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Polycom Announces One-Click Collaboration for Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005

Posted on: Monday, 17 October 2005, 09:00 CDT

Integration of Polycom MGC Bridge Gives Meeting Managers One Click Control in Initiating and Managing Rich Media Conference Calls to Any Device from Microsoft Office Communicator and Microsoft Outlook

Polycom(R), Inc. (NASDAQ:PLCM), the world's leading provider of unified collaborative communications solutions, today announced the third phase of its strategic alliance with Microsoft Corporation involving tighter integration of its market-leading Polycom MGC conferencing bridge with Microsoft Office Communicator 2005. With the Polycom MGC, Communicator users have conference control and are able to invite attendees through Microsoft Outlook on any device to participate in a rich media conference, escalate multiple instant message participants on the fly to a high-quality multipoint video conference, and interactively initiate and control conference functions such as mute and disconnect -- all through simple and familiar mouse clicks.

Microsoft Office Communicator is an integrated communications client providing users with a single place to create and manage real-time communications. Communicator provides users with a single user experience for presence, Instant Messaging, PC to PC voice and video, application sharing, data collaboration, and integration with other Microsoft applications. Through the Polycom MGC bridge, Polycom extends this Microsoft environment to Polycom voice and video endpoints including high-quality room systems; enabling users to invite, join, control and monitor integrated multipoint audio and video conferences.

The new interactive functionality comes only a month after Polycom's delivery of embedded support for Microsoft Office Communicator and Live Communications Server 2005, enabling users to add Polycom desktop and group video systems as "contacts" in Communicator and to conduct high quality multipoint calls connecting any type of endpoint over any network for a truly unified conferencing experience. In last month's second stage of integration, Communicator users were able to utilize existing On-Demand conferences already established on the MGC bridge by the IT department.

Today's announcement simplifies the operation and passes control of conferences back to the meeting manager who, through a single mouse click, can invite multiple users or schedule a future conference using Microsoft Outlook. Outlook then schedules users and populates the meeting across participants' calendars. The latest integration also takes advantage of Communicator's support of multi-party instant messaging chat sessions to escalate up to 32 participants in an IM chat to a video call through the single click of the Conference button. Invitees are asked not only if they wish to join a conference; but also, which device they want to use. The MGC bridge then sends the conference number to the chosen device.

"Working together, Polycom and Microsoft are providing our customers a fully unified, enterprise-grade, real-time collaboration solution linking communications devices with desktop applications and making it easier than ever to instantly see, hear and talk with colleagues around the world," said Marc Sanders, senior product manager, Microsoft Real Time Collaboration Group.

"Polycom's extensive installed base of high quality voice and video endpoints and bridges are now fully integrated with Communicator and other Microsoft applications through the MGC and Microsoft Office Live Communications Server," said Mark Roberts, vice president of market development in the Network Systems Division. "The result is an exceptionally rich, spontaneous and seamless end-user communications experience that will help increase productivity, enable faster decision making and enhance relationships with employees, customers, and vendors."

Availability

Polycom MGC 7.5 software upgrades are available November 14, 2005 through Certified Polycom channels.

Polycom reserves the right to modify future product plans at any time. Products and/or related specifications referenced in this press release are not guaranteed, and will be delivered on a when and if available basis.

About Polycom

Polycom, Inc. is the worldwide leader in unified collaborative communications (UCC) that maximize the efficiency and productivity of people and organizations by integrating the broadest array of video, voice, data and Web solutions to deliver the ultimate communications experience. Polycom's high quality, standards-based conferencing and collaboration solutions are easy to deploy and manage, as well as intuitive to use. Supported by an open architecture, they integrate seamlessly with leading telephony and presence-based networks. With its market driving technologies, best-in-class products, alliance partnerships, and world-class service, Polycom is the smart choice for organizations seeking proven solutions and a competitive advantage in real-time communications and collaboration. For additional information call 1-800-POLYCOM (765-9266) or 408-526-9000, or visit the Polycom website at www.polycom.com.

Polycom and the Polycom logo are registered trademarks, and MGC is a trademark of Polycom in the U.S. and various countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. (C)2005, Polycom, Inc. All rights reserved.

Source: Business Wire

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