Set up voice channels for Webex Contact Center

This section guides you through connecting PSTN and agents to voice channels in your Webex Contact Center. Administrators need to plan and determine the best way to deliver PSTN services and establish agent connections to voice channels.

Administrators can choose from the following Webex Cloud PSTN interconnectivity options:

• Webex Cloud Connected PSTN
• Cisco Calling Plan (for Webex Contact Center Trials Only)

Administrators can also choose to use on-premise PSTN Connectivity:

• Webex Calling Local Gateway (premise-based or partner-hosted PSTN)

With Local Gateway, you can connect to the Webex Global Media cloud using an encrypted connection over the internet (OTT), or with a private connection using Webex Edge Connect.

Webex Cloud Connected PSTN, or CCP, provides connectivity in over 65 countries through Certified Calling Providers. With Cloud Connected PSTN a highly reliable connection is established between the Webex Calling cloud and the selected PSTN provider.

When you select an authorized Cloud Connected PSTN Partner (CCPP) for your PSTN service, inbound and outbound calls are routed over this established connection into Webex Calling, providing quick, easy, and reliable calling for your enterprise.

In this connectivity model, inbound calls arrive via Cloud Connected PSTN into Webex Calling and are delivered to Webex Contact Center. Outbound calls are delivered to agents on Webex Calling Devices such as IP phones, Webex App, WebRTC, or to PSTN-based agents using CCP Provider PSTN inter-connectivity.

For more information, see Cloud Connected PSTN.

For information about the list of available countries and certified Cloud Connected PSTN providers, see https://www.webex.com/products/calling-global-availability.html.

The Webex Calling Local Gateway enables you to retain your current on-premises PSTN carrier while providing access in over 140 markets globally.

The Local Gateway, which is the customer's Session Border Controller (SBC), registers with Webex Calling. It routes calls between Webex Calling and the on-premises resources behind an enterprise PBX, such as agents or the customer's existing on-premises PSTN connectivity.

In this connectivity model, inbound calls arrive through an existing on-premises PSTN carrier and are forwarded via the customer SBC into Webex Calling to reach Webex Contact Center. Outbound calls are delivered to Agents on Webex Calling Devices such as IP Phones, Webex App, WebRTC, or back to the on-premises environment via Local Gateway to reach on-premises agents or PSTN based agents.

For more information about the Local Gateway, see the Get started with Local Gateway article.

For configuring Local Gateway, see the Configure Local Gateway on Cisco IOS XE for Webex Calling article.

Webex Calling Local Gateway supports third-party SBC vendors. For more information about Additional vendor information including supported models and software can be found here:

https://www.webex.com/content/dam/wbx/us/aag/webex_calling_third_party_sbc_support_cm-5753.pdf

Administrators must decide how agents are connected to Webex Contact Center. Agents may be connected via Webex PSTN inter-connectivity options or additional options such as Webex Calling devices, Webex App, premise-based PBX devices, or Microsoft Teams-based agents.

Agent connection methods include:

• Webex PSTN Inter-connectivity — this includes PSTN based agents with Direct Inward Dial (DID) numbers or agents who are on cellular devices.
• Webex Calling — this includes Webex Calling registered endpoints (MPP-based Devices or Webex App) via the internet or Webex edge connect service. A valid Webex Calling subscription is required to route calls to these agents.
• WebRTC Agent Desktops — You can deliver calls to your agents using WebRTC enabled agent desktops. WebRTC delivers voice media directly to an agent’s web browser. A WebRTC connection is made over the internet and doesn’t require a local gateway to deliver calls to the agent.
• Premise-Based Agents or PSTN — this includes premise-based PBX agents or premise-based PSTN connectivity. Agents can use a telephony device connected to a Private Branch Exchange (PBX) such as Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM) or agent-based calls can route via premise-based PSTN connectivity to a PSTN based agents DID or cellular device.
• Microsoft Teams Agents via Local Gateway Services – You can deliver calls to your agents using Microsoft Teams Desktop Application, Mobile Device, or Web Application via Local Gateway Direct SIP Routing Integration. This integration provides a SIP Trunk between your Webex Calling Local Gateway and your Microsoft Teams tenant and clients.

Your Webex Contact Center tenant must have at least one method of delivering calls to agents.

Webex Contact Center supports +E.164 Number formats. This capability allows larger Multinational Contact Centers utilizing multiple dial plans, on-premise PBX interoperability, and PSTN carriers to simplify their global and hybrid Contact Center dial plans and call routing schemas.

Webex Calling by default supports +E.164 Number formats when utilizing Cloud Connected PSTN or Local Gateway connectivity and you provision Numbers in Control Hub. All PSTN Numbers (Direct-inward-dial or Toll-Free) are saved in Control Hub in +E.164 format.

