UK-based UCaaS provider Gamma Communications expands into Australia

Gamma Communications, a UK-based provider of Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS), has expanded operations into Australia, with a view to the broader APAC region.

Mike Mills, Gamma's MD of service providers, said a growing number of global operator partners were asking to extend the company's Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) replacement services into APAC so they could offer the same voice experience everywhere through one provider they already utilise.

"Australia was the obvious next step; it builds naturally on our existing footprint as a fully licensed voice provider across 27 countries, with strong coverage across the UK, Europe and North America," he said.

"Adding Australia and APAC means customers can keep things simple as they scale, rather than stitching together different local carriers in every market."

Gamma is licensed to deliver full PSTN replacement across those 27 countries, including local numbers, inbound and outbound calling.

As well as UCaaS products, Gamma also provides solutions and services covering cloud-based SIP trunking and hosted PBX, cyber security, enterprise managed solutions, managed networks and business connectivity and broadband, among other products.

In addition to the UK, where the company is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, it also operates in Germany, the Netherlands and Spain.

In the UK, Gamma serves SMEs through an extensive network of channel partners and for larger businesses and public sector organisations, Gamma Enterprise engages directly to sell, deliver, and support more complex, integrated communications solutions. 

Building on existing partners and team in-country

Mills said the company has already started working with a small number of strategic partners in Australia as part of its market entry.

"We have been deliberate about getting the basics right first," he told techpartner.news.

"Licensing, regulatory approvals, interconnect and service quality all had to be in place before we pushed for scale.

"Now those foundations are there, we plan to grow our channel ecosystem in a measured but ambitious way. The focus is on supporting service providers, systems integrators and UCaaS platforms that want to expand internationally without building and running complex carrier infrastructure of their own."

The company already has senior sales and commercial leadership based in Australia, supported by a dedicated technical and operational team in the Philippines.

Mills explained that this setup helps to keep the company close to customers and partners locally, while providing the scale and resilience needed to run carrier-grade services across the region.

"The regional team is backed by Gamma’s wider international engineering and network operations teams from day one," he said.

"As demand grows, we expect to expand our presence across Australia and APAC, always with a strong focus on service quality, compliance and long-term sustainability."

Despite complexity, opportunities for partners exists

Mills said that because Gamma sits underneath the application layer, it isn't trying to compete with UCaaS, CPaaS or CCaaS providers - "if anything, we exist to support them."

"For partners, Gamma acts as the carrier and enablement layer; we deliver PSTN replacement, SIP, numbering and regulatory compliance across multiple regions, while partners stay in control of the customer relationship, brand and overall service experience," he said.

"This is particularly attractive for cloud communications providers that already operate internationally or are being pulled into new regions by their customers. Many of them already work with Gamma today and are simply extending that relationship into Australia and APAC, rather than taking on the risk and complexity of managing multiple local carriers."

Despite APAC being "one of the most complex regions in the world for voice services", according to Mills - licensing, numbering, call routing, lawful intercept and local presence requirements vary by country, and "very few providers can deliver a consistent service across multiple markets" - many countries in the region are still moving away from legacy telephony, opening up an opportunity for Gamma to capitalise on.

"As traditional PSTN services are retired, organisations are being pushed to modernise, which is driving demand for cloud-based PSTN replacement," he told techpartner.news.

"This is where Gamma’s experience really matters. We have spent years operating in heavily regulated markets, so we understand how to manage that complexity properly.

"For partners, that means they can scale across APAC with confidence, maintain service quality and stay compliant, without relying on fragmented local carrier solutions."

Mills said that Gamma also sees strong demand from organisations running BPO and back-office operations across APAC.

"For them, reliable and compliant voice services are business-critical, not a nice-to-have," he said.

"While we can support a wider global footprint using toll-free and two-way voice, our main focus stays firmly on PSTN replacement, particularly where customers are moving away from ISDN and legacy local carriers.

"Australia stands out because of its mature enterprise market, clear regulatory framework and fast-growing UCaaS ecosystem. From there, APAC offers scale without forcing partners into complex, country-by-country carrier relationships."