By Mariette Johnson Wharton, VP of Marketing

With the accessibility of video conferencing and video chat at the desktop level, more and more business people are experimenting and gaining comfort with the technology. With this experience comes greater demand for ease of use, performance and interoperability.

No longer are small-medium sized enterprises willing to let only the big guys with special rooms purpose-built for video conferencing have all the high-quality video conferencing fun.  Fortunately, an emerging trend is the decreasing price of business-grade video conferencing devices.  The latest $20,000-$40,000 telepresence systems are dramatically lower, but still way out of reach for mid-sized and small companies. The 55-inch touchscreen-enabled wall tablet (Mondopad) announced last month by InFocus fills the void in the market with a sub-$6,000 pricetag. Now smaller companies do not have to get shut out of high-quality video conferencing because they can’t afford the equipment.

One issue people often don’t address is that even though the large enterprises spend a fortune on HD room systems, these pricey solutions are still primarily used for internal connections. It’s just too difficult to navigate the complexities of interoperability between proprietary systems and even standard systems (maddeningly, various vendors interpret standards differently).  Seamless connectivity presents tremendous challenges, from firewall traversal to interoperability between the multitude of video technologies (from consumer services such as Skype to executive video phones to room systems by various vendors).   Companies need session border controllers, SIP proxies, gateway servers and specialized know-how to pull it off.

Most companies have never even heard of the infrastructure required for weaving together video conferencing technologies and we don’t believe they should have to.  We agree with Martin Vilaboy:  The answer to widespread SMB deployment of business-grade video conferencing lies in a service provider solution “that can deliver affordable and robust hosted services”.  Our hosted (think SaaS model) video conferencing service puts our “secret sauce” for interop and our video conferencing server infrastructure in the cloud so the SMBs can access it as a monthly fee.  This means on-demand interop between everything from Skype and GoogleTalk to the Mondopad and Polycom, Tandberg, LifeSize, etc.  We made it as simple as dialing a phone for point-to-point connectivity or as easy as an audio conference call for a group video conference (just dial in).  This will allow companies of all sizes to finally experience high-quality any-to-any video conferencing between companies without IT hassles and exorbitant expenditures.

Telepresence, video conferencing, video chat…many different terms are floating around and as the technology is moving from the boardroom and consumer environment into the massive mainstream, more people are asking questions about what the different categories mean. Here’s an overview of video conferencing categories.

Overview

Telepresence, video telepresence, videoconference, video calls and video phone calls are all terms for real-time, two-way audio-video interactions at different locations but there are broadly two categories:

·Point-to-point video conferencing – two different locations

·Multi-point video conferencing – three or more separate locations

Point-to-Point Video Conferencing

Video conferencing or video calls between just two locations is called point-to-point video conferencing.  For connections between two endpoints, Vidtel offers Vidtel Connect.

Although a room-based (telepresence) system can certainly be used for point-to-point video conferencing, often web-based video communications software or desktop, “executive systems”, video phones or “media phones” are used.  Vidtel can support all types of these devices with Vidtel Connect.

Multi-Point Video Conferencing

For organizations with geographically dispersed branch offices and employees, video conferencing enables multiple locations to meet simultaneously.

Room-based (telepresence) video conference systems, video phones, and web-based video conferencing software are all used for multi-point video conferencing.  The Vidtel Meet Me Service supports video conferencing between all different types of systems.

Video Conferencing Equipment

Today video conferencing takes on many forms, from conference room-based systems to executive systems, video (media) phones, web-based or computer video conferencing software, tablets and video-enabled mobile phones.  Vidtel’s vision is to enable any-to-any video conferencing; that is, connecting from any type of video-enabled device whether from a Polycom VVX1500 Business Media Phone to a LifeSize Passport or a Google Talk user.

Room-Based Video Conferencing Systems

Room-based systems are housed in a conference room, sometimes dedicated only to video conferencing.  Generally these are used for multi-point video conferencing.

