What Effect Will a Microsoft Acquisition of Yahoo Have on Unified Communications?What Effect Will a Microsoft Acquisition of Yahoo Have on Unified Communications?

Jim Burton is the Founder and CEO of CT Link, LLC. Burton founded the consulting firm in 1989 to help clients in the converging voice, data and networking industries with strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions, strategic alliances and distribution issues.

In the early 1990s, Burton recognized the challenges vendors and the channel faced as they developed and installed integrated voice/data products. He became the leading authority in the voice/data integration industry and is credited with "coining" the term computer-telephony integration (CTI). Burton helped companies, including Microsoft and Intel, enter the voice market.

In the late 1990s, venture capitalists turned to Burton for help in evaluating potential investments in IP PBX start-ups. He went on to help these and other companies with strategic planning and partnering, including NBX (acquired by 3Com, Selsius (acquired by Cisco), ShoreTel (acquired by Mitel), and Sphere Communications (acquired by NEC). Burton was an investor and co-founder of Circa Communications, an early leader in IP phones. Circa was acquired by Polycom and helped them become a leader in the IP phone market.

In the early 2000s, Burton began focusing on wireless services and technologies. In 2005 Burton started helping vendors with their Unified Communications strategy, and in 2006, along with several colleagues, created a website, UCStrategies.com, to provide information for enterprise customers and vendors. In 2018 UCStrategies became BCStrategies to help enterprise customers plan for digital transformation.

Burton’s primary focus is to help clients develop strategic partnerships. He helps companies partner with Amazon, Cisco, Google, IBM, and Microsoft with a focus on cloud communications, team collaboration, AI, ML, virtual & augmented reality, and mobility.