Snom’s Marketing Manager, Jason Green, said he once heard a customer describe VoIP as ‘computers in phone costumes.’ He believes this is because the performance of these devices relies not only on the hardware it uses, but it also depends on the software.
This makes firmware updates essential in extending key functionalities and security, which left me wondering, How is there currently no reliable firmware release frequency? Not even top brand manufacturers provide such transparency, and firmware updates can sometimes take years before a new version is made available.
Snom has always been on the cutting-edge of innovation in the VoIP market and was one of the first VoIP phone manufacturers to recognize that long software release intervals can lead to the disappointment of partners, and that software updates are critical to the success of their business.
Binding Software Release Time Windows as USPs
I also caught up with Snom Product Owner, Jan Boguslawski. He started our conversation by saying “We used to take this approach at Snom, but realized too much time passed between software updates.” Bogusalwski continued, saying the German IP phone manufacturer wanted to let partners know that their comments, optimization ideas, and criticisms were welcome. Snom also wanted partners to know their feedback was key to catering firmware updates to partner-specific requirements.
Snom’s developers saw the long wait periods between software updates as problematic, so they set out to change it. By ending a tradition practised by countless brands, customers no longer have to wait up to two years for mission-critical updates such as security patches.
“Since February this year we have established a reliable nine-to-twelve weeks update cycle without lowering the high quality of our software”
Snom Says, “This Was Not a Simple Undertaking”
To keep up with customer firmware requests, Boguslawski said Snom has development teams in every time zone. While the process has not been an easy feat, according to Boguslawski – the prospect of working closer to partners was incentive enough. Boguslawski said, customers and partners are receptive to their new approach, and they’ve even received positive feedback.
Pushing the IP Phone Innovation Envelope
Since the Snom-VTech acquisition a few years ago, the IP phone manufacturer reported they’ve tripled the number of developers on staff. And in February, Green shared in an interview with UC Today, “Even before this, we spent a lot of time on in-house and partner testing. It is also worth noting, we were the first to introduce a SIP phone, and other manufacturers used us as a template.
In this constant race to stay current in an evolving IP phone market, Snom’s further set itself apart from the competition, opening up a new dimension of value for partners. More and more customers realize the value they bring to many business processes that help enhance CX, and Snom is fully aware of this notion. With a renewed sense of focus, Snom should have no problem continuing to delight its customers and innovate the IP space along the way.
