What is in a UCaaS Platform Now? Unified Communications is a concept that emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s, born out of the desire to unify different communication methods such as voice, video, file sharing, instant messaging, and fax, into a single, integrated platform. The intent: simplify and consolidate all forms of business communications and the result would be better communication, collaboration, and productivity at a lower cost than buying individual products 8 Initially, UC solutions were on-premises systems that required serious investment in hardware and software, as well as ongoing maintenance and upgrades. These systems were complex and often required specialized IT staff trained to manage and maintain them. ª The evolution of UC into Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) was driven by the advent of cloud computing and the as-a-service business model. UCaaS extended the unified communications concept of offering a variety of communication and collaboration applications and delivered those over an IP network from a third-party provider. ª Now after more than a decade of UCaaS in the marketplace, how are these platforms evolving? Voice is still a mission-critical feature; UCaaS systems offer voice and all the other expected services, including video and text communications. With the increasing trend towards remote work and the need for tools that support collaboration from anywhere, providing a better communication experience that enhances worker satisfaction and productivity is a unifying theme, so to speak. ª This is seen with the increased demand for tools like shared calendars, screen sharing, and file sharing. In some cases, there are overlaps with contact center functions and services through integrations with CRM (customer relationship management) and other back-office systems. ª Ironically enough, the rise of hybrid and remote work has driven a need for “unification” of information created by workers and data about worker productivity; many UCaaS platforms now come with an array of analytics to track the use of UCaaS tools, including user engagement metrics and overall employee activity trends. The integration of generative AI technology into UCaaS platforms and other applications is in its early stages but also promises productivity improvements 8 Leveraging generative AI as the integration ‘glue’ between enterprise knowledge discovery and communications, for example, could provide further value for UCaaS customers. With vendors having successfully driven widespread adoption of UCaaS, buyers are now prone to switching between vendors, driving price compression in the market. All this leaves a question: will all the new capabilities and technologies impact the size of UCaaS contracts? And what capabilities are valuable enough that customers will pay more for them? Copyright © 2025 AVANT Communications, Inc. 2