November 11, 2006
Why Switch To Asterisk IP PBX?
John Edwards lists 5 good reasons for switching to Asterisk for an IP PBX, and 9-step guide to getting started with Asterisk. Asterisk is of course open source software (OSS) so the full source code is available.
Open source IP telephony is getting a push by companies like Fonality, Digium (makers of Asterisk) and Polycom in terms of new partnerships, hardware and software. While I'm a big fan of open source, history shows a reluctance on the part of middle managers in larger enterprises to accept such software. I'm really hoping that this isn't the case with IP telephony, because such options afford robust, customizable solutions that have as much power as more expensive offerings.
If OSS IP telephony companies are smart, they'll go after the SMBs and not worry about enterprise, who'll want more "name brand" solutions from companies like Cisco or even Microsoft, who have vowed to integrate IP communcations into their new Vista operating system in Jan 2007. My feeling is that there are enough SMBs out there that would benefit OSS IP telephony, and would welcome such an option as well as the price. But since the cost and availability of "experts" who can add modules or debug problems may be a factor, solutions with a set of plug-and-play SMB/ CRM modules will likely capture the most interest.
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