Globalisation is transforming how organisations must communicate within the workplace and with their customer base. The cloud and internet are making it easier than ever for companies to expand at a rapid pace. However, to succeed, this expansion also means setting up new opportunities for communication in an environment stretching all around the world. BICS is one of the leading providers of international communications that could solve the problems that many organisations face when it comes to expanding and unifying their communications service offering worldwide.
BICS solutions support the transformative demands of the modern enterprise, offering everything from seamless mobile connectivity and collaboration, to state-of-the-art fraud prevention and authentication features. I recently spoke with the head of cloud communications product management and innovation for BICS, Divya Ghai Wakankar, to find out more. Divya leads the cloud communications portfolio, covering everything from numbers-as-a-service, to programmable numbers through BICS.
Tell Us About the BICS Numbers-as-a-Service Offering
Divya is at the head of the cloud communications portfolio for BICS. She supports everything from number provisioning for UC/UCaaS, cloud contact centre/CCaaS, CPaaS, PBX offerings and enterprises for the modern workforce. I was keen to learn about the interesting prospect of numbers-as-a-service, and Divya shared her insights with me.
“We have numbers available in approximately 130 countries around the world. There are different number types depending on the business case, including local, national, mobile, and toll-free numbers. Each of these offerings comes with their own unique capabilities. For instance, toll-free numbers offer inbound calling, while local numbers come with SIP trunking capabilities.”
According to Divya, the numbers available from BICS are also highly programmable. Customers can choose the services they are looking for to improve their own service offering, including voice and messaging capabilities. To make the numbers-as-a-service offering even more compelling, BICS allows organisations to access an API offering too; this will enable companies to integrate numbers-as-a-service as part of their standard processes and systems.
“There’s no need for any manual intervention when using the APIs,” Divya explained
BICS also delivers a bundled solution which includes a fraud prevention offering. This intelligent service scans through millions of numbers around the world via its innovative global crowdsourcing platform, and will automatically generate alarms when fraudulent activity is detected.
What’s the Primary Focus for BICS Right Now?
Companies all over the world are beginning to move through their cloud journeys, launching communications solutions through AWS and Azure Cloud compatible platforms. If a customer comes to BICS and wants to deploy their stack on one of those platforms, BICS can offer connectivity to the cloud. “We can provide physical and secure connectivity options, and we also have the option of VoIP connectivity via numbers-as-a-service too. On top of all that, there is the fraud prevention solution to proactively monitor traffic.”
For BICS, the numbers-as-a-service and programmable numbers offerings are all about making phone numbers more digital, flexible, and easier to manage. Traditionally, accessing and provisioning numbers has been a very complicated process. There has always been a lot of red tape and a number of fraud issues to consider. BICS wants to make its SIP trunking services as simplified as possible, so that enterprises can access the numbers they need and the functionality they’re looking for as they go global.
BICS does most of the hard work for today’s evolving companies – including making sure that their programmable numbers comply with the local regulations of the country. “This is very important as regulations are getting much stricter when it comes to using different numbers around the world. We provide customers with a reliable service across all countries, and they receive a single bill, regardless of where their connections go.”
How Is BICS Responding to Emerging Technologies?
As the communications ecosystem continues to evolve, BICS is exploring new solutions to transform the services they offer, and the marketplaces they can serve. For instance, one of BICS’ major markets is the “digital service provider” – companies that offer UCaaS, CCaaS, and other as-a-service solutions to customers.
As well as expanding into new markets, BICS is also investing in the latest disruptive technologies, such as AI. Already, the company has begun to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to enhance its fraud services, so that businesses are instantly alerted of any fraudulent activity as quickly as possible to minimise disruption. Additionally, BICS is building its own global coverage to ensure that companies can always access the highest levels of voice quality wherever in the world they are.
“High definition should be the default for voice today. A lot of companies are now implementing cloud-based communications, and this is a huge driving factor for the numbers-as-a-service marketplace.”
“Digital transformation is causing businesses to look for ways to maintain a consistent call quality in a flexible environment”
What Does the Future Look Like for BICS?
Lately, the BICS brand has seen a tremendous amount of growth, with new offices and offerings emerging in locations around the world. Divya told me that the brand is keen to continue expanding its coverage for SIP trunking services. Businesses are in search of a robust offering for digital transformation, and BICS can offer that with compliance and regulation assured for every country. What’s more, BICS ensures that customers have a choice when it comes to the kind of features and functionality they want to pay for.
BICS is also working on its APIs to make ordering and provisioning as simple as possible. Companies can receive all of the reporting and billing solutions they need through APIs, along with other feature sets. All the while, BICS takes care of the complexity and makes sure that customers are protected with TLS encryption and other security solutions.
Finally, Divya told me that BICS is working on delivering open support for customers using WebRTC applications too. “We are progressing call control and supplementary call services alongside numbers-as-a-service, including call transferring, call recording and even text to speech.”
