Interoperability key driver for telepresence

HONG KONG: Telepresence and video conferencing are poised to grow into a USD$4.7 Billion industry worldwide by 2014, out of which Asia Pacific is expected to contribute USD$1.7 Billion, according to Frost & Sullivan.

Speaking at the launch of the TANDBERG Telepresence T3 room in Hong Kong recently, executives from TANDBERG and Frost & Sullivan reiterated the need to ensure interoperability based on an open standards platform if the technology is to create long-term value for organizations, said a press release.

The growth in telepresence has largely been driven by the introduction of higher quality products, falling broadband prices and the need for senior executives to cut costs associated with business travel.  For an increasing number of companies in Asia Pacific with existing video conferencing capabilities, telepresence is fast becoming the next must-have technology in the enterprise armory.

Lars Ronning, TANDBERG’s President for Asia Pacific (excluding Japan and China) said, “People tend to forget that telepresence is not a product, it is an experience and an extension of video conferencing.”

“Increasingly, we’re seeing telepresence become a critical part of the total visual communication offering and in the last six months in particular, we’ve had some very notable customer wins in Asia with financial houses leading the way in adoption,” he added.

Organizations interested in telepresence should consider the technology as a part of a larger visual communications strategy and deploy telepresence solutions like the T3 that would work with most existing business applications, services and infrastructure without requiring upgrades in hardware.

Complementing telepresence with a variety of endpoints, such as PC-based, desktop and room-based video systems, as well as integrating with unified communications applications, like Microsoft Office Communications Server, would also help ensure maximum return on investment by giving every employee video access to help drive efficiencies and greater productivity, said the release.

According to Pranabesh Nath, Industry Analyst for Frost & Sullivan’s ICT Practice (Asia Pacific), “The telepresence market in Asia is definitely seeing a strong growth and awareness; however to realize the full potential of this technology, customers need to be able to talk to each other no matter what telepresence system or vendor they use.”