“The ‘Road Warriors’ are not the only workers who find themselves away from their desks,” states Bob Egan, president of Mobile Competency group. “Business is done between people, not voicemail systems. As the heart beat of business continues to accelerate so does the underlying costs of not being able, or even knowing how or when to reach someone the first time. Mobile phones are at the root of a more mobilized business society that makes the enterprise telephony problem more complex more costly and less secure without new innovations to traditional voice calling systems.”

Orative Enterprise Software allows users to gauge the importance of incoming calls by displaying details such as name, urgency and subject matter. It also delivers phone-based alerts like calendar reminders, conference notifications and call requests from colleagues. A presence-aware phonebook makes it possible to determine at-a-glance if somebody is available to talk before actually placing a call.

“Mobile phones are pervasive in business and Orative makes them infinitely more useful and reliable as enterprise communications tools,” said Paul Fulton, CEO of Orative. “We are eliminating the time and money wasted on phone tag by arming people with the information to know how and when to reach a colleague as well as a set of tools to know which calls to take and voicemails to check.”

Orative Enterprise Software is purchased and operated by enterprise customers for deployment to their employees. It is an end-to-end solution consisting of two key products: Orative Enterprise Server and Orative Client Software. Enterprises deploy the server software behind the corporate firewall for secure access to advanced communications services. Orative Enterprise Server is an enterprise-class offering that delivers scalability and reliability while leveraging and extending current data center assets. The server integrates with email/groupware platforms such as Microsoft Exchange® as well as corporate directories for access to contacts, calendar and other critical information. Orative Client Software operates on standard handsets that run open operating systems such as Symbian OS. End users provision their own handsets over-the-air without the need for special cables or hardware. This approach delivers a breakthrough in Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) that minimizes the IT burden typically associated with deployment of mobile applications. The complete solution works simultaneously across multiple networks and operators for consistent performance at work, home and on the road. Specific features include:

• Orative Phonebook – presence aware phonebook showing when contacts are available; integration of personal and corporate contacts into one list downloaded over-the-air to your handset; two-way synchronization of contact information; remote search.
• Active CallTM – request calls with colleagues by showing caller identity, subject and priority; easy text entry with pre-defined subject messages; flexible response options deliver simple feedback to callers; delay calls and receive call back reminders.
• Notifications – receive timely and relevant information from people and systems; send individual and group notifications from Orative portal; receive calendar appointment and conference call reminders from Microsoft Exchange®.
• Security – server securely deployed behind enterprise firewall; end-to-end SSL/TLS encryption; username and password log in; authenticate with existing LDAP directories; secure portal access; remotely delete data in case handset is lost or stolen.
• Integration – Microsoft Exchange® connectors provide access to contacts and calendar information; leverage existing security infrastructure and policies; search remote directories from handset.
• Management Portals – simple, web-based management allows IT staff to manage user activation, configuration and administration; set system privileges and security; report statistics and remotely manage devices. End user portal enables provisioning, phonebook management, user preferences, pre-defined text and message broadcast.

Pricing and Availability

Orative Enterprise Server and Orative Client Software are available now. Server licensing starts at $4,999 per processor plus $2,495 for a Client Access License Starter Pack supporting 25 users.

About Orative

Orative develops software solutions that improve the efficiency of voice communications for enterprise mobile phone users. Orative applications deliver time-saving availability and scheduling feedback to let users be more responsive to business demands. Orative transforms the mobile phone into a true business phone. The company was founded in 2002, and is headquartered in San Jose, CA. Orative has raised $18 million in financing to date, and is backed by top-tier investors including Mayfield, Trinity Ventures, and Diamondhead Ventures. For more information, visit www.orative.com