A-Z Telecoms Jargon Busting

The smart way to share calls. It sends each incoming call to the right person straight away — usually the one who’s been free the longest. Great for call centres and handy for tracking how well your team’s performing.

Old-school broadband that runs over your copper phone line. Faster to download than upload — perfect for watching videos, less perfect for sending large files. It’s being switched off in 2025 as part of the PSTN shutdown (see our live blog for further information).

Take payments over the phone with a live agent — without ever exposing card details. Simple, secure, and fully PCI-compliant.

A receptionist that never takes a break. Greets callers, gives them options (“Press 1 for Sales, 2 for Service”), and sends them where they need to go. In our Unified Comms system, it’s called a “calling menu.”

Your broadband’s “speed limit.” More bandwidth means more data can move at once — giving you quicker downloads, smoother calls, and less waiting. Measured in Mbps (megabits per second) or Gbps (gigabits per second).

The building blocks of digital life. A bit is a simple 0 or 1 (off/on). A byte is 8 bits grouped together — enough to store a letter, number, or symbol. Bytes are how we measure everything from files to internet speeds.

An add-on to your main service. Need more call storage? Extra call-handling features? That’s a bolt-on. You choose what’s useful for your business and skip what’s not.

A quick-glance light system on your phone that shows if a colleague’s line is free or busy. Saves you calling them just to get an engaged tone.

Also called call diversion. Sends calls somewhere else — another extension, a group, the operator, or your mobile. You can forward all calls, only when you’re busy, or just if you don’t pick up.

Record calls safely and securely — whether it’s for compliance, training, or settling disputes. Clear, simple, and always under your control.

Software that turns call records into useful info — like who’s using the phones most, where costs are going, and whether you’ve got enough people to handle demand.

A phone system that lives online up in the “clouds” instead of in your office. Connect via the internet or a private network, with more flexibility and less maintenance.

CRM is a software that keeps all your customer info in one place — from contact details to service history — so you can look after them better.

A phone number that goes straight to a specific handset. Works with VoIP systems so callers can reach you directly without going through reception.

Dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) payments that keep card details hidden from the agent. Secure, seamless, and PCI-compliant.

A dedicated, high-speed fibre connection built for business. Delivers guaranteed speeds (100Mbps, 1Gbps, or 10Gbps) with no sharing and rock-solid reliability. Perfect for internet, private networks, or linking sites together.

A service that runs over physical fibre or copper cables, not over-the-air tech like 5G or Wi-Fi.

Smart tools built into our PCI-compliant payments and CRM. They work quietly in the background to keep customer data safe and stop fraud before it happens.

Lets you ring a whole group of phones by dialling one number. Can be set so all phones ring at once (ring group) or the system hunts for the first free person to answer (hunt group).

Internet speeds of 1 gigabit per second (1Gbps) or higher. That’s around 1,000 Mbps — fast enough for crystal-clear video calls, huge file uploads and downloads, and lots of people online at the same time without slowing down.

A phone system that lives in the cloud instead of your office. You pay a subscription for user licences, your handsets stay on-site, and all the clever features come from a secure data centre.

A location where you can get online via Wi-Fi — usually through a public or business wireless access point.

A way to share incoming calls across a team. The system looks for a free extension — either always starting from the first one, or sharing calls evenly so no one gets swamped.

The automated menu system that greets callers and gives them options like “Press 1 for Billing, Press 2 for Support.” It makes sure customers reach the right team quickly.

Real-time online chat with another person. Think WhatsApp, iMessage, or Teams — quick back-and-forth without picking up the phone.

A unique set of numbers that identifies your device on a network. IPv4 is the older format, IPv6 is the newer, much bigger pool of addresses that keeps the internet running smoothly.

A variation in the delay of data packets sent over a network. Too much jitter can make VoIP calls sound choppy or distorted. A stable connection keeps jitter low so calls stay clear.

Fancy words used to make something simple sound complicated. We avoid it like the plague. If we can’t explain it in plain English, we won’t sell it to you. (Yes, we’re making this one about us.)

