Last updated: February 2026
What is a Hosted Contact Center?
A hosted contact center is customer service infrastructure operated by a third-party provider rather than on your premises. The provider manages servers, telephony, and software while you access the system remotely. 'Hosted' was the common term before 'cloud' became standard; today, hosted and cloud contact centers are essentially synonymous.
Understanding Hosted Contact Centers
A hosted contact center moves the infrastructure burden from your organization to a provider. Instead of buying servers, telephony equipment, and software licenses, you pay a provider to operate the contact center infrastructure on your behalf.
The hosted model emerged in the early 2000s as organizations sought to avoid large capital expenditures. Today, "hosted" and "cloud" are used interchangeably, with CCaaS (Contact Center as a Service) being the current industry standard term.
How Hosted Contact Centers Work
In a hosted model:
- Provider owns infrastructure - Servers, network, and telephony in their data centers
- Provider manages operations - Uptime, security, updates, and maintenance
- You access remotely - Agents connect via internet (web browser or application)
- You pay subscription - Monthly or annual per-agent fees
Your agents work as if the system were local, but all the underlying infrastructure lives elsewhere.
Hosted vs On-Premise vs Cloud
| Factor | On-Premise | Hosted/Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure location | Your data center | Provider's data center |
| Hardware ownership | You buy and own | Provider owns |
| Maintenance responsibility | Your IT team | Provider handles |
| Software updates | Manual upgrades | Automatic |
| Upfront cost | High (capex) | Low (subscription) |
| Ongoing cost | Variable | Predictable |
| Deployment time | 6-12 months | 2-4 weeks |
| Scaling | Buy more hardware | Add licenses |
Evolution of Terminology
The industry terminology has evolved over time:
- 1990s-2000s - "On-premise" was default; "hosted" meant outsourced infrastructure
- 2005-2010 - "Hosted" became popular as ASP (Application Service Provider) models emerged
- 2010-2015 - "Cloud" overtook "hosted" as AWS/Azure normalized cloud terminology
- 2015-present - "CCaaS" became the standard industry term
If you see "hosted contact center" in RFPs or vendor materials, it means the same thing as cloud contact center or CCaaS.
Benefits of Hosted Contact Centers
Lower Total Cost of Ownership
No servers, telephony equipment, or data center space to purchase. No dedicated IT staff to maintain contact center infrastructure. Predictable monthly costs you can budget.
Faster Deployment
On-premise deployments take 6-12+ months for hardware procurement, installation, and configuration. Hosted solutions deploy in 2-4 weeks—configure and go live.
Automatic Updates
The provider handles software updates, security patches, and new feature releases. No upgrade projects or version migrations for your team.
Built-in Disaster Recovery
Reputable hosted providers operate redundant data centers with automatic failover. Better DR than most organizations can achieve on-premise.
Remote Work Ready
Agents access the system via browser from anywhere with internet. No VPN complexity or special hardware for work-from-home.
Elastic Scaling
Add agents in minutes during peak seasons. Scale back when volume decreases. No hardware capacity planning.
Hosted Contact Center Security
Security was historically the concern with hosted models. Modern providers address this through:
- SOC 2 Type II certification - Audited security controls
- Encryption - Data encrypted in transit and at rest
- Physical security - Secure data centers with access controls
- Compliance - PCI-DSS, HIPAA, FedRAMP certifications
- Penetration testing - Regular security assessments
Enterprise hosted providers typically have stronger security than organizations can achieve in-house.
Real-World Example: Legacy Migration
A state agency operated an aging on-premise contact center with hardware approaching end-of-life. Replacing the hardware would cost $2M+, require 12 months, and still leave them with on-premise maintenance burden. They migrated to Platform28's hosted platform in 6 weeks, eliminated hardware costs, and now benefit from automatic updates and 99.999% uptime SLA.
Hosted Contact Centers for Government
Government agencies increasingly move from on-premise to hosted/cloud contact centers:
- Hardware end-of-life - Legacy systems need replacement; cloud eliminates the cycle
- Budget flexibility - OpEx subscription vs. CapEx hardware procurement
- Security improvements - Enterprise cloud providers have stronger security than most on-premise
- Disaster recovery - Built-in redundancy without separate DR infrastructure
- Remote workforce - Support distributed agents across offices and work-from-home
Platform28 has helped government agencies transition from legacy on-premise systems to modern hosted platforms since 2001.
Platform28: Hosted Since 2001
Platform28 has provided hosted contact center solutions since 2001—before "cloud" was common terminology. Our cloud platform includes:
- 99.999% uptime SLA - Industry-leading reliability
- SOC 2 Type II certified - Audited security
- US-based data centers - Geographic control
- 100% proprietary technology - No third-party dependencies
- Active user pricing - Only pay for agents who log in
See our Trust & Security page for compliance details.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a hosted contact center?
A hosted contact center is operated by a third-party provider who manages all infrastructure—servers, telephony, software—while you access it remotely. It's the opposite of on-premise where you own and maintain everything yourself.
Is hosted the same as cloud contact center?
Essentially yes. "Hosted" was the industry term before "cloud" became dominant. Both mean the infrastructure is managed by a provider and accessed remotely. Today, CCaaS (Contact Center as a Service) is the standard term.
What are the benefits of hosted contact centers?
Key benefits: no hardware to buy or maintain, provider handles updates and security, predictable subscription costs, faster deployment, built-in disaster recovery, and support for remote agents.
Are hosted contact centers secure enough for government?
Yes. Reputable hosted/cloud providers maintain government-grade security including SOC 2 Type II, FedRAMP, and StateRAMP certifications. In practice, these providers often have stronger security than government agencies can achieve with on-premise systems.
How do I migrate from on-premise to hosted?
Migration typically takes 4-8 weeks. Key steps: configure the new platform, integrate with existing systems (CRM, telephony), train agents, run parallel operation briefly, then cut over. Platform28 provides implementation support throughout.
What happens to my data in a hosted contact center?
Your data remains yours. Reputable providers maintain data isolation, encryption, and compliance with data residency requirements. Review provider contracts for data ownership, portability, and deletion terms before signing.
Ready to move to the cloud?
Platform28 has hosted contact centers since 2001. See our modern cloud platform.