Philippine securities firms evaluating call center solutions often compare open source platforms (like Asterisk, FreeSWITCH) with cloud call center software. This analysis shows that while open source has lower upfront costs, cloud solutions like Instadesk deliver lower total cost of ownership and better features for securities firms.
The cost comparison question
Securities firms in the Philippines have specific call center needs: high security, regulatory compliance (SEC, BSP), call recording, and integration with trading systems. The choice between open source and cloud has significant cost implications.
Open source call center – cost breakdown
Open source platforms (Asterisk, FreeSWITCH, Vicidial) are free to download. However, total cost of ownership includes:
|
Cost item |
Estimated annual cost (PHP) |
|
Hardware (servers, PBX, telephony cards) |
500,000 (one-time) |
|
IT staff (2-3 specialists for setup and maintenance) |
1,800,000 |
|
Telephony (PRI lines, SIP trunking) |
400,000 |
|
Call recording storage |
200,000 |
|
Security and compliance implementation |
300,000 |
|
Software updates and patches (IT time) |
200,000 |
|
Total first-year cost |
3,400,000 |
|
Total ongoing annual cost |
2,900,000 |
Cloud call center (Instadesk) – cost breakdown
|
Cost item |
Estimated annual cost (PHP) |
|
Subscription (per-minute pricing) |
600,000 (60,000 minutes/month x PHP 0.80 x 12) |
|
Implementation (one-time) |
50,000 |
|
IT staff (minimal – no hardware maintenance) |
200,000 |
|
Telephony (included) |
0 |
|
Call recording storage (included) |
0 |
|
Security and compliance (included) |
0 |
|
Total first-year cost |
850,000 |
|
Total ongoing annual cost |
800,000 |
Cost comparison summary
|
Metric |
Open Source |
Cloud (Instadesk) |
|
First-year cost |
PHP 3.4M |
PHP 850,000 |
|
Ongoing annual cost |
PHP 2.9M |
PHP 800,000 |
|
5-year total cost |
PHP 15.0M |
PHP 4.1M |
|
5-year savings with cloud |
– |
PHP 10.9M |
Beyond cost – feature comparison for securities firms
|
Feature |
Open Source |
Cloud (Instadesk) |
|
Call recording |
Manual setup |
Included |
|
AI quality monitoring |
Not available |
Included |
|
SEC/BSP compliance tools |
Custom build |
Pre-built |
|
Integration with trading systems |
Custom build |
Pre-built connectors |
|
99.99% uptime |
Requires redundancy setup |
Included |
|
Automatic updates |
Manual |
Included |
|
Scalability |
Add hardware |
Instant |
Case study – Philippine securities firm saves PHP 8M over 5 years
A Philippine securities firm with 50 agents evaluated open source vs cloud. Open source required PHP 3.2M upfront for hardware and IT staff. The firm chose Instadesk’s cloud solution. After 3 years:
• Total cost with Instadesk: PHP 2.5M.
• Estimated cost with open source: PHP 8.7M.
• Savings: PHP 6.2M (and growing).
Conclusion
For Philippine securities firms, cloud call center software delivers lower total cost of ownership than open source – with better features, security, and compliance. Instadesk provides an affordable, enterprise-grade solution. Start a free trial and see your costs drop.
