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CosmoCall Universe 6.0: An Embarrassment of RichesCosmoCall Universe 6.0: An Embarrassment of Riches

CosmoCom calls this its "most far reaching and significant set of enhancements and additions to the vendor's unified IP contact center suite in its history."

Sheila McGee-Smith

March 19, 2009

3 Min Read
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CosmoCom calls this its "most far reaching and significant set of enhancements and additions to the vendor's unified IP contact center suite in its history."

This week, CosmoCom announced today the availability of its latest version of CosmoCall Universe (CCU). The press release leads with what might be considered self-aggrandizing hype, saying it "is the most far reaching and significant set of enhancements and additions to the vendor's unified IP contact center suite in its history." Having followed the company since its inception, and after spending almost 90 minutes reviewing the changes with the company's EVP, Steve Kowarsky, I'd have to agree that the statement is more than accurate.There is so much in this announcement that CosmoCom will be releasing a total of seven press releases, one for the overall release and six more on new capabilities. Three dropped this week with the "final four" (pun intended) due two per week between now and the end of the month.

As VoiceCon approaches, with its heavier than ever emphasis on UC, it seems appropriate to highlight what CosmoCom is calling its "Unified Customer Communications" capabilities. Several components have been added to CCU under this umbrella:

* ReadyRep and Business User: ReadyRep is essentially a part-time license for enterprise users that extends CCU to experts or back office resources for call resolution. Business User required more than just licensing--the addition of a basic set of PBX features that allows CCU to completely fulfill the communications needs of many contact center locations--without the former need for a separate PBX.

* CosmoPhone: For the Business User, who may or may not opt for the softphone client, CosmoDesk (below), the company is OEMing four of Aastra's SIP phones running CosmoCom firmware. (There are plans to certify additional phones in the near future.)

* CosmoDesk: Standard for Agent and ReadyRep licenses and optional for Business Users, with it enterprise users can benefit from the application integration features of the soft client, e.g., CRM apps.

* Integration with Microsoft Outlook: Especially relevant for the new Business User category, presence and click-to-call capabilities are embedded into Outlook.

That last bullet begs an interesting question: exactly what presence is being used to route calls to ReadyReps or display in Outlook? Given CosmoCom's close relationship to Microsoft over the years, one might think OCS. Today, it is CCU application-based presence.

Kowarsky has a wait and see attitude about building OCS and or Sametime integration. He would want to see two things before the company made that kind of investment. First, a very significant installed base of OCS (or Sametime.) Second, a very clear value proposition for the integration, one that would make CosmoCall Universe a compelling add-on for a significant subset of that installed base.

We could all name a number of companies that have shown a "build it and (hope) they will come" philosophy when it comes to UC. Kowarsky would appear to believe that only works in baseball movies.CosmoCom calls this its "most far reaching and significant set of enhancements and additions to the vendor's unified IP contact center suite in its history."

About the Author

Sheila McGee-Smith

Sheila McGee-Smith, who founded McGee-Smith Analytics in 2001, is a leading communications industry analyst and strategic consultant focused on the contact center and enterprise communications markets. She has a proven track record of accomplishment in new product development, competitive assessment, market research, and sales strategies for communications solutions and services.

McGee-Smith Analytics works with companies ranging in size from the Fortune 100 to start-ups, examining the competitive environment for communications products and services. Sheila's expertise includes product assessment, sales force training, and content creation for white papers, eBooks, and webinars. Her professional accomplishments include authoring multi-client market research studies in the areas of contact centers, enterprise telephony, data networking, and the wireless market. She is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, user group and sales meetings, as well as an oft-quoted authority on news and trends in the communications market.

Sheila has spent 30 years in the communications industry, including 12 years as an industry analyst with The Pelorus Group. Early in her career, she held sales management, market research and product management positions at AT&T, Timeplex, and Dun & Bradstreet. Sheila serves as the Contact Center Track Chair for Enterprise Connect.