Where is Unified Communications Going?

It looks like we are in the midst of yet another acronym cycle in the unified communications business. Nobody really likes "VoIP" or "IP communications." UC had been the preferred term until a year or two ago. "Collaboration" is the term some prefer. But there are other candidates.

Some people use the term "UC4" to describe where the next wave might be building for "unified communications, collaboration and contact center." And that wave is supposed to feature tighter communications integration with key enterprise software and job functions, as well as more use of video communications and mobile devices.

To be fair, people don't agree on what "collaboration," "unified communications" or "communications-enabled business processes" actually mean. All of those phrases include elements of VoIP, audio and video conferencing, presence, instant messaging, email, voice mail, mobility, business phone functions, unified messaging and the ability to initiate and receive voice and other communications from inside a consumer or business application.

As a general rule, when something doesn't sell well, it gets rebranded. Other times, marketing staffs want to refresh an existing product, or create a different spin, to play to a particular provider's strengths. Sometimes the buyer value proposition changes, so marketing pitches are adjusted to match the new end user priorities. Perhaps some of all those drivers now are at work.