<p>For enterprises looking to do more with less, software defined networking (SDN) might be the solution du jour. However, we need to recognize that networks have already been streamlined to a high degree through the adoption of Voice over IP (VoIP) and Unified Communications (UC).</p><p>The simple act of uniting voice and data has done wonders for the enterprise bottom line. Benefits can be seen in capital expenditure through the elimination of redundant network infrastructure, and in operational expenditure through the lowering of service rates for long-haul data transmission.</p><p>Nevertheless, this progress has brought large enterprises to a crossroads of sorts. Is it better to continue to lease distributed SIP trunking and other services from major carriers and specialty providers? Or does it make more sense to centralize SIP topologies using private networks for backhaul?</p><p>Somewhat surprisingly in this age of distributed architectures, many organizations are adopting the latter solution. Acme Packet estimates that nearly 60 percent of organizations in North America and Europe are opting for centralization in a bid to reduce the number of trunks and implement more effective management and policy control across disparate business entities. While support for distributed topologies still exists (primarily due to service limitations or local PTSN requirements), Acme notes that companies that successfully centralize UC operations see a four-fold reduction in costs.</p><p><a href="http://www.enterprisenetworkingplanet.com/datacenter/datacenter-blog/uc-brings-carrier-challenges-to-the-enterprise.html">Keep reading...</a></p>