Set Up a Two-way Intercom Group

Two-way intercom lets you open a live conversation with one user or a whole group at the same time. Everyone you reach can talk back straight away, without lifting a handset or pressing a key to answer. It is a fast way to coordinate people who need to respond immediately, such as security staff spread across a campus, ward teams in a hospital, or roaming supervisors dispatching employees during the day.

Two ways to start an intercom call

You can direct an intercom call at a single extension or at a defined group.

• One user: Dial the intercom feature code (default *6) followed by the extension you want to reach. For example, *61002 opens an intercom call to extension 1002. To change the feature code, go to Call Features > Feature Code > Intercom.
• Several users: Create a two-way intercom group, then dial the group’s number. The rest of this page walks through setting one up.

Create the group

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

2. Fill in the group settings.

   

   Field	What to enter
   Number	A number to identify the group. This example uses 6602.
   Name	A label for the group. This example uses Security Office.
   Type	Choose Two-way Intercom.
   Prompt	Optional. Pick a custom prompt to play before the broadcast begins. This example uses alarm_prompt.wav.
   Prompt Playback Times	How many times the prompt repeats. Enter a value from 1 to 100, or choose Unlimited to loop it continuously.
   Broadcaster	Optional. Restrict who may call the group by choosing the allowed extensions or extension groups. Leave it empty to let anyone call the group. This example leaves it blank.
   Client Allowed to Receive Broadcast	Choose which client types receive the intercom call.
   Dial * to Answer	Optional. Let a recipient dial * to speak with the broadcaster privately. Doing so drops the call for everyone else so the two of them can talk one to one.
   Dial # to Stop Playing Prompt	Optional. When a prompt is set, this lets the broadcaster dial # mid-playback to cut it short.
   Play Prompt to Broadcaster	Optional. Turn this off if the broadcaster should not hear the prompt. This example disables it.
   Members	Move the extensions you want to include from Available to Selected. This example adds the Security Office group.

3. Click Save, then Apply.

Note

To create the audio for the Prompt field, see Record a Custom Prompt or Upload a Custom Prompt.

Note

The Client Allowed to Receive Broadcast setting only applies to calls placed to the group number. An intercom call started with the feature code ignores this restriction and rings every client and extension endpoint of the members at once.

Note

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

Tip

Leaving Broadcaster blank lets any extension trigger a broadcast to the whole group. On groups that reach staff such as security or management, set Broadcaster to just the extensions or extension groups that should be allowed to start the call.

Placing a call to the group

Dial the group’s number to reach every member on the client types you selected. How each device responds depends on the endpoint:

• Cloud Voice App (Mobile, Desktop, Web, and Pad): The client rings first, and the user answers manually to hear the broadcast. If you would rather these clients pick up automatically, you can enable auto answer for paging calls in the client’s settings.
• IP (Internet Protocol) phones: The phone answers on its own and switches to speakerphone.

Caution

IP phones answer automatically with the speaker open, so the broadcast plays out loud at each phone the instant the call connects. Because this is two-way, those phones’ microphones are live too, and anyone near them can be heard. Confirm the members expect this before you use the group.