Voice-over-IP application platform provider, BroadSoft, acquired Australian application developer Carbon Twelve this week to expand its portfolio of network-based solutions to include the applications it support.

Based in Sydney, Carbon Twelve is the developer of two of BroadSoft’s leading applications: a integrated toolbar that allows calls to be made from Microsoft Outlook and Internet Explorer, and a VoIP attendant console.

“We wanted to expand our portfolio outside the assets we have on the network side and really make an investment on the client side,” said Michael Tessler, president and CEO of BroadSoft. “We had been selling Carbon Twelve products as a distributor and we found that they met the critical requirement of integrating the feature functionality directly in to the desktop.”

These applications are currently in trial with around 20 operators and have been deployed in 15 operator networks in North America, Europe and Asia. The terms of the acquisition were not provided, but BroadSoft will retain the nine Carbon Twelve developers, which expands the company’s local presence in the Australia. BroadSoft already has a sales, business development, and support center in Melbourne.

BroadSoft will integrate Carbon Twelve’s client software applications into the company’s BroadWorks VoIP application product line.

Carbon Twelve has been a member of BroadSoft’s Third-Party Developers Program. “This is just one suite of applications. There are still other developers in our third-party community that are interesting to us, but this particular product, we felt having direct control over product evolution and distribution was important,” Tessler said.

He said that more important than the two applications is the platform it provides BroadSoft to build its own client applications. And although Carbon Twelve has been primarily a Microsoft development shop, Tessler said he sees and opportunity to build interfaces to other desktop software such as Lotus Notes or Macintosh technology.

“This will become part of our global R&D and our global product line, “ Tessler said.