![]() ![]() The problem of how to enable a cloud-based service with the same capabilities was much more complex, however. One of the early challenges Microsoft faced with its on-premises products was how to replicate those features, especially for emergency calling, but the company managed to overcome them through clever design and engineering. All its complexity was largely hidden from users people came to expect that they could dial a local, long-distance or international number, and have the call go through with reliable billing, decent sound quality, and access to value-added services such as emergency calling ( 911 in the US, 999 in the UK, etc.), Caller ID and so on. A great deal of careful design, engineering, and politicking went into its creation and operation throughout the world. The public switched telephone network (PSTN) was the Internet before there was an Internet: a globally networked telecommunications system, built mostly on open protocols, that was at first expensive and limited but soon became ubiquitously available throughout nearly the entire world. That forced customers to adopt one of a couple of different strategies: Use Office 365 only for presence, conferencing and instant messaging deploy a hybrid environment and keep all the telephony features on-premises or forgo Lync Online and stick with existing on-premises systems. When Microsoft added Lync Online to the Office 365 product portfolio, it had a problem: customers who had bought the on-premises version of Lync would have to give up the ability to make and receive conventional phone calls through Lync Online. This success has come about because Skype for Business has grown to offer a robust feature set that matches or exceeds what legacy PBX systems offer, combined with a thriving ecosystem of devices and add-on products and all the benefits that come from its integration with Windows, Active Directory, Exchange and SharePoint. One of the areas where Microsoft’s Lync and Skype for Business products have had the most success is in replacing business phone systems (usually known as private branch exchange, or PBX, systems). ![]()
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