Local Gateways such as Cisco CUBE or approved third-party SBCs can be configured to support +E.164 format and globalization to interoperate with on-premises PBXs such as Cisco Unified Communications Manager and On-Premise PSTN services.

Webex Contact Center Agents can log into the Webex Contact Center Desktop and choose to route their calls to +E.164 destinations by performing the following procedure:

1. Agents can log into the Webex Contact Center Agent Desktop
2. Agents can select the Dial Number option located under Dial Number / Extension section of the agent login screen.
3. Agents can select the International Dialing Format option by placing a checkmark into the option box.
4. Agents can enter their On-Premise PBX, PSTN, or Micrsoft Teams destination in the +E.164 format.

Webex Contact Center will deliver the agent leg of the call to Webex Calling to route out the appropriate PSTN selection such as Cloud Connected PSTN (CCP) or Local Gateway (LGWY) using the +E.164 format.

Best practice recommends documenting your Webex Control Hub Account Information. This information includes your Organization ID and Name. This information will be required for opening Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) cases or when coordinating with your Cisco Account Team, Customer Success Specialist, or Webex Contact Center resources. Having this information handy will speed up time to resolution when seeking assistance.

1. Sign in to Control Hub.
2. Navigate to Account > Organization Profile.
3. Document your Organization Name and Organization ID.

Best practice recommends documenting your Webex Control Hub subscription information. This information includes your subscription licenses for Webex Meetings, Messaging, Calling, and Contact Center. This information must be included when opening Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) cases or when coordinating with your Cisco Account Team, Customer Success Specialist, or Webex Contact Center resources.

1. Sign in to Control Hub.
2. Navigate to Account > Subscriptions.
3. Document the details on the License Summary page.

This page includes all Calling and Contact Center subscription licensing information.

Webex Contact Center PSTN inter connectivity must be assigned a dedicated location in Webex Control Hub. This location represents Webex Contact Center PSTN interconnectivity into and out of the Webex Global Media cloud.

Administrators can configure more than one PSTN Location if your Webex Contact Center deployment requires access to more than one PSTN interconnectivity option. An example of this would be a dedicated location for Webex Cloud Connected PSTN and a separate location for Webex Local Gateway.

For deployments that span multiple nations or regions, you may need to configure additional locations to represent each geographical area and their corresponding PSTN connectivity options.

1. Sign in to Control Hub.
2. Navigate to Locations.
3. Click the Manage location drop-down list and select Create manually.
4. Enter the details and click Create.

   In this step, map each PSTN connectivity option for Webex to a corresponding location that you create.

5. On the Location creation summary page, click Close. You will add the Location PSTN Connectivity option during a later step.
6. Repeat Step 4 for additional locations.

Webex Contact Center Agents using Webex Calling devices (MPP Devices or Webex App) for agent inter connectivity should be assigned a location in Webex Control Hub. This allows Administrators to configure a Location to represent Webex Contact Center Agent Interconnectivity into and out of the Webex Global Media cloud.

Administrators can configure more than one Agent Location for Webex Contact Center deployment. An example of this would be a dedicated call center facility, a remote location for work from home-based Agents, or premise-based locations. For deployments that span multiple nations or regions, you may need to configure additional locations to represent each geographical area.

1. Sign in to Control Hub.
2. Navigate to Locations.
3. Click the Manage location drop-down list and select Create manually.
4. Enter the details and click Create.
5. On the Location creation summary page, click Close.
6. Repeat Step 4 for agent locations.

For deployments of Webex Contact Center that utilizes Webex Cloud Connected PSTN for PSTN interconnectivity, you must configure the CCP Provider in Control Hub.

With CCP, Webex Calling customers must establish a relationship with a Cloud Connected PSTN partner. This includes service onboarding and activation, billing, and number provisioning. The CCP provider will establish connectivity to your Webex Calling Organization.

The following sections assist you in onboarding CCP for Webex Contact Center connectivity. There are two main categories of configuration:

1. Choose a Cloud Connected PSTN Provider. A list of providers can be found here: https://www.webex.com/products/calling-global-availability.html (click Cloud Connect tab and scroll to the bottom).
2. Once you have selected a CCP Provider, click on the CCP Providers name. This redirects you to the CCP provider’s web page and provides additional information to request services.

For deployments of Webex Contact Center that utilizes Webex Local Gateway for premise-based PSTN and/or premise-based agent interconnectivity, you must configure the Local Gateway in Control Hub.

With Local Gateway, an on-premises based Session Border Controller (SBC) establishes a connection with Webex Calling. Customer provided premise based PSTN can be leveraged to route calls into Webex Contact Center. In addition, agents can be premise-based behind a PBX such as Cisco Unified Communications Manager. The configuration of the on-premises SBC is the responsibility of the Webex Contact Center Administrator or customer voice engineering staff.

