Editor's Update 11/16/10, Earlier this month, TA conducted our first BYOB hosted VoIP solution shootout with four very diverse vendors and nine subject matter expert judges. Following is the BYOB Hosted VoIP Buyer's Guide that we're creating from the recorded shootout. Contact me to critique this buyer's guide help judge future BYOB hosted VoIP vendor submissions.

Overview: This and all TA's buyer's guides are designed to help multilocation business end-users and their equipment vendors select the right voice, Internet, data and related application solutions from TA's qualified vendor members. TA charges our vendors to specifically share how their category specific solution is superior via a 25-minute webinar and any additional material they feel is helpful.

TA's subject matter expert members evaluate the competitive content submitted, compare it to their own real world experiences and then write this buyer's guide. To keep up with evolving vendor capabilities, the buyer's guide is in a constant state of update and revision. check the "Editor's Update" above to learn the latest revision. Contact TA to license this content.

BYOB Hosted VoIP Phone System Definition:  A hosted VoIP business phone system allows a business to "rent" a modern "dial tone over the Internet" phone system with all the current options (multi-phone simultaneous ringing, voicemail in email, multiple business locations on one phone system, etc.) without having to buy the actual phone system or PBX equipment that must be stored and maintained in the customer's office or phone closet.. 

The "BYOB" (bring your own broadband) hosted VoIP modifier allows a businesses to access the Internet dial tone over their existing broadband connection (cable, DSL, integrated T-1 or business fiber, etc.) without having to subscribe to a dedicated T-1 connection or MPLS upgrade. BYOB hosted VoIP phone systems are generally for new or very small businesses with 20 employees or less or businesses with multiple locations only need a few phone lines at each location.

Solutions that compete with this BYOB solution are "T-1 Hosted VoIP" - for larger small businesses that require guaranteed voice quality, "MPLS Hosted VoIP" - for businesses with a private MPLS network that want perfect sound quality and application integration, and "IP-PBX VoIP" - for businesses that don't want to "rent" their phone system long term but want to own the equipment that resides in their office or hosting facility. TA is in the process of producing separate buyer's guides for these competing VoIP solutions.

BYOB Phone System History:  When the Internet phone craze first hit the US a decade ago, hopes for low cost or free business phone service was high but the audio quality of the resulting consumer grade phone service was very low because all the VoIP phone service providers used the public Internet to transport the phone calls and quality was "best effort". The early vendors often associated with low quality (completely unsuited for business) VoIP phone service included Vonage, Skype and magicJack.

Over the past several years, many business phone service providers set to work to give these very small businesses the economical "BYOB phone system" they wanted with an audio quality of service ("QoS") that was good enough for business sales calls. Have any of today's BYOB hosted VoIP vendors met the mark of success? With a few caveats noted in this buyer's guide the answer is definitely, "Yes".

Meet the TA Vendors that Provide BYOB Hosted VoIP:  The following TA vendors have been screened by TA to have busienss grade BYOB Hosted VoIP offerings that should be seriously considered by TA members, IT consultants and their business end-user customers.

Click the image under each vendor name below to access the 25-minute "Why we're Better Than Our Competitors" video that they shared in TA's BYOB Hosted VoIP Solution Shootout as well as other content they have submitted that helps them make their case for competitive superiority.

TA is in the process of judging these BYOB Hosted VoIP Solution Shootout presentations by soliciting "Judge's Surveys" from the following three different judges panels:

1. SME Judge's Survey - Nine TA members deemed "subject matter experts" in this category.

2. Competitive Peer Judge's Survey - The BYOB hosted VoIP TA vendor peers competing against this entry.                     

3. TA Member Judge's Survey - TA complimentary members at large.

The results of these three judges panels are currently being compiled and will be published here on 12/1/2010. If you're a TA member with BYOB hsoted VoIP selection experience, please view the content above and then complete a TA Member Judge's Survey.
 

Subject Matter Expert Judge's Comments: TA's BYOB subject matter expert judges shared an hour's worth of comments with TA after watching the vendor's 25-minute presentations. If you're seriously considering BYOB for your business you should take the time to listen to or read the transcription of the judges comments.

Click here to listen to and read the BYOB Hosted VoIP judges comments

20 BYOB Hosted VoIP "Happiness Checklist" Questions:  Even after all your investigation of BYOB, will you be happy with your vendor selection? Have you asked all the right questions? WE can't guarantee you'll be happy but we can be sure you'll have asked all the most important questions of your vendor is you use our "Happiness Checklist" questions when questioning potential BYOB hosted VoIP vendors.

Meet the BYOB Hosted Judge Subject Matter Experts:  The following TA members are BYOB subject matter experts ("SMEs") for their VoIP industry experience who are helping TA judge our BYOB Hosted VoIP Solution Shootout. Their initial and updated judging scores and comments constiture the foundation of our BYOB Hosted VoIP Buyer's Guide. Scroll down below to see the judge's scores and comments.

Ben Hanni, Co-Founder of BP Innovations, South Carolina

Braun Mincher, President of PCG Telecom, Coloroado

Daniel Pentecost, Founding Director of Anyion Group, North Carolina

Jeff Ott, President of Total Carrier Solutions, Texas

Laura Bernstein, Owner of Cost Recovery Associates, Massachusetts

(If you're a TA member with experience evaluating and choosing BYOP hosted VoIP solutions for your business customers and would like to participate as a judge, please contact Dan@TelecomAssociation.com ASAP)