As the world of communication becomes more complex, businesses of all backgrounds and sizes are turning to vendors in search of both simplicity and innovation. Organisations need a communication system that works according to their unique needs, as well as providing them with all the cutting-edge, disruptive technology they require to get ahead of the competition.
Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise (ALE), a leader in the cloud communication and collaboration space, offers their “Rainbow” solution as a service capable of combining CPaaS and UCaaS into a single comms strategy. Rainbow Voice is the ALE bundled cloud solution for IP telephony, combined with a series of apps and terminals intended for exceptional performance in the modern workplace. I spoke to Matteo Tadjo Kotch about the new system.
Tell Us About You, and Rainbow Voice
Alcatel Lucent Enterprise is a French company that offers enterprise-grade communication services to businesses and channel partners around the world. Matteo Kotch is the Cloud Business Development Manager for ALE. Matteo has been with the brand for around 3 months, and he’s responsible for supporting the introduction of the cloud platform to resellers and end-customers.
Rainbow Voice is an extension of the Rainbow solution from ALE, built on the back of the feedback that the company had received from their customers.
“The full package that we’ve developed really serves the needs of our marketplace today, and it’s generated a lot of organic interest so far. I think this new technology is a powerful next step for our go-to-market.”
The addition of Voice to Rainbow will begin in the UK and Singapore, though it will be rolled out to more territories during the next few months.
What Demand Is There for Rainbow Voice from a Reseller Perspective?
ALE takes its products to market through a channel of dedicated resellers. I was keen to find out more about what their channel partners were getting out of the new Voice solution.
“It’s not just voice; it’s a combination of smart telephony, unified communication, and CPaaS. It’s a comprehensive solution that supports the needs of large and small businesses alike.”
ALE did have a hosted offering available before Rainbow Voice, but it was something that needed to be managed by the partners themselves. The Open Touch Enterprise Cloud enabled partners to offer a hosted offer. Alternatively, Rainbow Voice gives partners the platform they need launch immediately, without having to do anything themselves.
“We’re removing some of the expense involved in building your own platform so that partners can get involved immediately.”
Matteo also told me that he believes that Rainbow Voice gives partners a chance to avoid the “race to the bottom” with their competition. “It’s a way to differentiate from the standard BroadSoft-based offers.”
What’s Unique about the Rainbow Voice Offering?
Rainbow Voice isn’t the only bundled cloud solution on the market today offering apps and IP telephony. However, ALE has attempted to take a unique approach to the way that they deliver their offering. Rainbow Voice comes with both a CPaaS solution and the opportunity to build your communication stack from a hybrid perspective.
“You’ve got real compatibility with this solution. Customers can connect the old-world technology in their traditional PBX with the latest innovations of cloud. We don’t just connect the old and the new – we make sure that everything fits together seamlessly into your business process. With Rainbow Voice, larger companies can access a more flexible solution, and smaller companies can have a bigger presence.”
Rainbow Voice scales all the way from opportunities for minute businesses, to solutions for hundreds of thousands of users at a time. For SMBs, there’s the simplicity of the self-service system and easy deployment. For mid-to-large companies, the option to access a fully-fledged and customisable communication solution.
Is the CPaaS Feature a Major Differentiator for You?
Perhaps one of the most significant defining factors of the Rainbow Voice solution is the presence of a CPaaS offering. There aren’t many platforms in the UK public domain that come with their own CPaaS capabilities. This is an exciting and integral part of the ALE profile.
As Matteo told me, the CPaaS system is a differentiator for both the end-customer and the reseller that might want to sell Rainbow Voice. “For instance, in one example, one of our customers used emergency and mass notifications to improve the safety of their workplace. This means that if an event happens and the company needs to lock down the entire workforce, they can automatically send messages out instantly all around the building, through countless channels, including email, mobile, and PC. It’s fully coordinated communication.”
The CPaaS system also means that companies have the option to develop and build out their communication environment however they like. ALE’s “Rainbow Hub” offers a central location for developers to build on the Rainbow technology with a sandboxing environment, 200 APIs, and a number of SDKs.
“Our goal is to get out of the way of what people are trying to do. It’s not about forcing people to use our applications. We want to give people the tools they need to create the right services for their teams.”
Looking Forward to 2019
Matteo told me that he believes the most transformative sector of the communication market right now is the cloud. “The world is developing; you have digital transformation (DX), IoT, AI, and countless other demands to consider. The only way to bring all of these concepts together is through CPaaS”.
ALE believes that CPaaS is a crucial part of their business model going forward, and an essential differentiator in the marketplace.
“We’ll continue to develop APIs and SDKs in the months ahead.”
Rainbow Voice is live today, starting in the UK and Singapore, with access in additional countries to be rolled out in the months ahead.