The following sections assist you in onboarding Local Gateway for Webex Contact Center connectivity. For Local Gateway connectivity, there are two categories of configuration — Control Hub Local Gateway Activation and Session Border Controller Configuration.

During the setup of your tenant as described in Get Started with Webex Contact Center, a voice media platform is selected. Currently, next generation media platform is the default option for all new trials and subscriptions during the activation process.

Perform the following steps to verify whether you have selected the appropriate voice media platform and Telephony type:

1. Sign in to Control Hub.

2. Navigate to Contact Center > Settings > Service Details.

3. Ensure your voice media platform is Real Time Media Service and Telephony is Webex Calling.

   The options are grayed out after tenant provisioning and activation and cannot be changed without Cisco intervention. It is critical at this point that you validate your connectivity options before proceeding. If your tenant is provisioned incorrectly, please notify your Cisco account team, Customer Success Manager, or Cisco partner before proceeding further.

An Entry Point is the association of the inbound telephone number to an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) service flow in your Webex Contact Center. You will need to map external telephone numbers to IVR flows as part of the provisioning process for your inbound Webex Contact Center PSTN service.

1. Sign in to Control Hub.

2. Navigate to Services > Contact Center > Customer Experience > Channels.

3. Click Create Channel.

4. Configure the Entry Point Name, Description and set the Channel type to Inbound Telephony.
5. Configure the Entry Point Settings fields — Service Level Threshold, Timezone, Routing Flow (IVR flow), Version label, and Music on Hold to your Contact Center values.
6. Click Create to save the settings and click on the newly created channel.
7. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Add under Support Number.
8. Select the appropriate Webex Calling Location from the drop-down list, choose the Number you have added in Webex Calling to represent the inbound call arrival number, and select a PSTN Region (if enabling this number for Regional Media).
9. Click the green check mark to save the values and click Save.

An Entry Point is the association of the telephone number to an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) service flow in your Webex Contact Center. You will need to map external telephone numbers to IVR flows as part of the provisioning process for your inbound Webex Contact Center PSTN service.

If you are deploying a multi-national based Webex Contact Center with geographically distributed customers and agents located in multiple regions, you can choose where you would like voice calls to be processed.

Webex has a global network of edge media processing resources existing in America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Processing voice media (audio) closest to the caller and agent lowers network latency delivering a better call quality experience for both customer and agent. As the administrator you can choose a “PSTN Region” which will decide were Webex contact center processes media.

Webex Contact Center agents may be connected via Webex PSTN inter connectivity options or additional options such as Webex Calling devices, Webex App, or premise-based PBX devices. The following sections will cover various Agent Connectivity configurations and the Agent login experience for each.

Webex Contact Center requires specific PSTN inter connectivity for both media and signaling. Calls arriving at Webex Contact Center must adhere to the following standards:

• Codec: G.711uLaw or G.711aLaw
• DTMF: RFC2833

SIP Interoperability Guidelines:

• SIP Early Offer: Not Supported (future roadmap item)
• SIP Delay Offer: Supported
• SIP Early Media: Not Supported (future roadmap item)

SIP Header Supported Fields:

• Packetization Timer in SIP SDP: 20ms

When using a Local Gateway for premise-based PSTN connections, ensure that all calls directed to Webex Contact Center from Webex Calling use the specified codec and DTMF types mentioned previously. You may need to utilize local Session Border Controller (SBC) resources to handle SIP interoperability and codec negotiation to meet these requirements.

Webex Contact Center supports certain PSTN call forwarding configurations. To maintain minimal latency and ensure call quality, it is advisable to limit the number of PSTN carriers involved in call routing to no more than two before the call reaches Webex Contact Center. By doing so, you can reduce the variability in carrier-induced delays. Below, you will find examples that illustrate both supported and unsupported PSTN call forwarding scenarios.

Supported: PSTN Carrier 1 call forwarding to Cloud Connected PSTN Provider DIDs that come into Webex Contact Center.

Unsupported:PSTN Carrier 1 call forwarding to PSTN Carrier 2 call forwarding to Cloud Connected PSTN Provider DIDs that come into Webex Contact Center.

Supported: PSTN Carrier 1 call forwarding to Local Gateway DIDs that route via Webex Calling into Webex Contact Center.

Unsupported:PSTN Carrier 1 call forwarding to PSTN Carrier 2 call forwarding Local Gateway DIDs that route into Webex Contact Center.

Supported: PSTN Carrier 1 call forwarding to Webex Contact Center PSTN DID.

Unsupported: PSTN Carrier 1 call forwarding to PSTN Carrier 2 call forwarding to Webex Contact Center PSTN DID that come into Webex Contact Center.