Avaya, a well-known name in unified communications and contact center technology, has announced changes to its cloud strategy that will directly affect businesses using its public cloud contact center solutions. The company plans to end support for public cloud contact centers with fewer than 200 seats, shifting its focus to larger, enterprise-level deployments. For those in the VoIP and UCaaS space, especially SMBs and mid-market firms, this is an important development to watch.
What’s Changing?
Avaya is discontinuing support for customers using its Avaya Experience Platform (AXP) Public Cloud offering if their deployments include fewer than 200 contact center seats. This decision comes after Avaya evaluated the business viability of its cloud operations and determined that smaller-scale deployments no longer align with its go-forward strategy.
Affected customers have already been notified and are being given the option to transition to other solutions before the July 2025 deadline. Avaya is also offering migration support for customers interested in either its larger-scale cloud offerings or its hybrid and on-premises solutions, which the company continues to develop.
The Rationale Behind the Shift
Avaya has long grappled with its cloud transformation, competing against more nimble and cloud-native providers like Genesys, NICE, Five9, and Talkdesk. While its AXP platform has shown promise for larger enterprises, the high operational cost of maintaining smaller deployments on public cloud infrastructure especially in a competitive pricing environment has made it a less viable offering.
Instead, Avaya is now sharpening its focus on serving enterprise-scale organizations with over 200 contact center seats and investing in its Experience Platform for those customers. This transition aligns with the company’s broader strategy to stabilize its financial footing and reassert itself as a major player in large-scale communications deployments.
Implications for SMBs and Mid-Sized Enterprises
For businesses using Avaya’s public cloud contact center platform with fewer than 200 seats, this news is more than a minor disruption; it represents a fundamental change in their UCaaS planning. These companies now face several critical decisions:
- Migration Timeline:
Organizations must act swiftly to identify and implement alternative solutions. Migration planning, vendor evaluation, and IT change management all require lead time.
- Vendor Reevaluation:
Many SMBs initially chose Avaya for its brand reputation and reliability. Now, they must consider new vendors that cater specifically to smaller-scale needs vendors who are both cost-effective and scalable.
- Operational Risk:
Businesses that delay migration risk facing reduced support or system vulnerabilities. This could result in service interruptions, lower customer satisfaction, and potential security issues.
- Budgetary Impact:
Transitioning from one contact center platform to another can entail upfront costs, including implementation fees, training, and potential service overlaps. However, this can also be an opportunity to reduce long-term costs by switching to more efficient, cloud-native alternatives.
What Should UCaaS Buyers Do Now?
If you are a VoIP or UCaaS buyer currently using or considering Avaya’s AXP Public Cloud solution with under 200 seats, here are practical next steps to mitigate disruption:
- Assess Your Current Deployment: Understand exactly how your contact center is structured—number of seats, feature dependencies, integrations, and workflows.
- Engage with Your Avaya Representative: Learn about any transition support Avaya offers, including possible migration incentives, access to hybrid platforms, or discounted rates with partners.
- Evaluate New UCaaS Providers: This is a good time to explore other providers better suited to your size and growth plans. Many cloud-native platforms offer flexible pricing, easy scalability, and modern features like AI-driven routing, omnichannel engagement, and native CRM integrations.
- Plan for a Seamless Migration: Start planning early to ensure you have time for pilot testing, employee training, and post-migration support.
The Bigger Picture: Industry-Wide Trends
Avaya’s decision highlights a broader shift within the UCaaS and contact center industry: a divergence between large-enterprise platforms and SMB-focused solutions. As vendors seek profitability in a saturated market, many are refining their target customer base. Cloud-native competitors like Zoom Contact Center, Dialpad, and Aircall continue to gain traction with smaller businesses due to their simplicity and low barrier to entry.
This also reflects the growing divide between legacy UC vendors trying to modernize and born-in-the-cloud challengers that build natively for scale, flexibility, and cost efficiency
Final Thoughts:
Avaya’s decision to leave the sub-200-seat public cloud contact center market is a prompt for businesses to take another look at their UCaaS plans. While the change might be disruptive in the short term, it also opens the door to adopting platforms better aligned with modern, cloud-focused, customer-driven needs.
For UCaaSReview.com readers, including IT leaders, contact center managers, and business decision-makers, this is a good moment to stay informed, weigh your options, and ensure your communications setup can support evolving demands.
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