Cisco, LifeSize, Tandberg, HP and Sony produce telepresence systems, the highest-end videoconferencing systems.  Telepresence systems and service are characterized by:

• state-of-the art room designs
• high-definition video (30 frames per second or higher, 720 pixels)
• high-definition audio (far superior to standard PSTN audio)
• top-of-the line video cameras
• life-sized display images on 60+ inch screens
• high-end sound-systems and processors
• high-capacity bandwidth transmissions
• groupware, directory, unified communication systems and streaming/content management system integration
• integrated session recoding, including in some cases, shared data content
• $2,500-$500,000+ per room costs

Video conference room-based systems can include smaller screen systems and non-HD quality. On the other end of the spectrum,  “telepresence rooms” start at $100k per month. With this scenario, everything has to be managed from the bandwidth to lighting to the room furniture. Interoperability with other systems and networks is generally sub-standard.  Telepresence rooms  are super-premium experiences designed for a small and is “out-of-reach” of all but a select number of users at the very largest companies.

Wall Tablets

InFocus has created a new category of wall-sized tablets to be used in conference rooms. The Mondopad is retailing for just under $6,000 and features multi-touch collaboration and presentation applications, whiteboarding, the ability to share, view and control content remotely from PCs, tablets and smartphones. It allows for business-class, disruptively-priced cloud video conferencing through Vidtel.

Executive Video Conferencing Systems

Executive video conferencing systems generally refer to all hardware-based devices used by individuals on their desks and are typically around $3,000-$10,000 per endpoint.

Video phones or “media phones” also fall into this category, although the prices range from $300 to about $1500. Video phones are more apt to be used for both video and PSTN voice (i.e., regular telephone calling)..

Cisco/Tandberg, Polycom, Samsung/Radvision, LG/Lifesize, and Sony are the market leaders in executive systems or video phones.  Vidtel’s service works with all these vendors’ video conferencing equipment . These executive systems are characterized by:

• Integrated flat-panel screen, video camera, and microphone with phone interface
• Full-duplex (bi-directional) video and audio transmission capability
• High-quality video images from standard to high-definition
• Some enable groupware, directory, unified communication systems and streaming/content management system integration
• Some include integrated session recoding, including in some cases, shared data content
• $300 – $5,000 per device

Smartphones and Tablets

Video conferencing has been enabled in smartphones around the world for years and has recently become more widely available in the US through Android and iPhone4 devices.  Tablets will increasingly provide video conferencing. It was just announced that the iPad2 will incorporate Skype.

Web-Based Video Conferencing

Most video communication today involves a web cam and Internet connection.  Some variants remain free, including  Google and Microsoft, while others charge for multi-party conferences (Skype). Vidyo and Avistar are also web-based but not free.  WebEx and GoToMeeting are not free but include video in the subscription fees.

Vidtel’s aim is to incorporate the leading web-based video conferencing approaches into the Vidtel network for total interoperability between endpoints without any pre-configuration.

Web-based video conferencing involves:

• softphone” technology – either downloaded or browser-based software
• web cams
• microphones
• Internet connection
• $0 (hard to beat)

Personal video communication is most common with this technology, since it’s mostly free. Business organizations tend to seek a more reliable, high-quality experience and seek dedicated devices or HD quality for business transactions and meetings over video and are willing to pay something for better quality. ]]> http://www.vidtel.com/community/defining-todays-video-conferencing/feed/ 0 http://www.vidtel.com/community/addressing-the-middle-ground-in-video-conferencing/ http://www.vidtel.com/community/addressing-the-middle-ground-in-video-conferencing/#comments Wed, 18 May 2011 18:56:54 +0000 admin http://www.vidtel.com/community/?p=461 by Mariette Johnson Wharton, VP of Marketing

In the recent Video Conferencing Bucks Trend article, author P.J. Connelly identifies a vast untapped opportunity in the missing “middle ground”  in the video conferencing market.

