Nortel has signed a four-year deal with Microsoft. Nortel CEO Mike Zafirovski says it could generate more than $1-billion of revenue. The deal, which includes a lot of optimism and a lot of unknowns given the unified messaging market has yet to really see robust growth, could be a win-win for both companies. It could give Nortel some more exposure in the enterprise market, while boosting Microsoft’s efforts to become a bigger player in the business communications arena. For Nortel, this is really a deal it had to do given the PBX market has quickly evolved from hardware with some software to software with some hardware. Sooner or later, the PBX business and the business communications software business were going to collide. By striking a deal now with Microsoft, Nortel avoids the inevitable and positions itself for a potentially brighter future – or at least one that won’t be as bleak. For more, check out Microsoft’s PressPass, VoIP and Gadgets Blog and GigaOm.
Nortel, Microsoft Strike Deal
Nortel has signed a four-year deal with Microsoft. Nortel CEO Mike Zafirovski says it could generate more than $1-billion of revenue. The deal, which includes a lot of optimism and a lot of unknowns given the unified messaging market has yet to really see robust growth, could be a win-win for both companies. It could give Nortel some more exposure in the enterprise market, while boosting Microsoft’s efforts to become a bigger player in the business communications arena. For Nortel, this is really a deal it had to do given the PBX market has quickly evolved from hardware with some software to software with some hardware. Sooner or later, the PBX business and the business communications software business were going to collide. By striking a deal now with Microsoft, Nortel avoids the inevitable and positions itself for a potentially brighter future – or at least one that won’t be as bleak. For more, check out Microsoft’s PressPass, VoIP and Gadgets Blog and GigaOm.