It's Time to Embrace Any-to-Any Collaboration in the Cloud

By Brandon Hagood

Any-to-any” is one of the latest buzzwords in the communications industry. It means any device, any time, anywhere. Any-to-any collaboration tools enable users to communicate with individuals or groups, regardless of location and via virtually any device desktop, laptop, smartphone, tablet and more. These tools simplify communication by giving users the freedom to connect whenever, wherever and however they choose.

With legal, health care, financial planning, information technology and other industries increasingly adopting any-to-any collaboration tools, more and more vendors will continue to deploy these services.

One of the biggest drivers that has caused increased demand for any-to-any tools is the fact that personal device use in the workplace is becoming ubiquitous. Look at how many people use smartphones and tablets in their personal lives, and absolutely refuse to put them down. These same people demand that business applications especially unified communications (UC) and collaboration tools be compatible with their everyday mobile tablets and smartphones.

The evolution of the cloud is having a major impact on the growth of any-to-any collaboration services, especially when it comes to UC, Web collaboration and video conferencing. When these services are hosted in the cloud, a centralized access point to the service exists, which easily allows different devices to connect and use the services over the Internet. To ensure more device interoperability, its important to select a service vendor that is standards-based and less dependent on proprietary technology for delivery.

The cloud typically brings a lower cost of ownership as well. For example, premise-based video conferencing solutions are typically expensive to purchase, deploy and manage, making them high capex systems. Proprietary video devices and gateways have been known to carry large price tags. Hosted video solutions, especially any-to-any, have little to no impact on capex because all equipment resides in the cloud and proprietary devices are not required to use the service.

Whatever your business or industry, any-to-any collaboration tools the future. The question is not whether to embrace them, but how to navigate the array of options available from a growing pool of vendors and implement a cost-effective solution that best suits employees. While premise-based, proprietary solutions can be appropriate in larger corporate environments; hosted, cloud-based solutions are an ideal choice for companies looking to keep costs down while embracing interoperability.

Brandon Hagood is director of product development at

Momentum Telecom
. He joined the organization in 2003 and worked in assumed his current position in 2010. He has more than 10 years of experience in computer networking, IT, technical writing and software environments, and eight years of experience in supporting the carrier and customer premises side of traditional PSTN and VoIP telephony services .