TL;DR / Key Takeaways
What's Happening? Salesforce is retiring legacy Open CTI on February 28, 2028 — all organizations must migrate to Service Cloud Voice (SCV) Key Decision Choose between Amazon Connect (native), BYOT (Bring Your Own Telephony) providers like Aircall, or partner-powered SCV Best For Any Salesforce org currently using Open CTI, softphone integrations, or legacy CTI adapters Cost Impact BYOT providers like Aircall can save SMBs 20–40% vs. Amazon Connect for teams under 50 agents Timeline Start planning now — migrations typically take 8–16 weeks depending on complexity Bottom Line This isn't optional. But with the right migration strategy, it's an opportunity to modernize your entire voice infrastructure with AI-powered capabilities
Salesforce has officially announced that Open CTI — the JavaScript-based telephony framework that's powered third-party phone integrations since 2012 — will reach end-of-life on February 28, 2028.
After that date, Open CTI implementations will no longer function. Period.
Here's what that means practically:
If your contact center, sales floor, or service desk runs on Open CTI today, you have less than two years to plan and execute a migration.
That sounds like a lot of time. It isn't.
Service Cloud Voice (SCV) is Salesforce's native telephony platform, deeply integrated into the Service Cloud agent experience. Unlike Open CTI — which was essentially a bridge between external phone systems and Salesforce — SCV brings voice inside the platform.
| Capability | Open CTI | Service Cloud Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Call controls in Salesforce | ✅ Via JavaScript adapter | ✅ Native, no custom code |
| Real-time transcription | ❌ Requires third-party | ✅ Built-in (Einstein AI) |
| AI-powered agent coaching | ❌ | ✅ Next Best Action, sentiment analysis |
| Omni-Channel routing | ⚠️ Limited integration | ✅ Unified voice + digital routing |
| Conversation analytics | ❌ | ✅ Einstein Conversation Insights |
| Agentforce compatibility | ❌ | ✅ Full AI agent handoff support |
| Screen pops | ✅ Custom JavaScript | ✅ Native, configurable in Setup |
| Call recording & storage | ⚠️ Depends on provider | ✅ Integrated with retention policies |
| Maintenance burden | 🔴 High (custom code) | 🟢 Low (declarative config) |
The shift is clear: Salesforce wants voice to be a first-class citizen in the platform, not a bolted-on integration. SCV enables AI capabilities that Open CTI architecturally cannot support — including real-time transcription, automated call summaries, and the ability for Agentforce AI agents to participate in voice interactions.
When planning your SCV migration, you have three primary paths:
This is Salesforce's default option. Amazon Connect provides the telephony infrastructure, and Salesforce handles the agent experience.
Best for: Large enterprises with high call volumes, organizations already invested in AWS, teams that need maximum AI/ML capabilities.
Considerations: - Pay-per-use pricing ($0.018/min per contact + $0.004/min per agent + add-ons) - Costs can be unpredictable and scale quickly - Requires some AWS expertise for advanced IVR configuration - Deepest native integration with Salesforce AI features
BYOT lets you keep your preferred telephony provider — like Aircall, RingCentral, Five9, or Vonage — while still getting the SCV agent experience inside Salesforce. Your provider handles the phone infrastructure; Salesforce handles the CRM integration.
Best for: SMBs who want SCV features without Amazon Connect complexity and cost, organizations with existing telephony investments, teams that need predictable per-user pricing.
Considerations: - Predictable monthly per-user pricing - Typically faster to deploy (days vs. weeks) - May have slightly less deep AI integration than native Amazon Connect - Retains existing provider relationships, phone numbers, and call flows
Some telephony providers offer their own SCV-powered solutions — essentially a managed service where the partner handles the migration, configuration, and ongoing telephony management within SCV.
Best for: Organizations that want a fully managed transition, teams without internal Salesforce/telephony expertise.
For organizations with 3–100 agents, the native Amazon Connect path often doesn't make economic sense. The pay-per-use model, combined with AWS infrastructure requirements, prices many small and mid-size businesses out of the market.
This is exactly where Aircall's BYOT offering shines.
