Part of our Ultimate Fuze Buyer’s Guide
Today, more companies are making the move away from on-premise PBXs, into the flexible and agile world of cloud. Cloud-based communication solutions allow organisations to access the latest technology and services in a highly scalable, low-cost way.
Two of the biggest companies in the cloud communications and collaboration environment today are Fuze, and 8x8. Fuze has been around since 2006, offering an intuitive Unified Communications as a Service platform to mid-sized and large enterprise organisations. 8x8, on the other hand, emerged in 1987 as an IT company, and gradually found its way into the VoIP market in 2002.
Here's your guide to the offerings available from Fuze and 8x8.
The Financials
Since launching under the name "Thinking Phones" in 2006, Fuze has seen phenomenal success as a world-leader in Unified Communications as a Service. The company has achieved numerous major accolades with leading publications like Forbes, Gartner, and Deloitte. As a private company, Fuze doesn't publish revenue information and financial results online. However, in 2018, the company announced that it had seen an increase of 500% in active users.
8x8 was founded initially as a company creating semiconductor products for the graphics and coprocessor chipset spaces. In 1999, 8x8 launched its family of VoIP products, and in 2002, the organisation became an entirely VoIP focused brand. 8x8 is a public company, and in the fourth quarter of 2018, they announced:
- A service revenue increase of 20% year-over-year to $75.3 million
- A total revenue increase of 19% year-over-year to $79.3 million
- Operating activity earnings of $2.7 million
Gartner Says:
Both Fuze and 8x8 have earned a place on one of the industry's most highly-commended reports: the Gartner Magic Quadrant. The two companies appear in the Magic Quadrant for UCaaS or Unified Communications as a service. Fuze was placed to the forefront in the "visionary" section of the MQ, recognised for their innovative solutions and disruptive technology.
Alternatively, 8x8 achieved a "Leader" position for the 7th year in a row with the Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications as a Service. Their completeness of vision and commitment to state-of-the-art technology set them apart from the crowd for another year.
Glassdoor Says:
Fuze and 8x8 are both relatively small companies compared to some of the larger market leaders like Cisco and Microsoft. Fuze only has around 700 employees, according to their last count in 2016. On the other hand, 8x8 has a slightly larger staff of around 1200 people. Employees on Glassdoor.com rate Fuze at a 4.4 out of 5 for satisfaction levels, while 8x8 has a slightly lower, but still impressive rating of 3.9 out of 5.
Portfolio Comparison
Fuze and 8x8 specialise in delivering products for unified communication, collaboration, and customer contact over the cloud. Both companies provide highly flexible and scalable solutions that can grow according to the needs of their end users.
