Siemens Enterprise Communications Group has anounced availability of HiPath 4000 V5, its IP Telephony System (IPTS) offering designed for medium- to large-sized enterprises. Although Siemens last year introduced OpenScape UC Server, an IPTS based on a carrier-class SIP platform that converged HiPath Voice 8000 and OpenScape UC capabilites into one system, the supplier still markets and sells the the earlier generation HiPath 4000 for new customer installations.The new V5 release includes support for peer-to-peer video integration and OpenScape Xpressions, an all-in-one UC solution. HiPath 4000 also leverages open standards to integrate into existing TDM and IP-based environments, while providing software-based migration to UC, which the company positions as protecting existing investments and lowering TCO. Although the majority of new IPTS line stations shipment in North America are IP-based, TDM endpoins remain prevalent on a global basis, and the HiPath 4000 is designed to to satisfy this requirement.
A major element of the new release is a software application called the HiPath 4000 SoftGate, a software-based solution designed to manage Cornet-IP and SIP-based telephone deployments. It simplifies and enhances IP-based communication on the TDM-based HiPath 4000 using separate control and bearer communications signaling to conserve bandwidth costs. Other key features of the new release include:
* Fully survivable distribued small branch software solutions, running on standard server hardware, e.g. IBM
* Easy, lower-cost management, operations using a Linux O/S platform
* Choice of multiple IP endpoints: CorNet-IP and SIP
* Choice of PSTN and/or SIP-trunking connectivity (SIP-Q and native SIP)
The HiPath 4000 has sold more than 15 million ports in 80 countries across the globe and scales from a few hundred to 100,000 line stations (in a CorNet network deployment). Siemens continues to offer the system, despite the availability of OpenScape UC Server, to give customers a choice of selecting the solution that best satisfies their unique requirements.
