Internet2, Aastra and Level 3 Deliver SIP Voice Services to U.S. Higher Education Institutions

Internet2, in association with communications solutions providers Aastra (News - Alert) and Level 3 Communications, is offering managed voice services to college campuses throughout the country.

The "Voice in the Cloud" SIP Services from Internet2 is the hosted VoIP PBX (News - Alert) and SIP Trunking shared service that Internet2 has offered to its members. The service reduces capital expenses to create a private communications network on an institution’s campus.

The partnership allows member institutions to receive carrier grade service at a very cost-effective price per line. They can customize the solution to meet their unique campus needs. The solution provides control and flexibility over the administration of critical Unified Communications (News - Alert) (UC) services like voice and video communication.

Aastra will offer its VoIP network platform – Aastra's Clearspan – offering truly unified communications for organizations requiring high-capacity, mission critical performance. Aastra's Clearspan delivers classic PBX-like services, but also a rich set of enhanced services including unified messaging, fixed-mobile convergence, interactive voice response, business conferencing and contact center applications.

With Clearspan, employees can make and receive calls from any device, at any location, with only one phone number, one dial plan, one voice mailbox, and a unified set of features.

According to Tim Whittington, regional group president, Aastra, the Clearspan hosted solution delivers the quality, reliability, scalability, and value required while allowing them the flexibility to tailor the solution to meet their specific campus requirements.

Level 3 Communications offers its SIP-based services such as long distance trunks, local trunks, conference bridges and other services, enabling Internet2 to offer the reliability that member institutions demand over a large scale.

“Providing transformative multi-institutional joint services that help individual campuses refocus on strategic priorities is a top priority for Internet2," said Rob Vietzke, vice president of network services, Internet2, in a statement.

"We are excited to offer Internet2 members this SIP communications solution so they can begin to migrate their campus voice services to these hosted services that Internet2, Aastra and Level 3 will provide,” Vietzke added. “These services maintain local control, reduce upfront investment and provide a platform for advancements in personal communications."

Level 3 Communications (News - Alert) will provide SIP-based services such as long distance trunks, local trunks, conference bridges and other services. As a result, Internet2 will be able to offer the reliability that member institutions demand over a large scale.

The company’s end-to-end IP network, as well their expertise in delivering VoIP, helps Internet2 to converge voice and data on a single network, creating tangible network and operational expense savings while laying a foundation for next generation communication and collaboration tools.