Plantronics and IBM Offer Tools for Businesses to Collaborate and Work Smarter

Plantronics Delivers New Functionality for IBM Unified Communication and Collaboration (UC²) Solutions.

SANTA CRUZ, C.A., – May 18, 2010 – Plantronics, Inc. (NYSE: PLT) today announced new audio functions and tools for the current IBM Lotus® Sametime® and Sametime Unified Telephony (SUT) products to help employees stay connected and be more productive — even when on the go. The Plantronics Sametime Plug-In, new software that delivers intelligent call control between Plantronics’ full Unified Communications product portfolio and IBM Sametime, provides users with exceptional online meeting and telephony experiences with enhanced audio quality. Epilio uses IBM Lotus Sametime to increase the effectiveness of its virtual workforce by integrating voice, data and video communications on the PC.  ”As an organization with no single physical office location, we rely heavily on our Unified Communications infrastructure to provide customers with the high level of expertise and responsiveness they expect.  With the new Plantronics software we’ve experienced immediate usability and productivity benefits,” said Carl Tyler, director at Epilio, “With its intuitive one-click call control functionality integration, the Plantronics endpoints have transformed our PCs into true audio platforms, allowing our employees to quickly switch between PC-based VoIP calls and customer telephone calls without missing a beat.”

The Plantronics Sametime Plug-In enables users to place and take voice and video calls, as well as join a web conference, on the go — letting them work the way they want. The new plug-in provides integrated audio and video features by providing remote answer/end, mute and volume control so users can gain hands-free mobility and easily control calls directly from the audio device. The functionality extends to Plantronics’ wireless products, including the Voyager® PRO UC and the Savi® Office system, to enable users to switch conversations between multiple devices, including the PC, desk phone and mobile phone, from the audio device with a single button press.

Plantronics provides audio endpoint products that have been tested and have met the interoperability tests in IBM’s SUT Testing Center, assuring complete software and hardware interoperability. “IBM and Plantronics have been working closely together to deliver a very rich user experience that leverages Plantronics’ full portfolio of  audio devices with Sametime’s extensive UC capabilities,” said Bruce Morse, vice president, Unified Communication and IBM Lotus at IBM. “The result is a UC solution that delivers an enhanced end-user experience, is extremely easy to deploy and accelerates customer adoption of UC.”

“Plantronics strives to assure that IBM customers realize the full value of their investment in Sametime,” said Jeffrey Siegel, vice president of Business Development at Plantronics. “We do that through intelligent audio devices that deliver great meeting experiences through unparalleled sound quality for all and comfort for the user. The agility that comes from being wirelessly connected to Sametime and controlling all audio functions through a single Plantronics device makes the experience, and the value, that much richer.”

IBM Sametime customers can download the software today at www.plantronics.com/ibmuc. For more information, please visit the Plantronics Voice of UC blog.

Plantronics – The Voice of Unified Communications™

Plantronics offers the industry’s most complete portfolio of corded and wireless Unified Communications audio endpoints. Widely recognized for their sound quality, reliability and simplicity, Plantronics’ audio solutions help companies broaden the benefits of IP communications throughout the extended enterprise, fostering better business communications and efficiency regardless of where professionals are working.

Plantronics’ UC-ready products.

Plantronics and IBM