Hosted PBX

Packet8's Virtual Office VoIP Hosted PBX phone service provides small to medium sized businesses with a cost-effective, feature-rich alternative to traditional business phone systems.

Virtual Office can replace the need for PBXs for companies located in the same building or in regional offices spread across the globe. In addition to enterprise-class PBX functionality, Virtual Office service plans offer unlimited local and long distance calling and unlimited extension dialing, regardless of location, for a flat monthly rate.

Each Virtual Office extension includes a powerful suite of features, often reserved for high-end, premises-based PBX systems, that can be easily administered through the Web, by phone, from voicemail prompts, or by calling 8x8. These features include: auto-attendant, ring groups, business-class voice-mail, direct dial number, conference bridge, toll-free extension to extension calling worldwide, and much more.

Packet8 can handle the entire system configuration as well as provide user and password access to the Packet8 Web-based online portal, enabling complete self-service system and extension controls for the user 24/7.

What is Asterisk?

Asterisk is a complete PBX in software. It runs on Linux, BSD and MacOSX and provides all of the features you would expect from a PBX and more. Asterisk does voice over IP in many protocols, and can interoperate with almost all standards-based telephony equipment using relatively inexpensive hardware.

Asterisk provides Voicemail services with Directory, Call Conferencing, Interactive Voice Response and Call Queuing. It has support for three-way calling, caller ID services, ADSI, SIP and H.323 (as both client and gateway). Check the Features section for a more complete list.

Asterisk needs no additional hardware for Voice over IP. For interconnection with digital and analog telephony equipment, Asterisk supports a number of hardware devices, most notably all of the hardware manufactured by Asterisk's sponsors, Digium™. Digium has single and quad span T1 and E1 interfaces for interconnection to PRI lines and channel banks as well as a single port FXO card and a one to four-port modular FXS and FXO card.Also supported are the Internet Line Jack and Internet Phone Jack products from Quicknet.

Asterisk supports a wide range of TDM protocols for the handling and transmission of voice over traditional telephony interfaces. Asterisk supports US and European standard signalling types used in standard business phone systems, allowing it to bridge between next generation voice-data integrated networks and existing infrastructure. Asterisk not only supports traditional phone equipment, it enhances them with additional capabilities.

Using the Inter-Asterisk eXchange (IAX™) Voice over IP protocol, Asterisk merges voice and data traffic seamlessly across disparate networks. While using Packet Voice, it is possible to send data such as URL information and images in-line with voice traffic, allowing advanced integration of information.

Asterisk provides a central switching core, with four APIs for modular loading of telephony applications, hardware interfaces, file format handling, and codecs. It allows for transparent switching between all supported interfaces, allowing it to tie together a diverse mixture of telephony systems into a single switching network.

Saving $700,000 with a VoIP Overhaul

When Robert Fort took charge of information technology at Virgin Entertainment Group in North America, he was dazzled by the company's array of music, movies, and games -- and the hip in-store kiosks customers could use to sample the wares.

What he found decidedly less dazzling: the communications system that connected those stores.

It was expensive, cumbersome, and couldn't deliver sample content to would-be buyers. So last year Fort made a radical move. He scrapped the old phone network altogether, and, with the help of SBC Communications (now AT&T) and Cisco Systems, he moved the voice traffic from the fifteen U.S. Virgin Megastores onto the company's data network.

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Hosted IP PBX

When a business needs a new office phone system or to upgrade its current one, there are many options. Hosted IP PBX phone systems are becoming increasingly popular because they provide the latest in features, support, and flexibility, while cutting costs and freeing IT staff to focus on other tasks. A hosted PBX is an alternative to premise-based PBX or legacy key systems, delivering business-grade calling features and integrating multiple services over a single network connection.

Not only does a hosted service minimize costly hardware expenses, but it also takes most of the labor out of maintaining and upgrading a phone system. Some options also allow businesses to keep their existing phone systems which helps to reduce up-front capital investment, while provididng all the features businesses need to improve communications and enhance productivity.