Voice Options in Connect
There are various options with Telecom and VoIP in Connect and although these are documented in detail, I have included a more ‘readable’ comparison here form my perspective here, this might help you understand what is possible. This is partially available in Connect 7.5, but really you should move up to Connect if you are already making these changes for external access
‘Universal Voice’ is configured to be linked to the Connect Meeting Room, the integration allows the organizer to tie any toll-free number to the meeting room. Any toll-free number can be used
When the meeting starts, Connect will also start the conference (if it is not already running) and then the host of the meeting has the option to have the Connect Meeting room ‘listen in’ to the conference call and the option to ‘re-broadcast’ the conference conversations via VoIP.
Any conversations on the toll-free number are re-broadcast to VoIP and any VoIP conversations are rebroadcast to the toll-free number. Everyone hears everyone else
The Connect Meeting Room records all conversations automatically if required. There is no need for ‘hardware phone taps’, this functionality in Connect can be considered as a ‘software phone-tap’.
The use-case might be that you want to have the executives or presenters use the familiar phone technology and the participants use the VoIP, that way you only pay for the phone side of things and the vast majority of users can be on VoIP through their computers. Particularly good with ‘passive’ one-way calls, but entirely useable for two-way calls as well
In this case the control over muting and other voice options for the phone-based participants is not on an individual basis as Connect is simply ‘dialing in’ as a participant to the wider toll-free conference call. VoIP participants can be seen and muted etc. as required.
I do not believe Universal Voice can be set to create sub-conferences in Breakout Rooms, although I would have to test if the ‘VoIP’ side would work in this case, the phone toll-free aspect would absolutely not create sub-conferences in Breakout Rooms
‘Fully Integrated Conferencing’ refers to the integration of the specialist telephony providers (Meeting One, Premiere, Intercall) and in this case the conference can again be started from inside connect when it has been integrated with the room.
This ‘fully-integrated’ option cannot be used with other toll-free numbers, only with the suggested providers
As each phone participant in this case can call from the meeting, they can each be muted and controlled individually from the Attendee List Pod. Additional Participants have the option to join the conference call with the toll-free number or to use VoIP from their computer.
As with Universal Voice, everything is re-broadcast to other VoIP participants and toll-free users and everything should be recorded. Everyone (again) hears everyone
The toll-free phone conference side of this deployment would create sub-conferences automatically in the case of Breakout Rooms. From what I can see the ‘VoIP’ aspects would also be split to associate with the sub-conferences but the VoIP participants in this case your need to select ‘connect my audio’ again from the Breakout Room, not a big deal. It acts rather like a camera in this case
‘Full VoIP Only’ refers to the use of VoIP and no telephone integration at all.
In this case Connect will use VoIP to allow people to communicate and record the whole VoIP conversation. There is no option to integrate phone conversations in this case other than using a mic from the computer to ‘listen’ to a speakerphone or a ‘hardware phone-tap’
This is automatically recorded if that option is chosen in the Meeting Room
Full VoIP will break into sub-conferences automatically for Breakout Rooms