Set up a One-way Paging Group

One-way paging lets a single person broadcast a live announcement to a group of people. Members do not have to accept a call the way they would for a normal inbound call: their devices open straight into speakerphone and play what the broadcaster says. Use it when you need to reach a team quickly without waiting for anyone to pick up.

Example scenario

Imagine an office spread across several floors, with one shared phone per department. A manager needs the marketing team in the meeting room right away. By creating a one-way paging group for that department, the manager can dial the group and speak once, and everyone on the group hears the message on their phones without lifting a handset.

Create the paging group

1. Sign in to the PBX (Private Branch Exchange) web portal and go to Call Features > Paging/Intercom, then click Add.

2. Fill in the group settings.

   

   Setting	What to enter
   Number	The extension number people will dial to reach the group. This example uses 6600.
   Name	A label that identifies the group, such as Marketing Department.
   Type	Choose One-way Paging.
   Prompt	Optional. Pick a custom prompt to play before the live announcement begins. This example uses Default.wav.
   Prompt Playback Times	How often the prompt repeats before the broadcaster speaks.
   Broadcaster	Optional. Limit who is allowed to page the group by choosing specific extensions or extension groups. Leave it empty to let anyone page.
   Client Allowed to Receive Broadcast	Choose which client types the announcement is delivered on.
   Dial * to Answer	Optional. Lets a member interrupt the broadcast to speak privately with the broadcaster. Keep it off for this example.
   Dial # to Stop Playing Prompt	Optional. When a prompt is set, lets the broadcaster press # to skip the rest of the prompt.
   Play Prompt to Broadcaster	Optional. Controls whether the broadcaster also hears the prompt. Turn it off in this example.
   Members	Move the people who should hear announcements from Available to Selected. This example selects Marketing Department.

   Note

   To set your own prompt audio, see Record a Custom Prompt or Upload a Custom Prompt.

   Note

   For Prompt Playback Times, enter any number from 1 to 100, or choose Unlimited to loop the prompt continuously.

   Tip

   When Dial * to Answer is on, a member who dials * ends the broadcast for everyone and opens a private, two-way call with the broadcaster.

   Note

   Play Prompt to Broadcaster appears only when a custom prompt is selected, and it is on by default.

   Caution

   The example leaves Broadcaster blank, which lets any extension page the group. In everyday use, name specific extensions or extension groups here so only authorized people can broadcast to everyone’s phones.

3. Click Save, then Apply.

How members receive the page

Once the group is live, dialing its number delivers the announcement to the selected members through the client types you allowed:

• Cloud Voice App (Mobile, Desktop, Web, and Pad): the app rings first, and the member answers manually before hearing the broadcast. If you want these clients to pick up paging calls on their own, you can enable auto answer for each user’s Cloud Voice App.
• IP phones: these answer automatically into speakerphone mode and play the announcement.