PBX vendors have hit back at claims they will “struggle to remain relevant” as unified communications and collaboration (UCC) technologies converge.

Analyst Gartner revealed the UCC market is set to grow 22 per cent this year to a global worth of $7.4bn.

Research vice president Steve Blood said: “Venerable telecoms vendors such as Siemens, Alcatel-Lucent, Avaya and Aastra will struggle to remain relevant as organisations increasingly seek rich and integrated UC and collaboration services.”

Gartner predicts firms will work with fewer providers as distinctions between comms and collaboration kit disappear within four years. More than half of vendors are ill-equipped to be one-stop shops, it added.

Avaya’s senior director of EMEA channels Jan Lawford said: “Customers will consolidate their vendors. Given our financial strength and vision, Avaya expects to be one of the few that outlasts this phase and succeeds in bringing UC into the mainstream.”

Aastra’s UK general manager Michael Calvert claimed his firm was “best-placed to be a long-term partner” to end users. “We now offer a comprehensive portfolio and see UCC as an opportunity for us,” he added.

Nigel Jones, business development manager at Alcatel-Lucent, said: “What we understand as UC today is only the beginning. Alcatel-Lucent has a holistic approach and will play a significant role in delivering future UC solutions ­ ironically, solutions on which many desktop players will depend.”