The new solution solidifies and simplifies Mitel's product line and offers a number of key enhancements: collaboration, mobility, scalability, and virtualization.

Mitel has announced its Mitel Application Suite (MAS) 4.0. The new solution solidifies and simplifies Mitel's product line and offers a number of key enhancements: collaboration, mobility, scalability, and virtualization. The MAS upgrade expands functionality to replace the Mitel Audio and Web Conferencing solution (AWC).

AWC was a respected product and one of the jewels from the Inter-Tel acquisition. However, it was a separate server, requiring separate resources and management. Mitel has now incorporated those key features into its MAS solution. Mitel has been working to consolidate all of its applications into its Mitel Applications Suite, which is effectively a single mega-application. In addition to reduced overhead and administration, many advanced features or applications can be easily activated per user.

MAS 4.0 is highly integrated with Mitel's calling platforms, especially Mitel Communications Director (MCD). It offers several modular components, and can run on an industry standard server or in a virtualized container on VMware. Mitel also improved the scalability of MAS, which now supports up to 1,500 users.

A major component in MAS 4.0 is Mitel Collaboration Advanced, which eliminates the need for remote users to download a client to participate. Web participants can view collaboration materials from a PC, Mac, or mobile device. Attendees can communicate with icons such as "raise hand" and also have visibility to who is participating.

Included are updates to the the UC Advanced Mobile Client to support secure IM and real time presence on on Blackberry and Android smartphones--an IOS client is promised "soon." The mobile client includes Calendar integration with Microsoft Outlook.

The upgrade is fairly consistent with the objectives of Mitel's Freedom Architecture. Mitel's aggressive strategy around VMware includes integration with WMware's vCenter and vSphere 5.0 management tools. Recently, Mitel announced its call center solution was also now supported on VMware's solution for VDI: View. With Mitel, a complete implementation can be virtualized including softphones, call processing and advanced applications from its call center and Application Suite. A key component of the Freedom Architecture is to allow customers to determine the server platform (appliance, industry standard servers, or VMware) in any combination.

Mitel MAS 4.0 is available now.