Marines bring IP telephony to the battlefield

You may remember those old war movies where Marines in battle are shown communicating over static-prone two-way radio.

The U.S. Marines are fighting battles still. Perhaps even as you read this. But now, they've taken a major step to incorporate IP telephony technology into their battlefield communications.

Let me explain. The Marines have this technology called Joint Enhanced Core Communications System, or JECCS for short.

This Humvee-mounted setup enables mobile network connectivity between land and sea operations. It can handle both secure and non-secure voice and data telecommunications.

Eleven of these Humvee-mounted systems will soon be fitted with a Shout900 IP telephony system as well as a Promina multiservice access telecommunications traffic manager platform.

Both solutions are from N.E.T. Federal. I know,the name of the company sounds more like a bank than what it really is -a subsidiary of Internet telephony platform provider Network Equipment Technologies.

Would you bank on IP telephony if your life depended on it?

I'd be particularly interested in TalkBack posts from current and former Marines and other members of our Armed Services.