Aircall is a cloud-based phone system purpose-built for business teams, and it's a certified BYOT partner for Salesforce Service Cloud Voice. Here's what that means in practice:
Native Call Controls Inside Salesforce - Click-to-call, warm transfers, call recording, voicemail drops — all within the Salesforce agent workspace - No context switching between applications - Automatic call logging to Cases, Contacts, and Opportunities
AI-Powered Intelligence - Real-time transcription and post-call summaries - Sentiment analysis and automatic call scoring - AI coaching insights integrated into Salesforce records - Compatible with Einstein Conversation Insights
Predictable, SMB-Friendly Pricing - Flat per-user pricing ($30–$50/user/month on Essential to Professional plans) plus telephony minutes - No surprise AWS bills at month-end - Higher-tier plans include unlimited US/Canada calling - No setup fees or long-term contracts required
Rapid Deployment - Install from the Salesforce AppExchange in minutes - Configure as SCV telephony provider via OAuth authentication - Map Salesforce users to Aircall extensions - Typical deployment: 1–2 days (vs. weeks for Amazon Connect)
Global Reach with Compliance Built In - Phone numbers available in 100+ countries - GDPR and HIPAA-ready with call recording consent management - SOC 2 Type II certified - Call recording retention policies configurable for regulatory requirements
For a team of 25 agents handling 400 minutes per agent per month:
| Cost Factor | Aircall BYOT | Amazon Connect (Native SCV) |
|---|---|---|
| Base agent cost | $1,000–$1,250/mo (flat) | ~$100/mo (agent fees) |
| Telephony minutes | ~$200–$400/mo | ~$450/mo (contact + agent minutes) |
| Transcription | Included | ~$150/mo (Contact Lens) |
| Storage/recording | Included | ~$50/mo (S3 + extras) |
| IVR/routing | Included | ~$75/mo (Connect flows) |
| Estimated monthly total | $1,200–$1,650 | $825–$1,500+ |
| Estimated annual total | $14,400–$19,800 | $9,900–$18,000+ |
| Setup complexity | Low (1–2 days) | Medium-High (2–4 weeks) |
| Ongoing maintenance | Minimal | Requires AWS expertise |
| Cost predictability | ✅ Fixed monthly | ⚠️ Variable with usage |
The bottom line: For teams under 50 agents, Aircall typically delivers 20–40% lower total cost of ownership when you factor in setup time, maintenance burden, and the AWS expertise you'd otherwise need. At higher volumes (100+ agents), Amazon Connect's per-minute pricing can become more economical — but the operational overhead remains.
Aircall isn't the only BYOT option. Here's how the major providers stack up for SCV integration in 2026:
| Provider | SCV Integration | Price Range | Sweet Spot | Key Strength | Key Limitation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aircall | ★★★★★ | $30–$60/user/mo | 3–100 agents | Fastest setup, SMB pricing | Limited enterprise scale |
| Amazon Connect | ★★★★★ | Pay-per-use | 100+ agents | Deepest AI integration | Complex, unpredictable costs |
| RingCentral | ★★★★☆ | $30–$70/user/mo | 50–500 agents | UCaaS bundle (voice + video + messaging) | SIP configuration complexity |
| Five9 | ★★★★★ | $125–$175/user/mo | 100+ agents (contact centers) | Advanced predictive dialing, PCI compliance | Highest cost |
| Vonage | ★★★★☆ | $25–$50/user/mo | International teams | Global PoPs, API flexibility | Weaker SCV analytics sync |
Our recommendation: Match the provider to your scale and use case: - SMB sales/service teams (3–50 agents): Aircall — best value, fastest deployment - Mid-market with UCaaS needs: RingCentral — voice + video + messaging in one platform - Enterprise contact centers: Five9 or Amazon Connect — built for scale and complexity - International operations: Vonage — broadest global coverage at competitive pricing
Whether you choose Aircall BYOT, Amazon Connect, or another provider, the migration framework is similar. Here's what we recommend based on hundreds of Salesforce implementations:
Inventory your current state: - Document all Open CTI configurations, JavaScript adapters, and custom softphone components - Map CTI event handlers (e.g., cti:onCall, cti:onHangup) to SCV equivalents - Identify integrations that depend on Open CTI — IVR systems, screen pop logic, call routing rules, reporting - Audit call recording storage and retention requirements
Evaluate your options: - Calculate total cost of ownership for each SCV path (native, BYOT, partner-managed) - Assess your team's technical capabilities — do you have AWS expertise for Amazon Connect? - Consider compliance requirements specific to your industry
Use Salesforce's built-in tools: - Run the SCV Migration Assessment (Setup → Service Cloud Voice) to score your readiness - Review the Service Cloud Voice Developer Guide for technical details
Track these throughout your migration:
| Metric | Target |
|---|---|
| Call success rate | >95% |
| Call abandonment rate | <5% |
| Agent adoption rate | >90% within 30 days |
| Average handle time | Within 10% of pre-migration baseline |
| Transcription accuracy | >90% |
| System uptime | 99.9%+ |
If you're in financial services, healthcare, or insurance, your CTI migration carries additional requirements that generic guides won't cover:
Yes, the Open CTI sunset is a forced migration. But here's the reframing: most organizations running legacy CTI are sitting on years of accumulated technical debt — custom JavaScript adapters, brittle integrations, manual call logging, and zero AI capabilities.
