Zoom Phone - USC Keep Teaching

As a result of a campus-wide collaboration, Zoom Phone has replaced USC’s costly legacy telephony and communications systems. This represents an incredible achievement in delimiting our ability to support how our campuses operate today and into the future. Zoom Phone delivers a highly available, forward-looking digital campus communication platform that encompasses phone, video, and data services to support more than 20,000 faculty and staff.

The following toolkit provides key information about the overall project, as well as training and support resources.

Campus Voice Overview

Project Overview

Aimed at providing a better experience for faculty and staff, the Zoom Phone transition was a key component of the broader Campus Voice project. The benefits include added capabilities to boost productivity in an increasingly dynamic university environment.

In addition to ease of use, Zoom Phone allows faculty and staff the ability to view call history, statistics, and recordings and transfer calls to different devices. Users can easily move between mobile apps, desktop apps and desk phones or cell phones by placing the call on hold and resuming it from another device.

Software-based phones, known as softphones, also provide these additional benefits:

Easy to use: Dialing numbers is as easy as a couple of mouse clicks. Find university contacts quickly by typing in the name for a list of auto-populated options.

Mobile: With you, wherever you work.

Environmentally friendly: Can be used with your existing USC-provided computer without the need of additional hardware.

In addition, Zoom Phone represents long-term cost savings that can fund additional technology investments, while providing a state-of-the-art telephony solution worthy of a world-class institution such as USC.

Enhanced 911 (E911)

Zoom Phone provides greater emergency capabilities for our USC community through its Enhanced 911 features, including the ability to dynamically track the location of users as they move around campus and other places. This ensures users’ locations are up to date in the event of an emergency. In addition, the Department of Public Safety (DPS) is also notified of any 911 calls through Zoom.

E911 allows law enforcement to determine the location of 911 calls, while ensuring the university follows the FCC regulations of Kari’s Law and Ray Baum’s Act of 2018.

Watch this brief Zoom video to learn more about the nomadic E911 functionality.

FAQs

Zoom 911 FAQ Download

GENERAL INFORMATION

What is the Campus Voice project?

The Campus Voice project is Information Technology Services (ITS)’ program that replaced USC’s existing, high-cost telephone (also known as “voice”) services that no longer serve USC’s needs.
These services have been replaced by a new cloud-based voice platform from Zoom, called Zoom Phone, that simplifies operations and management, enhances reporting, and improves availability within a secure and compliant environment.

What are the benefits of using Zoom Phone and softphones?

Ease of Use: Access meetings, phone and SMS capabilities all through a single application.
Mobility: Option to take Zoom Phone capabilities wherever you go.
Environmentally friendly: Use your existing USC-provided computer without the need of additional hardware.
Zoom Phone Contacts: USC Zoom phone users can be found in the Zoom phone contacts Tab under Contacts then Zoom Phone.

Will we still be able to use 5-digit dialing between campus phones?

With Zoom Phone, 10-digit dialing will be required.
That said, Zoom Phone’s auto-populate feature allows faculty and staff to look up others’ phone numbers in the USC directory by typing their name. This eliminates the need to look up campus phone numbers.

What are the minimum system requirements needed to use Zoom Phone on our computers and mobile devices?

Windows, Mac and Linux requirements
iOS and Android requirements
Additional system requirements for using advanced features:
- Full HD (1080p) video calls
- Virtual backgrounds

Do I need administrative rights on my computer or device to use or maintain Zoom Phone?

Some computer programs require a higher level of access to your computer’s or device’s operating system. This higher level of access is called administrative or admin rights.
Admin rights are required by Zoom Phone on your computer or device only to update an emergency address, which is the address provided to first responders when you dial an emergency number.
Contact your local IT support desk if you need this access.

How secure is the new Zoom Phone platform?

Zoom Phone provides the USC community with data and privacy protection through strong data encryption using the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) 256.
This data encryption supports USC’s compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Health Insurance Privacy and Portability Act (HIPAA).
Zoom Phone is approved to use in accordance with the FERPA and USC’s student privacy policies.

