DES MOINES, Iowa -- Dec. 1, 2004 -- LightEdge Solutions, Inc., a Midwest leader in data networking and managed business services, today announced product availability and successful customer deployment of Advanced Voice Solutions (AVS) Hosted PBX Voice-over-IP (VoIP) services. Designed for small- and medium-sized businesses, LightEdge AVS Hosted PBX can be implemented as a complete replacement for a current PBX system or deployed incrementally as users are added to an existing system. Hosted PBX enables companies to gain the productivity benefits of VoIP solutions and realize cost savings for local phone and long distance services for a low per-user fee, without incurring capital expenditures for PBX equipment. Hosted PBX VoIP can also reduce the number of analog phone lines needed at corporate and remote locations, providing significant cost savings for many customers.
"We are excited to offer the AVS VoIP solutions in our six key markets. We see continued adoption of converged telecommunications and data technologies, and our Hosted PBX VoIP product offers an affordable solution that provides enhanced features and functionality which cannot be realized with legacy systems," said Jim Masterson, chief executive officer and president of LightEdge Solutions. "We offer Hosted PBX VoIP solutions through our carrier-grade network and data center, enabling our customers to take advantage of Fortune-100 level voice and data services securely and cost-effectively."
Users on the LightEdge AVS Hosted PBX system place a call through an IP phone that is connected to the LightEdge redundant, multi-carrier, private IP network, which is quality-of-service enabled to ensure high voice quality. Telephone conversations are broken down into data packets and sent out over the private IP network, rather than through traditional analog telephone lines. AVS Hosted PBX eliminates the need to purchase and maintain expensive onsite PBX equipment by routing voice traffic through the LightEdge network. AVS Hosted PBX solutions can also reduce the number of connections and eliminate long distance charges between locations, and provides users with a large variety of productivity-enhancing features such as remote office, e-mail delivery of voice messages, find me/follow me, click-to-dial, and extension dialing between locations.
Heartland Co-op was one of the first customers to implement the LightEdge Hosted PBX solution. Heartland Co-op provides products and services to its farmer members and patrons from its 30 Iowa locations. Heartland was reaching the maximum capacity of its legacy PBX system. Heartland Co-op chose LightEdge AVS Hosted PBX because there was no capital-intensive PBX equipment to purchase or maintain, and there was no risk of technology obsolescence since the solution is hosted on the LightEdge carrier-grade voice and data network.
"Heartland Co-op chose to deploy a hosted IP PBX solution provided by LightEdge Solutions for numerous reasons. Among those reasons were lower cost, more features, and ease of deployment compared to buying or leasing a system," said Ron McCauley of Heartland Cooperative. "We have been happy with the results we have seen since the implementation of our new Hosted PBX System."
In choosing AVS Hosted PBX, Heartland Co-op was able to reduce the number of analog telephone lines needed for the headquarter and remote location. The VoIP technology also eliminated many of the long distance charges for calls between locations. The LightEdge Hosted PBX product provided a significant cost benefit over traditional solutions. The company has also realized productivity benefits from enhanced calling features, inter-office integration, extension dialing between locations, and the attendant console, which enables a central attendant to monitor or answer calls for all locations.
LightEdge Hosted PBX is currently available in all LightEdge markets. LightEdge will be hosting live Hosted PBX VoIP product demonstrations in Des Moines, Phoenix, Kansas City and Minneapolis on December 15th and in Cedar Rapids and Omaha on December 16th. Visit www.lightedge.com or send an e-mail to events@lightedge.com for more information or to register to attend a session in your area. For more information on Voice-over-IP or other Service-on-Demand(SM) solutions from LightEdge, please call 515-471-1000.
LightEdge Solutions
LightEdge Solutions is a leading provider of fully managed data networking and business services for small- and medium-sized companies in the Midwest and Southwest. LightEdge is dedicated to technology leadership and best-in-class service and support. With its Service-on-Demand(SM) offering, LightEdge's managed services are backed by a carrier-grade, redundant network, allowing companies to focus on their core business, gain competitive advantage and scale for growth. LightEdge is headquartered in Des Moines, with offices in Cedar Rapids, Kansas City, Minneapolis, Omaha and Phoenix. For more information, visit LightEdge's Web site at http://www.lightedge.com.
