phone.

Switchvox 7 is available now for Switchvox on-premises customers with an active subscription and the following supported appliances: E510, E520, E530, E540, 80, 310, 360, 380, 450 or 470.

“Digium has been a trusted supplier for years, with the consistency we’ve come to rely on,” said Jim Anderson, president of Unitel. “The 7.0 release takes the best value in unified communications to an even higher level. I look forward to offering Switchvox to our clients for many years to come.”