How reliable is Zoom Phone?

Zoom Phone runs fully redundant systems in 17 data centers around the world, ensuring services remain intact during maintenance.
Additionally, Zoom delivers a 99.9999% service level agreement (SLA) rating.
Agreements with both Amazon AWS and Oracle OCI public cloud infrastructure to provide built-in survivability in the event a data center loses internet, ensuring the highest level of uptime possible.

How does Zoom Phone handle spam calls?

Zoom makes every effort to block spam calls from reaching you. If a call is identified as spam it will automatically be routed to your voicemail. From there, you can go into your call History to block the call. To block a call in the Zoom Phone application:
- Navigate to History.
- Click on the ellipses (…).
- Select Block Caller.
- Choose Spam Calls or Other Reasons.
By registering your number on the Do Not Call List you may also further reduce unwanted telemarketing calls.

What if I have a personal Zoom account, can I integrate my accounts?

Business-related phone calls will only be accessible through your USC Zoom Phone account. Therefore, it is important to make sure you are logged into your Zoom Meeting desktop client account using your USC NetID credentials.

Neither your voicemail greeting nor messages will transfer from your current phone to your new Zoom Phone account. Therefore, we recommend clearing out existing messages prior to your transition.

Some computer programs require a higher level of access to your computer/device’s operating system. This higher level of access is called administrative or admin rights.

What should I do if the Zoom Phone icon does not display in my Zoom Meeting desktop application?

After receiving notification that your Zoom Phone service is active, if you do not see the Zoom Phone icon, please close and relaunch the Zoom Meeting application, log in using your USC NetID via SSO, and check for updates by clicking your profile initials/picture.
For more information regarding logging into the Zoom Meeting application, please visit the Zoom Meeting page here.

Do I need to log into the Zoom Meeting desktop application every day to make and receive Zoom Phone calls using my computer / laptop?

Once your Zoom Phone account is enabled and you’re logged in using your USC NetID via single sign-on (SSO), you will remain logged in until you actively sign-out or restart your computer.
To find out more about using the Zoom Meeting application, please visit the Zoom Meeting page.

How do I place a call using my Zoom Phone service?

To place a call using Zoom Phone from your computer or laptop, click on the Phone icon in your Zoom Meeting desktop application.
When dialing from a Zoom-enabled desk phone, enter the phone number you wish to dial followed by the Send button.

Can we use an existing contact list to make calls with Zoom Phone?

You can either dial by name or synch your Zoom contacts with Office 365, Exchange or Google allowing you to call your contacts using your Zoom Phone.
To do this, access the Zoom Web Portal, click on Profile. Scroll down to the Calendar and Contacts Integration section and click on the Configure Calendar and Contacts Service button.
From there, select a Service to enable both Read and Write Permissions. Click Next to save your updates and follow the remaining on-screen instructions to grant Zoom access.
Once complete, restart your Zoom Meeting desktop application to begin accessing the contacts.

Can I be on multiple calls simultaneously on different devices?

Although Zoom Phone can be used concurrently on multiple devices. You cannot be on different calls on multiple devices at the same time.

In the event of an emergency, who has access to view my emergency address?

Your emergency address is the address provided to first responders when you dial an emergency number. Your emergency address will be shared with 9-1-1, USC Department of Public Safety (DPS) and available to the Zoom Phone administrator.
Your emergency address will be determined based on your connection method:
- If on campus, USC wireless will identify your location.
- If not connected to wireless, your location will be determined by your Zoom Phone emergency location setting.
- If using the Zoom mobile app to dial 9-1-1, your location will be determined by the carrier.
Please review the instructions on how to update an emergency address for more information.

Where can I get help?

Zoom Help Center for Zoom Phone
Local IT support for Schools and Departments
ITS Service Desk: 213-740-5555; consult@usc.edu
ITS Knowledge Base

Training Resources

Have two minutes? Watch this overview video.

Want to learn more? View this 35-minute live training recording to understand how to begin using general Zoom Phone features, functions and establish your personal settings.