While I'm not at VoiceCon this year, I've been following the developments there closely. Public info about Wave 14 (the next version of OCS) is starting to trickle out.

Some important info:

1. Support for new standalone IP phones being unveiled by Polycom and Astra. I've been _begging_ for MS to incorporate more standalone devices for a long time. These look promising.
   1. Polycom's site has few pictures, but I found this pdf that gives you a sneak peek. Check out the "CX phones". Note the Cx3000 – non-roundtable conference phone.
   2. Astra's got some new and interesting OCS-optimized phones. Good info on the technical specs, too.
2. Survivable Branch Appliances. This will give you the ability to put OCS clients and phones in remote locations (over the WAN) and have them still work even if the WAN link back to the OCS pool is down.
   1. NET has been my choice for voice gateways over the last year for their ability to handle remote survivability with their own code among other innovative ideas. The new UX series looks like it will be doing it according to the new Wave 14 specs
3. Microsoft VP, Gurdeep Singh Pall's keynote address, talking about Wave 14. You need to register to see the keynotes, but it's worth it.
4. Microsoft's response to a hypothetical RFP. Tons of awesome info about the new version. An absolute must-read!

Bottom line: OCS is being shored up to obsolete your PBX. For real, this time. J