Polycom telepresence integration with IBM Lotus Sametime allows users to easily connect and collaborate

LONDON/SLOUGH, UK: Polycom, Inc. (Nasdaq: PLCM), a global leader in unified communications, today announced availability of the Polycom Unified Collaboration Solution for IBM Lotus Sametime, a new, integrated telepresence and desktop video collaboration solution for IBM Unified Communication and Collaboration (UC2) environments that enables users to easily connect and collaborate. This enhanced collaboration helps organisations improve productivity, accelerate decision making and lower costs by reducing the need to travel.

The end-to-end solution combines IBM’s feature-rich Lotus Sametime platform with the scalable, redundant and standards-based Polycom UC Intelligent Core™ visual communication platform and Polycom personal and room telepresence solutions. Polycom, and its certified partners and integrators, including IBM Global Services, offer supporting services to help customers plan for, deploy and manage the integrated offering.

“Video conferencing has long been a core element of any unified communications and collaboration solution,” said Sandesh Bhat, vice president of web and collaboration development, IBM. “As video moves beyond the executive suite, Polycom’s new integration with IBM Sametime will make it easy for organisations to leverage these capabilities to eliminate travel, protect the environment and drive significant cost savings for their enterprises.”

“Unified communications and collaboration is about making it easy for people to find, connect and collaborate with others,” said Joseph Burton, chief strategy and technology officer, Polycom. “Polycom’s integration with the IBM UC2 environment puts our powerful, productivity enhancing video collaboration tools just one-click away within the Lotus applications that millions of people use every day. This extends the value of customers’ UC investments and drives greater ROI.”

Enhances Familiar Lotus Sametime User Experience with Click-to-Call Telepresence
The Polycom Unified Collaboration Solution for IBM Lotus Sametime allows users to “Click-to-Call” and “Click-to-Conference” telepresence, video, voice and unified (combined voice and video) conferencing from presence-enabled contacts within IBM Lotus Sametime. In addition, Lotus Sametime Web conferencing users can launch Instant Meetings with voice and video conferences, or include a voice or video conference as part of scheduled web conference.

“Integrating voice and video communications within the IBM UC environment will help customers drive a more collaborative culture by enhancing the interaction between locations while also reducing travel costs,” said Cindy Borovick, vice president of Enterprise Communications, International Data Corporation (IDC). “Customers will benefit by Polycom and IBM working together because it will provide a more seamless experience for end users and IT managers, along with better investment protection.”

Supports Existing Polycom and IBM Investments for Rapid ROI
Polycom Unified Collaboration Solution for IBM Lotus Sametime supports Lotus Sametime Release 8.5.1, and provides seamless call routing between the Lotus applications and Polycom room and personal telepresence systems and desktop and conference room video conferencing systems for video calls and unified (voice and video) conferences. To extend collaboration opportunities and help customers drive a fast return on investment (ROI), the solution is interoperable with the broad ecosystem of standards-based telepresence and video conferencing systems in use today.

Simplifies Deployment and Management
The Polycom Unified Collaboration Solution for IBM Lotus Sametime provides a comprehensive solution that is easy to deploy and manage. Polycom’s integration with the Lotus Sametime server does not change the user interface, which results in minimal user training requirements. The Polycom Converged Management Application™ (CMA™) allows IT administrators to centrally provision and manage Polycom video networks and systems within their UC network.

Converged Communications Services from IBM
IBM Global Technology Services (GTS) provides services for converged communications world-wide, including service offerings for Lotus products and the integration of Lotus products with Polycom solutions. IBM Converged Communications Services for desktop video enable the integration and deployment of complex UC solutions, including providing support for the Polycom solutions’ integration to Lotus Sametime 8.5.1. In addition, IBM GTS provides strategy, network assessments, design and implementation services which can be utilised to plan and deploy UC and Polycom-based collaboration solutions.