Acme Packet, a leading session border control solutions provider, recently announced that it has achieved the interoperability qualification with Microsoft Communications Server 2007 R2.

Acme Packet’s (News - Alert) integrated Session Border Controller, the Net-Net session director, was deployed along with Microsoft Office Communications Server SIP trunking and Verizon Business’ (News - Alert) IP trunking services in the qualification test, which was conducted by tekVizion Labs, a third-party testing company.

TekVizion is Microsoft’s testing partner in its Unified Communication Open Interoperability Program (UC OIP), a qualification program for SIP/PSTN gateways, IP PBXs and SIP trunking services. It certifies that the customers will be able to experience seamless setup, with qualified telephony infrastructure, support and other services, offered by the Microsoft’s Unified Communications (News - Alert) software and Microsoft Office Communications Online. Acme Packet has more than 10,000 systems deployed globally to more than 1100 customers.

Acme Packets offers a wide range of applications ranging from VoIP trunking to hosted services for enterprises and residents, as well as fixed-mobile convergence. Its products include the Net-Net suite of products, such as Session Border Controllers, Session-Aware (News - Alert) Load Balancers, Session Routing Proxies, and Multi-service Security Gateways, are SIP, H.323, MGCP/NCS, RTSP, and H.248 compliant. It delivers trusted, first-class unified interactive communications such as data, voice, video and multimedia sessions and services across the IP networks, and collaborations.

Now Acme Packets’ UC OIP qualification can provide small, medium and large businesses a SIP-based network. The Net-Net SBCs, can integrate OCS 2007 R2 and IP PBX solutions, and then can be deployed directly in Verizon’s IP trunking, which is UC OIP-qualified, between the OCS Mediation Server and Verizon’s Private IP or even to Internet Dedicated Access networks.

"With Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Microsoft (News - Alert) has successfully extended the power of unified communications to embrace desktop voice communications,” said Seamus Hourihan, the executive vice president of marketing and product management for Acme, in a statement. “Acme Packet is now taking this offering one step further by giving Verizon Business IP Trunking customers the flexibility to implement Microsoft OCS with our industry-leading Net-Net SBC."

"Acme Packet SBCs play a critical role for many of our IP trunking customers,” said Thomas Dalrymple, product management director of global voice solutions with Verizon Business. “The ability for our VoIP service to work in an integrated fashion with Acme Packet SBCs gives our customers in the U.S. and Europe greater flexibility when designing Verizon IP trunking with Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2."