The building blocks of digital data. 1KB = 1024 bytes. Used to measure broadband speeds and storage space, so you know how much you can move or keep.

Connects PCs, phones, and servers inside the same building so they can share data, printers, or applications.

A signed letter that gives a provider permission to move (or “port”) your phone number to a new network. Without it, your number can’t be transferred.

The standard way to measure broadband speed. One Mbps is 1,000 kilobits per second. The bigger the number, the faster your internet — meaning smoother calls, streaming, and downloads.

A private network setup that links multiple business sites together securely and reliably. Keeps data flowing fast without relying on the public internet.

Take payments anywhere — through secure apps or online portals. Ideal for teams on the go or businesses that want to give customers a quick, easy way to pay.

A box that lets multiple devices (like phones, PCs, and printers) share the same network. Available in different sizes — 8, 16, 32, or 48 ports — depending on how many devices you need to connect.

Numbers not tied to a specific location, such as 0300, 0800, or 0845. Often used for customer service lines or national businesses. They’re inbound only and work as a cloud service, so no physical lines are needed.

The UK’s communications regulator. They oversee telecoms, broadband, broadcasting, and postal services — making sure providers play fair and customers are protected.

One system, every channel. Take secure payments over the phone, online, or in-app — all managed in one place for a smoother customer experience.

An on-site phone system that connects your internal extensions and links them to the outside network. Once the standard setup, but now largely replaced by cloud systems.

A code that lets you move your mobile number from one provider to another so you can keep your number when switching networks.

The process of moving a phone number from one provider to another. Works for both fixed-line and mobile numbers, and needs a signed Letter of Authority (LOA) from you to make it happen.

The traditional copper-based phone network. It’s being permanently switched off in the UK in December 2025, so all services are moving to digital alternatives (see our live blog for further information).

The global standard for keeping cardholder data safe. If you’re taking payments, PCI DSS is what keeps your customers’ details locked down and compliant.

A way of managing network traffic to make sure important services like voice calls get the bandwidth they need. Helps keep VoIP calls clear and reliable, even when lots of people are using the internet at the same time.

The box that connects your devices to the internet. Can be wired or wireless, and it directs data traffic so everything gets where it needs to go.

See what’s happening the second it happens. Live dashboards track payments, calls, or CRM activity so you can make decisions on the spot.

The technology behind most internet-based phone systems. SIP is what makes voice and video calls work over the internet. SIP trunks connect your business phone system to the outside world.

A contract that sets out the service standards you can expect — things like uptime, response times, and support levels.

A phone that lives on your computer or mobile instead of a desk handset. Make and take calls anywhere with just an internet connection.

Using your mobile as a Wi-Fi hotspot so a laptop or tablet can get online through your mobile data connection.

A PCI security method that swaps sensitive card numbers for random tokens. The token is useless to fraudsters but still works for processing payments.

Brings all your messages — voicemail, email, SMS, even video — into one place. Makes it easier to manage everything from a single screen instead of juggling different apps.

Splits one physical network into separate virtual networks. Useful for keeping voice and data traffic apart so calls stay clear.

Making phone calls over the internet instead of traditional phone lines. Flexible, cost-effective, and the backbone of modern business telephony.

Creates a secure, private connection over the internet. Let’s teams connect safely between offices or when working remotely.

A network that connects multiple locations together over a large area. The internet itself is the biggest WAN, but businesses can also create private WANs to link offices securely.

Short-range wireless technology that connects your devices (like laptops, tablets, and phones) to the internet through an access point — no cables needed.

A catch-all term for cloud-based services you pay for as you need them. Covers everything from software (SaaS) to infrastructure (IaaS) — and yes, even phone systems.

Smart call routing and bandwidth control that squeezes the most value out of your network — better performance without wasted cost.

Calls that don’t cost you extra, often included in your package. Helps keep billing simple and predictable.

A customer support and CRM platform we plug straight into your phone and payment systems — so tickets, calls, and payments all stay connected.