Windstream expands UC offerings with Avaya collaboration

Windstream (Nasdaq: WIN) is giving its business customers an expanded set of managed cloud-based unified communications service offerings through a collaboration with Avaya where it will integrate the vendor's Aura communications solutions suite into its service portfolio.

By incorporating Avaya Aura suite of communications in its portfolio, Windstream said it will be able to offer customers a set of new managed, cloud-based UC capabilities, including mobile and desktop collaboration, to messaging.

Targeted at small to mid-sized businesses that have become the telco's main sweet spot, the collaboration will give these customers the ability to "easily implement" unified communications and include services such as analog or VoIP lines, unified messaging, and desktop video.

Since the new service is hosted in its data centers, Windstream's customers could potentially save capital in not having to deploy hardware and software systems on their own premise.  

"With Windstream's vast experience as one of the nation's largest Avaya channel partners, coast-to-coast network footprint and a growing number of enterprise-class data centers, we are able to offer customers of all sizes UC capabilities, helping them become more productive and competitive--all without the upfront capital costs of a traditional UC solution," said Tim Whelehan, vice president of business development for Windstream, in a release.

Like its other managed services offerings, Windstream will provide 24x7 remote and onsite monitoring and support from its data centers.

The collaboration with Avaya comes at a time when Windstream is seeing its expansion into managed services drive revenue growth and ARPU in its business services unit. In Q1, Windstream's business services revenue rose 2 percent year-over-year to $914 million. Likewise, total enterprise customers that generate $750 or more in revenue per month grew 7 percent year-over-year. 

Jeff Gardner, president and CEO of Windstream, said during the Q1 earnings call that it plans to build out "four new data centers this year to capitalize on further revenue growth opportunities in areas where we are experiencing strong demand." These data centers could accomodate the growth and interest in its hosted and managed services offers like those they are offering with partners such as Avaya.

For more:
- see the release

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