Push-to-Talk over Cellular (PoC) is a way of communicating via cellular phone within or between one or several groups of users. The application allows customers to use their cellular phones in a way similar to a “walkie-talkie”.

A group could be anything from a local taxi company to a group of friends on vacation in the Caribbean. Groups can be established from a web based tool (pre-defined groups) or from the mobile phone by using the so called ad-hoc groups. Users can participate in several groups, one of them being the default group. Basically, this means that you can listen to several different groups/channels, but only speak to the members of the default group when you press the push-to-talk key.

The Azetti PoC Server provides the ability to host multiple domains, thereby enhancing security, scalability and configurability of groups.

The key advantages of PoC over a standard cellular phone call are a quick call setup and no need to dial numbers. By simply pressing a key on the phone, every member of a group can hear the talker simultaneously and immediately, without having to press the answer key.
Any phone or computer capable of IP communication can work as a PoC client, provided that enough processing and network capacity is available. A separate PoC client application will be available for mobile phones that do not have built-in PoC support. Moreover, a desktop PC client is available that can provide “dispatcher” functions as well as hands-free, ruggedized devices for harsh environments.
The main design goals of the Azetti PoC server are manageability, scalability and extensibility. The PoC server architecture is designed in accordance with the available PoC specifications and the integration requirements of mobile phone operators. Special consideration has been given to make the architecture compatible and easily extensible with new PoC standards, general VoIP, the Wireless Village and the 3GPP IMS features.

The Azetti PoC server is shipped with a state-of-the-art web based administrator interface, which allows the operator to manage domains, users and groups easily. The administration interface also has provisioning interfaces for third party provisioning systems. Also alerts and statistical reports can be viewed and monitored through the administrator interface. The system can also be monitored via SNMP.

The Azetti PoC server also includes an integrated Over The Air (OTA) provisioning interface for PoC account configuration in OTA capable terminals. The sever itself has its own SOAP based provisioning interface.

For billing purposes, PoC Server includes a flexible CDR generator and configurable interfaces compatible with virtually any available postpaid and prepaid system (e.g. Diameter).