Whether using cloud-based tools or offering these to other businesses, the kind of efficiency and flexibility cloud-based tools can offer has proven to be a big boost for many companies. Interactive Intelligence, meanwhile, recently released its second quarter earnings report, as well as its report for the last six months, and a big boost seemed the order of the day.
The second quarter earnings report showed total revenues of $96.3 million, which was up 21 percent over the same time in 2014. Recurring revenue, or revenue stemming from subscriptions and support fees, represented 56 percent of total revenues and was also up 21 percent over the same time last year. Cloud subscriptions were up 58 percent over 2014's numbers at $21.9 million, and license and hardware revenue were at $27 million and $15.5 million respectively, with both likewise up. The company added fully 68 new customers, and had 38 contracts with a total value of over $250,000.
Meanwhile, the first half of 2015 showed some noteworthy results as well. Total revenue for the quarter came in at $185.8 million, which was up 17 percent over the first half of 2014. Recurring revenues saw a 23 percent gain to $108.1 million, and revenues from cloud subscriptions were up 59 percent. Service revenues were up eight percent to $29.1 million, and revenues from licenses and hardware were up 10 percent at $48.6 million.
Additionally, Interactive Intelligence likewise brought out some new products in 2015's second quarter, including three new entries in the PureCloud line: PureCloud Collaborate Pro, PureCloud Communicate, and PureCloud Engage. Interactive Intelligence also landed a Leader position in the 2015 Gartner Magic Quadrant report in the field of contact center infrastructure for the seventh year running, and also recently added Ashley Vukovits as CFO and Bill Gildea as COO.
Note the dollars and proportions involved in the recurring revenue; this isn't a one-and-done proposition, but rather a fairly steady income stream, as those companies that have such tools in play aren't likely to drop said tools without a fairly major change in operations. A company with, for example, a cloud-based contact center system would either have to be closing outright or have a clear reason to make a switch. Neither of these are done without a lot of research and planning—except maybe the cases of closure which can happen all at once—so this income stream is likely secure for the foreseeable future. Some gains, however, seem to be slowing; while the company added 68 new customers in the second quarter of 2015, the company added 70 in the second quarter of 2014. This isn't a problem, really; at some point there are simply no new customers in the market that can be added or new customers appear so slowly that such can only be added to the roster gradually.
Still, it's clear that Interactive Intelligence's business is expanding, and cloud-based tools are leading the way forward. This new phenomenon in technology is providing plenty of advantages for its users, and giving some businesses a real boost in the bottom line. It may not carry on like this much longer, but technological development tends to make as many opportunities as it costs with obsolescence.