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You could say that Voice over IP provider 8x8 (News - Alert) is a “dark horse” of sorts, but while the classic definition calls for a dark horse to go from being little-known to something of great prominence, 8x8 is already well-known in the industry – and is only becoming more prominent. People either already know the company and its escalating success or are quickly starting to get the picture.

Last week, industry expert Rich Duprey agreed, explained that while some may not know the full extent of the company’s value and importance, this could play very nicely into providing individual investors “an edge over the professionals.”

He includes 8x8 in a roundup of companies which he believes have minimal analyst coverage, yet generates high marks from investors, which in the end, primarily benefits 8x8 and its loyal customer base.

“8x8 is doing for small and medium-sized businesses what Vonage (News - Alert) and magicJack VocalTec did for the consumer market, but it's expanding beyond those narrow confines by providing a unified platform of communications for office, remote, and mobile environments, connecting any location, any network, and any device with no software downloads, plug-ins, or additional hardware required,” Duprey wrote. “With all three Wall Street analysts covering the communications provider believing it will outperform the broad market indexes, it's likely 8x8 won't stay hidden for long.”

The company has already surfaced with some impressive accolades, awards and honors this year, including being named the number-one provider of hosted IP telephony and unified communications (UC) during 2011 by Frost & Sullivan (News - Alert) this past summer, declaring the company to be the “clear leader” over several reputable competitors providing communications services throughout the year.

Additionally, the company achieved a record revenue of $26.4 million in Q2 of this year, which was 33 percent higher than that time last year.

Speaking of unified communications, Duprey boasts that 8x8 is “hiding in plain sight,” as all 30,000 of its customers have its PBX system as their base. “8x8 opens that box and allows anyone in the company, anywhere in the world to securely access the data. The key to its success has been that it provides a single platform without having to cobble together parts or apps. For example, companies can get Skype or Google (News - Alert) Hangout for free, but that's just a single communications bridge; they still need to go and find the other components to put together a system. 8x8 spans the gap by providing a holistic solution to the entire network of needs.”

In conclusion, Duprey says that 8x8 offers a relatively low-cost alternative that gives its customers a suite of products and abilities including voicemail, call center services and more, providing its clients with “a complete virtual office.”

To learn more about all of 8x8’s offerings, visit www.8x8.com.

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