Bring Your Own Carrier (BYOC) will usher in one of the next big shifts in the cloud communications landscape and has already become a key trend in the communications platform as a service (CPaaS) market. In essence, BYOC gives businesses the choice of carrier they want to use in their Unified Communication as a Service (UCaaS), CPaaS, and Software as a Service (SaaS) ecosystems.
This means that UCaaS providers like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Cisco Webex can no longer dictate which carriers their users use to enable dialling within their cloud platforms.
Traditionally, these providers would have agreements with a limited number of ‘global’ operator partners to manage this functionality. The problem with this approach is that organisations already have agreements in place with local voice providers and have come to enjoy their service levels and aggressive pricing structures. Forcing these organisations to have to use a specific carrier introduces complexity and nullifies cost savings on PSTN traffic.
However, with BYOC, these agreements can be extended to include local operators that have a better understanding of the market requirements and needs of customers. So, for instance, Saicom customers can now use their phone numbers and plug into the Zoom, Teams, and Webex environments to have a more integrated communications value proposition.
Already, we have seen SaaS providers like Freshdesk and Zoho integrate calling into their Web applications while relying on CPaaS providers like Twilio to facilitate call APIs between their platforms and the PSTN world. As a company, Saicom has integrated into Twilio for BYOC/BYON, making the choice to use Saicom for call origination and termination a seamless one.
A good example is how Uber has integrated dialling functionality into its app to enable drivers to call riders without needing to know their personal numbers.
One number to bind them
Fundamentally, BYOC now signifies a Unified Communications (UC) experience in the truest sense of the word. Local businesses no longer have to liaise with the cloud providers themselves if there are any issues with call features. They can simply reach out to their own local carrier to manage the process.
By removing this extra cog in the machine, the user experience and resultant business productivity can be significantly enhanced.
So, whether it is the likes of video and voice calling, file-sharing or whiteboarding, this can all be done through an integrated UC system be it Zoom, Teams, Webex, or something else entirely like Saicom’s UnifyOne with Webex. This level of integration means local businesses will have a single pane of glass management for all their communication needs.
And given how important the promise of just having one number in a distributed work environment has become, BYOC becomes a critical competitive advantage.
It has the potential to positively disrupt the call centre environment. SaaS providers can now deliver call centre PABX functionality baked into a ticketing system to empower an agent to manage customer queries from one solution instead of having to jump between multiple apps.
Scalability
BYOC, because it is born in the cloud, lends itself to the scalability required for modern organisations. Whether it is a handful of users, or thousands, BYOC and UCaaS deliver the flexibility and functionality needed to scale up or down as necessary.
With more people adopting a hybrid work approach and looking for technology to make them as productive as possible, the pandemic has been the catalyst for UCaaS and BYOC to provide businesses with simplified management for their communication environments.
By enabling voice calling through the preferred local carrier in the UCaaS environment (Zoom, Teams, or Webex), a company can leverage its existing relationship while getting all the functionality of a UC environment. This flexibility delivers a level of affordability and integration previously unheard of.
Thanks to BYOC, we have finally reached the point where unified communication is exactly that, all through the power of one number.
Greg de Chasteauneuf, Chief Technology Officer of Saicom