Connelly points out the two predominant ends of the video conferencing scale: 1) telepresence, an enormous investment in facilities and hardware [that still, by the way, are primarily used for internal usage, not B2B communications] and 2)  “do-it-yourself” options such as Skype, which provide B2B capability at very low cost but compromise on security [and leave something to be desired as far as consistent quality].

The reality is that most businesses cannot afford telepresence and consumer-grade video conferencing doesn’t always cut it for business interactions.

Where is the middle ground, then? We started tackling this hole in the market when we started Vidtel as a cloud-based video conferencing service provider in 2008; these were exactly the issues that drove our approach.  We understood that the majority businesses cannot absorb high infrastructure costs, do not want to manage SIP proxy servers and session border controllers internally (if they even know what those are), need a secure solution, and simply cannot solve the thorny interop problems on their own.

We got that and that’s why we have built a hosted any-to-any service that deals with these problems head-on. Our price-disruptive service enables connectivity between SIP, H.323 and some proprietary video systems on any type of device – room systems, video phones, mobile phones, tablets, laptops – from different vendors) without requiring huge infrastructure investment and large fees for our customers.

Light Reading recently highlighted two obstacles to widespread video conferencing adoption: the interconnection of multiple videoconferencing providers and the traversal of enterprise firewalls, two of Vidtel’s core competencies.

The industry’s largest video conferencing vendors, such as LifeSize Communications, are currently advocating HD video conferencing services that can connect not only high-end telepresence systems, but also video conferencing rooms, PCs, and even mobile devices (via audio or lower-end video), primarily for business purposes. Light Reading quotes Michael Helmbrecht, vice president of product marketing for LifeSize, as seeing “a significant role for service providers in stimulating the market for high-quality videoconferencing and making it more easily accessible to, and cost-effective for, enterprise users.”

Helmbrecht observes that service providers have a substantial role in expanding the high-quality video conferencing market, since they can break down the difficult barriers companies have for video conferencing with employees, partners, customers, suppliers, patients, and students.

Although the article focuses on managed services (operated by large service providers such as Glowpoint and Verizon and targeted to the large enterprise), Vidtel provides hosted services that can help companies of any size overcome hurdles to video conferencing, both from a pricing, usability and interoperability standpoint.

Our outsourced solution enables businesses to connect hassle-free across companies with standards-based, high-definition video conferencing equipment for a simple monthly fee (instead of thousands of dollars of investment in infrastructure and IT support). We provide interoperability with most reasonably-priced ($50-$5000+) standard video conferencing devices, as well as addressing, firewall traversal and server configurations for HD video conferencing.

For the full article on how video conferencing vendors seek to work with service providers to expand the video conferencing market, visit LifeSize Shapes Up for Managed Video Services.

By Mariette Johnson Wharton, VP of Marketing

In TMCnet’s VoIP Quality Feature, industry expert Doug Mohney outlines the troubles facing end-to-end SIP transport and the need for what he terms a ” federation service to link enterprises, enabling them to share UC applications, IM directly and securely, and do all that HD voice and video goodness without having to run down to the corporate IT staff and getting them to hand-craft secure connections through the firewall on a one-off basis.”  His view is that, “federation would provide a central hub and one-stop-shop for businesses to interoperate at the applications level without having to worry about security.”

Businesses are considering how they can seamlessly integrate UC applications with their partners since Internet service providers (ISPs) do not offer such a service beyond the controlled VoIP framework.

Those of us in the video conferencing industry have been anticipating a Polycom reaction to Cisco’s fall 2009 announcement of its acquisition of Tandberg, the leading video conferencing equipment supplier.  Today we await no longer.

Tensions have been on the rise with the severance of the Cisco-HP reseller arrangement, the Tandberg acquisition and Cisco’s increasingly aggressively focus on telepresence (the fastest-growing business unit in the firm’s history). What was Polycom to do?  Polycom today announced that it’s teaming up with HP to drive interoperability of its video conferencing and telepresence systems with HP Halo telepresence.   Under the arrangement, Polycom’s video and voice solutions for unified communications will be sold and delivered through HP’s Unified Communications and Collaboration Services portfolio.