Telstra will be bringing game-changing services to its 1.8 million-strong SMB market in 2009, thanks in part to platform support from Jamcracker and Microsoft Corp.
Earlier this month Microsoft and Telstra announced an alliance to deliver business software applications, mobile services and devices, and integrated computer and telephony services over Telstra’s Next IP and Next G networks.
With an eye on productivity and computer/telephony integration, the Telstra will offer hosted business applications through its Telstra T Suite portal, including Microsoft Online Services.
“[Software as a service] is a growing area and we are going to go after it pretty hard,” said Ross Fielding, executive director of product management at Telstra.
Microsoft also will work with Telstra on delivering an all-in-one mobile e-mail, calendar, contacts, Web browser, business software and phone solution that includes security features, automatic software upgrades and support. A third set of services comes in the form of unified communications. Telstra’s hosted IP Telephony service will be integrated with Microsoft Office applications, including Office Communicator.
Around the hosted applications, Microsoft will provide customer support, call center support and pre-sales support. The companies plan for the first products to be introduced in market by mid-2009.
“We have come to a time when networks, especially Telstra’s, are superior. So together we could make it real easy for business users to surface their applications and that has become very compelling,” said Kevin Brough, director of Microsoft’s Communications Sector. He added that the companies will make the applications available in an easy-to-use, easy-to-buy and easy-to-manage environment.
With its other eye on additional applications and services from third parties, Telstra has turned to Jamcracker to deliver on-demand software, or SaaS, to SMBs. Telstra will use the Jamcracker Services Delivery Network (JSDN) to provide new IP services, including Jamcracker-provided SaaS applications, bundled with existing Telstra on-demand services. Telstra will on-board local Australian SaaS applications that are not yet part of the JSDN catalog and will offer these application services under the T-Suite brand alongside traditional mobile and fixed-line services.
“We have a tremendous number of small businesses in this country and they’re always looking for more efficient ways to run and we’re aligning partner and sales channels to address these markets,” Fielding said. “It’s an easy way [for them] not to just get more bandwidth, but get value-added business apps.”
