Surveillance goes digital to fight terror

The surveillance sector is growing at a rapid rate due to increased security concerns even amongst the common man. V.Sudhakshina of CyberMedia News speaks to Prakash Prabhu, country manager for Axis Communications in India about the increasing demand, changes and developments taking place for surveillance in India and how IP-based surveillance is emerging as a new trend.

How is the market for surveillance in India post recent terror attacks?

The demand for surveillance globally had increased after the 9/11 US World Trade Center attack. That was when people really started realizing the need for a proper surveillance, so that there is a proper public security to prevent such incidents.

In India the sector is emerging from last one year. Our country is more vulnerable to threats, and with the recent events, security had become the priority not only for the government but also for public.

Earlier, people used to feel uncomfortable being under the eye of cameras or passing through the metal detectors. But now with safety being the priority the mindset is changing slowly. People have started thinking that it is better to lose freedom than life!

And what are the latest changes and developments coming up in the sector?

The major trend happening in the surveillance sector is the shift that is taking place from analog to digital technology. Closed circuit systems of the past will give way to open and fully integrated ones. With higher demand for IP-based surveillance, traditional systems like CCTV are declining.

Our recent launch, AXIS Q1755 Network Camera offers such an solution, where the camera is connected to an HDTV monitor and captures fast moving objects in any lighting conditions.

For optional storage of video and further flexibility, the camera has a built-in slot for an SD/SDHC memory card making it possible to store days of recording without any external equipment. Power over Ethernet (IEEE 802.3af) supplies power to the cameras via the network, eliminating the need for power cables and reducing installation costs.

For the software management part, we have a the Axis Application Development Partner program, where we closely collaborate with the application developers and ensure our products under their application.

There is also a shift taking place from localized surveillance to public surveillance, where there is demand from government for tightening security even in public places like malls, commercial marketplace, parks, theaters, etc.

We also have solutions customized for city surveillance, AXIS 233D Network Dome Camera, which automatically detects moving persons or vehicles.

What are the benefits of IP surveillance, in comparison with CCTV?

With the penetration of Internet being considerably high in our country, IP surveillance has got a good opportunity.

The recent attacks have shown that there is a greater need for a properly implemented holistic solutions, which can be addressed by the network-based surveillance.

In an IP based surveillance, you just have to connect over a LAN and get live access to the video from any location. An incident can be viewed easily over the Internet or any wireless connection.

Traditional CCTV method does not provide with live video, it just records the incident. Even remote monitoring is not possible. With digitalization, there are no hassles regarding the image quality, storage etc.

Network surveillance offers capabilities of remote surveillance, where one can have an idea of what is happening at one corner from anywhere in the world. Surveillance has changed from only putting cameras everywhere to connecting in a network with proper storage and bandwidth.

The emerging IP trend would enable surveillance to not only act as a deterrent for mishaps but also as a tool for investigations

Has Axis got any government projects for city surveillance?

Yes, we do have few state government projects for city surveillance, which are still under negotiations.

How soon do you think these projects would be implemented?

These projects will take at least three to four months. Maybe by the end of this quarter we can expect things to happen.

Other than this what other projects are you handling in India?

Basically we are into sectors like education, retail, BFSI, transportation, government, industrial. Although we started off very recently in India, our customers are from from the oil and petroleum sector, hospitality, airport infrastructure which include Delhi airport.

What is the company's market share and strategy?

Axis has 33.5 per cent market share in network video surveillance sector. We have always worked with indirect business models and it is the same in India too. All our products are sold through channel partners and distributors. Our partners in India include Nelco, HCL, and Siemens. Globally our partners include Honeywell, Securitas systems,and Lenel