Vodafone buys unified communication consultant Bluefish

01.12.2011
Vodafone's Global Enterprise is strengthening its professional services arm by acquiring British consultant Bluefish Communications, which will form the basis of a new unified communication and collaboration practice, the operator said on Thursday.

The Global Enterprise unit serves Vodafone's largest multinational customers, and will use Bluefish's expertise to work with them on new collaboration services, such as video conferencing and presence awareness.

Vodafone didn't disclose how much it is paying for Bluefish. The company was founded in 2004 and is based in Reading, U.K.

Vodafone's strategy in the enterprise space is to move beyond just mobile telephony in order to make it a more valuable partner to its customers. The acquisition of Bluefish is another piece of that puzzle, according to Steve Blood, vice president at market research company Gartner.

Unified communication combines voice, instant messaging and video into one, along with the ability to see how colleagues want to communicate -- so-called presence.

It holds the promise of better collaboration between employees, business partners and clients, according to Vodafone.

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