Sorenson SIPRelay Call Center Opens in Utah
October 02, 2008
Sorenson Communications, a provider of Video Relay Services for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals who use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate, has opened its newly-completed Sorenson IP Relay (SIPRelay) Call Center, in Price, Utah.
The 9,500-square-foot SIPRelay Call Center was created in response to the increased demand for SIPRelay services and has been operating in a temporary Price facility since February.
SIPRelay is a free service that enables deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, located anywhere in the country, to quickly and easily communicate with hearing phone users from any PC or mobile device.
The SIPRelay Call Center employs both part-time and full-time individuals as Communications Assistants (CAs) and support personnel. As demand for SIPRelay increases, the employee base will grow to more than 100 individuals, all of whom will receive initial and ongoing training.
"We are pleased to be opening this new SIPRelay Call Center in Price, where there are many students who need part-time and flexible work and residents who seek full-time employment. The SIPRelay Call Center in Price and the Communications Assistants who work there will provide much-needed services to deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals,” said Pat Nola, president and CEO of Sorenson Communications, in a statement.
Sorenson Communications is a provider of industry-leading communications services and products. The company’s offerings include Sorenson Video Relay Service (SVRS), the video interpreting service; the Sorenson (VP-100 and VP-200) videophones; Sorenson IP Relay (SIPRelay), enabling text-to-speech relay communication; and Sorenson Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), a fee-based remote interpreting service.
In September, Sorenson announced that deaf and hard-of-hearing SIPRelay users can now receive calls from hearing associates on their computers or mobile devices while using AOL Instant Messenger (AIM). Using a standard telephone, hearing callers can contact deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals by dialing the toll free number 1-866-SIPRelay (1-866-747-7352) and providing the communications assistant with the deaf individual's AIM Screen Name.
The assistant connects to the deaf individual and relays the call through text-based messages, then speaks the deaf SIPRelay user's response to the hearing individual.
SIPRelay users can create an "away" message on AIM, which alerts callers to the fact that he or she is still connected to AIM, but is currently unavailable or away from the device. Hearing callers can then leave a message, which the deaf individual will receive the next time he or she is available.
All that is needed to use SIPRelay is a computer with an Internet connection or a mobile device with AOL Instant Messenger (AIM). SIPRelay calls are quickly relayed through one of Sorenson's professional assistants, who are available 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a week.
Anil Sharma is a contributing editor for ContactCenterSolutions. To read more of Anil's articles, please visit his columnist page.Edited by
Eve Sullivan
