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Business phones are of course crucial to the success of any firm, as communicating with suppliers, co-workers - and most importantly customers is a pre-requisite for making money. There is a long history of business communication equipment, from the Meridian phone to ROLM Redwood. This article looks at the background to some of the more successful brands, and what made them popular in the world of business.

The Meridian phone is technically the Meridian Norstar - which itself later became Nortel Norstar. It is a PBX - this, for those who are uninitiated into the world of business telecoms, is a Private Branch Exchange. In the United Kingdom the brand Meridian phone (or Norstar) is sold by BT (British Telecom). Though it might be known as a ’small office’ system, it can nevertheless hook-up up to 192 phones.

Competing with the Meridian phone was the AT & T Merlin (which is now known as the Avaya) did not do quite as well as the Meridian phone, which was popular. Eventually, after a number of variations, the system could accommodate 70 lines - the 122 fewer than the Meridian. Nevertheless it became a desirable phone, of which the brands Legend and Magix were prominent.

Around at the same time as the Meridian phone and Merlin Systems, were business phone systems from the ROLM Corporation. ROLM was one of the first brands to successfully sell a voicemail system, so the ROLM has secured its place in the annals of business telephone history. The company was formed as an acronym of the surnames of the founding members - namely Gene Richeson, Ken Oshman, then Walter Loewenstern, and finally Robert Maxfield.

The world of business phones is of course a very competitive one, and as there is so much revenue potential in the sector that it is likely to remain a highly competitive one. The history of the business is a chequered one, with AT&T, Meridian phone systems and ROLM playing just parts in it.

As a piece of machinery in the world of business, there are few devices that are as important as the phone system. The ability to pick up the blower and speak to someone immediately makes doing business and accomplishing tasks of all kinds much quicker and more efficient. Communicating via the phone is unlikely to be improved upon - for example the video phone tends to only be for high profile exchanges - whereas the good old fashioned telephone remains the easiest, least stressful way to communicate.

Anna Stenning is an expert on Meridian phones and many other phone systems, having written extensively about them. Find out more at http://www.freestyle-comms.co.uk/