Corporate Wireless IP Telephony

Abstract: IP telephony is defined as the transport of telephony calls over an IP network. IP telephony exploits the integration of voice and data networks. However, enterprises are still reluctant to deploy IP telephony despite the potential increase in productivity and reduction of costs. The principal concerns are: can IP telephony provide the same level of performance in terms of security, reliability, and scalability as traditional telephony? If so, are its proclaimed benefits such as flexibility and mobility cost-effective? The aim of this thesis is to analyze how to deploy IP telephony in large corporations - while providing the necessary security and facilitating mobility. Through the different parts of this thesis, we will analyze the applicable technologies, along with their integration and management. We will focus on the essential requirements for an enterprise of scalability, reliability, flexibility, high-availability, and cost-effectiveness. The massive changes brought about due to the deregulation of telecommunications in nearly all countries, the increasingly global nature of business, and the progressively affordable and power technology underlying information and communication technologies have lead to increasing adoption of IP telephony by residential and commercial users. This thesis will examine these technologies in the context of a very large distributed corporation.