Do all business phone systems include unified communications?

I agree with Klaus. If you're buying a phone system, count on UC - and there are many flavors - being an extra. To avoid overspending, do your homework, as UC offerings contain a wide range of features. Get a sense of what's out there, and then think about which features will be most important today.

No matter what solution you go with, there will be features you don't need, but the good news is that as you get familiar with UC, you will soon discover new features that would be useful. To get the most out of UC, you need to think of it as a fluid solution, and will always be evolving.

The other point Klaus makes is important too. If having UC is just as important to you as getting a new phone system, you really should give hosted a good, long look. For your size of operation, there are plenty of feature rich, affordable solutions out there. To get you started, Focus.com's 2010 Hosted VoIP Comparison Guide would be a great resource.

Good afternoon Clint,
The answer is most if not all IP based phone systems have UC.
Whether or not they charge extra for the features really is a secondary concern.
Keep in mind companies will make money on their phone systems
And/or the service they provide.
With this said a neutral recommendation is look at what your requirements are to include:
• Will you need it installed
• Will you require ongoing support for your new system
• Who will perform adds moves and changes to your system?
• How many phones and lines do you presently have (will require)?
• What is the combined cost of your current service ( phones, lines , High-speed internet , voice traffic )
• How much phone traffic do you generate today( monthly basis)
• Get a list of UC requirements from Asterisks or any other IP phone system they all basically offer the same UC features.
At this point I would then go and look for a new phone system with all the above information you can then get the system you require and at the best cost overall. In the end the overall best price is the complete system.
Dave Wells

Hi Clint,
As the guys mentioned above, UC is generally a modular based solution and hence can be difficult to benchmark solutions in a like for like basis. However, I would also highlight that UC brings additional security risks to your infrastructure, such as the the vulnerabilites relating to SIP protocols and the vulnerabilities in some VOIP softphones that can allow potential hackers access to data and systems on your host computer. I would recommend you ask potential suppliers about the security of their solutions and then take a risk management approach to comparing the business benefits (which can be excellent) against the potential threats to your infrastucture. I hope this helps.
Alan Moffat.

Clint, call me I have 16 years of experience in designing successfull systems. I would be happy to chat with you about this.212 592 9359