Unified Communications: Trend Analysis to 2012 (Strategic Focus)

Introduction
Unified communications (UC) is evolving from a concept to a more mature solution stack. However, there is still a lot of confusion in the market about what actually constitutes UC. This report is going to define UC and provide clarity to vendors and investors, by identifying the key market trends and forecasting future growth opportunities.

Report Highlights
Highlights
The market for unified communications solutions is undoubtedly growing but a comprehensive analysis of the market reveals that growth is being hindered by enterprise pain points not being completely addressed, and vendors’ marketing strategies not clearly demonstrating a return on investment.

There is a diverse competitive landscape with traditional communication vendors and new entrants all claiming to offer the leading unified communications solution. Partnerships between these new entrants and the established communication vendors is behind some claims from vendors to offer a ‘end-to-end’ solution.

Channel to market is important and vendors should consider enterprise preferences for a hosted or on-premise solution, and make full use of resellers and partners. It is also important to target key messages at the right individuals within enterprises and be aware of budget constraints and a desire to adopt UC technologies in a piecemeal manner.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Overview 1
Catalyst 1
Summary 1
Key Messages 2
The market for UC solutions is set to grow considerably 2
The cost of implementation is the biggest inhibitor of investments in UC 2
Instant messaging and enterprise mobility are judged the largest security threats 2
Unified communications has not made a significant impact on flexible working 2
Partnerships and mergers are defining the competitive landscape for UC solutions 2
The majority of enterprises prefer to purchase through a reseller and deploy on-site 2
Table of Contents 3
Table of figures 4
Table of tables 4
Market Opportunity 5
Unified communications can improve productivity and reduce human latency 5
Defining unified communications 5
The market for UC solutions is set to grow considerably 6
The penetration of UC solutions is increasing steadily 7
Similar numbers of greenfield investments are being made in all four UC technology areas 7
Messaging has the highest current penetration 8
Rates of investment and penetration vary by geography, industry and company size 9
North America and Western Europe will show the largest growth in absolute terms 9
Voice/data network convergence was not enterprises' largest area of expenditure in 2007 10
Penetration of voice/data convergence is highest in the financial industries, particularly retail banking 12
Healthcare is planning the most greenfield investments in UC technology 13
There are differing levels of penetration and growth rates between large and small enterprises 13
Technology Evolution 16
Unified communications is emerging from voice/data convergence 16
The migration of telephony from TDM to IP is relatively slow 17
Key technologies and applications which comprise the UC solution are evolving 18
Contact centers are monitoring developments in unified communications 19
Unified communications has not made a significant impact on flexible working 20
Most UC technologies will be adopted in the medium term 21
Customer Impact 22
There are four types of workers that can benefit from UC 22
Customer experience is driving investments in convergence solutions 23
Standardizing systems and infrastructure is also a consideration for enterprises 24
The increase in flexible working could be a driver of demand for UC 24
Vendors need to prove return on investment of flexible working 24
The cost of implementation is the biggest inhibitor of investments in UC 24
Legacy hardware is both a driver and an inhibitor for growth in the UC market 26
Instant messaging and enterprise mobility are judged the largest security threats 26
Vendors have to prove return on investment 27
Competitive Landscape 28
Partnerships and mergers are shaping the vendor market for UC solutions 28
Microsoft and IBM have burst into the unified communications market 28
IBM 28
Microsoft 29
Cisco, Siemens Enterprise, Avaya, and Nortel are UC market leaders 29
Cisco has the greatest mindshare of the leading vendors but there are regional variations 31
Cisco has the largest degree of mindshare but five other vendors have an established presence 31
Regional mindshare reflects vendors' market strengths 32
Microsoft Office Communicator leads IM mindshare 32
Go to Market 34
Vendors should utilize partners and resellers to address enterprise requirements 34
The majority of enterprises prefer to purchase through a reseller and deploy on-site 34
Vendors should target the CEO and CIO when marketing their solutions 35
Both the CEO and CIO are likely to have some degree of influence over investments decisions 35
Go to market recommendations 36
UC adoption is increasing but will remain a low priority for many enterprises 36
Vendors should market UC as improving productivity and reducing human latency 36
Financial institutions are more receptive to new technologies 36
There will be a slow migration from TDM PBXs to IP PBXs 37
Partnerships are key in vendors' route to market 37
APPENDIX 38
Definitions 38
Methodology 38
Further reading 38
Ask the analyst 39
Datamonitor consulting 39
Disclaimer 39
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: UC global enterprise expenditure ($ millions) 7
Table 2: Do you have the following UC solutions? Which would you invest in next 6-24 months? 8
Table 3: Enterprise expenditure on UC solutions by region ($ millions) 10
Table 4: Which area of investment was your single biggest IT project this budget year? 11
Table 5: Do you use voice/data convergence? Would you invest in next 6/24 months (vertical)? 13
Table 6: Do you use voice/data convergence? Would you invest in next 6/24 months (size)? 15
Table 7: Does your organization use IP telephony and when was it implemented? 18
Table 8: Which technologies do you support for flexible working? Like to offer in 24 months? 21
Table 9: Please rate the importance of the following objectives to your UC investment 24
Table 10: What issues prevent your organization from investing in UC technologies? 26
Table 11: How do you assess the security risk posed by these technologies? 27
Table 12: Vendor summary scores for Voice/Data Convergence Decision Matrix 30
Table 13: Please pick two firms which you believe to be 'leaders' in UC 32
Table 14: Which vendor do you consider a leader in the instant messaging market? 33
Table 15: What is your preferred approach to buying UC technologies? 35
Table 16: Rank the most influential person for purchasing decisions on voice/data convergence 36
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Revenues will increase rapidly in the unified communications market 6
Figure 2: Similar levels of greenfield investments across technologies 8
Figure 3: North America and Western Europe will show the largest growth 9
Figure 4: UC is unlikely to be enterprises' largest project 11
Figure 5: Healthcare is set to make the most greenfield investment in UC 12
Figure 6: Small enterprises will be making the most greenfield investments 14
Figure 7: Voice/data convergence has allowed unified communications to emerge 16
Figure 8: Enterprises are installing IP telephony in stages 17
Figure 9: Telephone and email are key technologies supported for flexible working 20
Figure 10: Raising productivity and increasing customer satisfaction are key aims of enterprises 23
Figure 11: Cost is the largest inhibitor of UC 25
Figure 12: Instant messaging is considered the largest security risk 26
Figure 13: Cisco is the leading vendor with the highest total score 30
Figure 14: Cisco is a market leader in terms of mindshare in a competitive field 31
Figure 15: Microsoft has a commanding mindshare in the enterprise IM market 33
Figure 16: Enterprises prefer to purchase from resellers 34
Figure 17: CEOs and CIOs are the key decision makers for voice/data convergence 35
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