BT plans Corporate Fusion for early 2007

BT plans to roll out a business version of its Fusion fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) service early next year, claiming potentially lower call costs and greater convenience.

Corporate Fusion will adapt the consumer model whereby calls are switched between cellular or Bluetooth links to fixed lines using one dual-mode handset. With Corporate Fusion, Wi-Fi will replace Bluetooth.

Leeds City Council is to trial the service using distributed Wi-Fi access points to route calls to fixed lines. BT suggested this could result in savings, citing analyst research indicating that more than half of mobile calls are currently made from within offices despite the availability of fixed-line handsets.

Adrian Fegan, head of ICTR operations at Leeds, said that as well as offering potential cost savings, Corporate Fusion could make it easier to contact staff and serve the public.

The ability to get rid of roaming charges for business travellers is another incentive for adopting Corporate Fusion, BT said. “Wouldn’t it be lovely if a call from a Munich office to London went over Wi-Fi and you didn’t have to pay the roaming charges,” said BT Global Services chief executive Andy Green.

Announcements about handset availability for Corporate Fusion will be made “in the coming weeks”, BT said. Motorola currently supplies handsets for the consumer version of Fusion.

Corporate Fusion services for the UK and Italy are scheduled for early 2007, with Germany, Benelux, Spain and France to follow.

In May, BT said it would work with Alcatel to develop a hosted enterprise FMC service.

Separately, BT announced plans for global expansion of its ICT services offerings and plans to extend its IP network presence from 128 countries today to 160 by the end of next year.