The term teleconferencing refers to the broad category of communications by which three or more people communicate in audio-only mode via telephone lines. The key benefit of teleconferencing is that it eliminates travel while enhancing communications by enabling many people to share information directly and simultaneously. Businesses are implementing teleconferencing strategies to handle large volumes of calls on a daily basis, thereby reducing non-telecommunications costs while improving productivity. Educational institutions are using teleconferencing for cost-effective distance-learning programs, while government agencies are using teleconferencing for crisis management as well as for daily information exchange.

Teleconferencing can be implemented in a variety of ways. For a basic telephone conference involving a limited number of participants, a telephone set with either a three-way calling feature on the line or a conferencing feature that is supported by the PBX or key system is required. Alternatively, a teleconference can be set up by a system attendant. For a teleconference with more than three parties, the attendant-console operator can establish the connections through the PBX and add more participants to the call than can be accommodated from a single set.

As another option, a company can initiate a conference through the telephone company s conference operator. A conference can be established at a prearranged time, or it can be organized so that the participants can phone in to a preassigned toll-free number at a designated time. After dialing the number, users must enter the assigned conference code to join the conference. This code is for security...