Avaya Gains Lead in Unified Messaging Revenue and Shipments in North America

New Frost & Sullivan Industry Research Ranks Avaya #1 in Unified Messaging Market


BASKING RIDGE, NJ--(Marketwire - April 28, 2008) - INTEROP Las Vegas - Booth 1843 -- Avaya Inc. achieved leadership of the North American voice and unified messaging market in both revenue and shipments, according to a key industry report measuring this core component of the unified communications (UC) sector.

The research, by global growth consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, analyzed all aspects of enterprise voice and unified messaging in 2007, including a competitive assessment of 14 vendors. Avaya led with over 27 percent of the market for revenues, more than 7 points ahead of its nearest competitor. In unified messaging shipments, Avaya led with 21 percent of the market, outpacing the next vendor by 6 points. Other companies measured in the report included Cisco, Nortel, Siemens and new market entrants.

Enterprise voice and unified messaging is a market that Frost & Sullivan expects to grow to $1 billion by 2013. Unified messaging is a technology that combines voicemail, email and fax into a single interface for easy access to all of one's messages. According to the research, many vendors view unified messaging as a first step towards unified communications -- a way to bring together many modes of communications such as email, voicemail, instant messaging, video and presence to deliver a seamless, always-on experience.

"Unified messaging is beginning to ride the unified communications wave," said Krithi Rao, industry analyst, Frost & Sullivan. "Avaya is front and center due to a smart, open and solutions-based unified messaging strategy. Avaya's leadership in messaging is a result of focusing on what customers need today, while helping ensure they have a simple migration path to greater value tomorrow."

The open and interoperable nature of Avaya's messaging platform, Avaya Modular Messaging, helped drive the company's leadership in this space. In its research, Frost & Sullivan states that Avaya Modular Messaging provides a "clear and non-disruptive migration path" to new unified communications capabilities. The research also highlights Avaya's "first mover's advantage in next-generation enterprise communications," due to its innovation in technologies such as Communications Enabled Business Processes.

"Avaya is committed to delivering advanced unified messaging technologies that enhance business productivity at an affordable price," said Jorge Blanco, vice president, Product Strategy, Avaya. "We believe these results demonstrate that customers understand the value of Avaya unified messaging tools and are putting them to work for real business benefit."

To access Frost & Sullivan's research, please visit: www.frost.com.

About Avaya Unified Messaging Solutions

Avaya Modular Messaging -- part of Avaya's portfolio of Unified Communications solutions -- combines messaging systems such as e-mail, voicemail, and fax into a single, scalable solution that seamlessly integrates with existing platforms. It can communicate with other Avaya messaging systems and non-Avaya voice mail systems in a network, and can be deployed with advanced speech automation capabilities for faster access to voicemail, email, calendars, tasks and corporate directories. Avaya provides messaging applications as part of its small, mid-sized and enterprise market solutions.

About Avaya

Avaya delivers Intelligent Communications solutions that help companies transform their businesses to achieve marketplace advantage. More than 1 million businesses worldwide, including more than 90 percent of the FORTUNE 500®, use Avaya solutions for IP Telephony, Unified Communications, Contact Centers and Communications-Enabled Business Processes. Avaya Global Services provides comprehensive service and support for companies, small to large.

For more information visit the Avaya Web site: http://www.avaya.com.

Contact Information: Media Relations: Jonathan Varman 908 953 6432 jvarman@avaya.com