The move to Service Cloud Voice gives you:
The organizations that treat this as a strategic modernization project — not just a compliance checkbox — will come out of it with a fundamentally better service operation.
At Vantage Point, we specialize in Salesforce implementations for regulated industries — financial services, healthcare, insurance, and beyond. Our team has deep experience with:
We recently formalized a partnership with Aircall specifically because we see the BYOT path as the right choice for many of our clients — particularly SMBs and mid-market firms in regulated industries who need SCV functionality without Amazon Connect complexity.
Ready to plan your migration? Contact Vantage Point to schedule a CTI migration assessment. We'll help you evaluate your options, model the costs, and build a migration plan that keeps your contact center running smoothly through the transition.
Open CTI reaches end-of-life on February 28, 2028. After that date, Open CTI implementations will no longer function in Salesforce orgs. The framework is currently in maintenance mode with no new features or enhancements being developed.
No. Service Cloud Voice supports Bring Your Own Telephony (BYOT), which lets you use third-party providers like Aircall, RingCentral, Five9, or Vonage as your voice infrastructure while still getting the full SCV agent experience inside Salesforce.
BYOT (Bring Your Own Telephony) allows you to integrate your preferred telephony provider with Service Cloud Voice via SIP trunking. Your provider handles the phone infrastructure (calls, numbers, IVR), while Salesforce handles the agent experience, call logging, and AI features. It's the best of both worlds.
Plan for 8–16 weeks depending on complexity. Simple deployments with a BYOT provider like Aircall can be production-ready in as little as 2–4 weeks. Complex enterprise migrations with custom IVR logic, multiple queues, and compliance requirements typically take 12–16 weeks.
Yes. Aircall is GDPR-compliant, HIPAA-ready, and SOC 2 Type II certified. They offer configurable call recording retention, consent management, and encryption at rest and in transit. For financial services and healthcare organizations, these baseline compliance capabilities are essential.
Your existing call recordings stored in your current CTI system remain accessible through that system. SCV does not automatically migrate historical recordings. Plan to either maintain access to your legacy recording system or migrate recordings using Data Loader, MuleSoft, or API-based extraction.
Yes — and we strongly recommend it. Running parallel operations during your pilot and migration phases reduces risk. Agents can fall back to the legacy system if issues arise, and you can phase the cutover by team or queue.
This is a key driver of the sunset. Agentforce requires Service Cloud Voice for voice-based AI agent interactions. Open CTI's architecture doesn't support the real-time data streams that Agentforce needs for voice interactions, transcription, and AI handoffs. Migrating to SCV is a prerequisite for leveraging Agentforce in your contact center.
Vantage Point is a Salesforce and HubSpot implementation partner specializing in regulated industries. With 150+ clients, 400+ engagements, and a 4.71/5.0 average engagement rating, we help financial services, healthcare, and insurance organizations modernize their CRM and service operations. Learn more at vantagepoint.io.