The InfoComm 2013 conference in Orlando last week generated a good bit of news in the videoconferencing sector.
Highlights:
- eWeek reported that both Avaya and Blue Jeans Network used the show to display new capabilities.
Avaya announced the Video Collaboration Solution for IP Office, aimed at small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The move adds video to Avaya’s IP Office unified communications platform. Avaya pointed to the rationale for directly addressing this segment. Thirty percent of SMEs, the company said, go beyond simple webcams in their video endeavors and video collaboration technologies could double during the next year.
Blue Jeans also used the conference to introduce the second generation of its video conferencing service, which has a redesigned user interface, better content-sharing capabilities and in-meeting controls:
The company’s Blue Jeans Network leverages the cloud to create online meeting environments where people can collaborate regardless of the endpoints they use. The solution can support various video and audio protocols, and the bridging capabilities enable businesses to have more than a couple of people join the meeting without relying on expensive hardware-based multipoint control units (MCUs).
- ZDNet reported that Polycom said upgrades to its RealPresence product line are aimed at increasing flexibility. RealPresence Desktop 3.0 now can run on Apple OS X and RealPresence Mobile 3.0 can operate on more than 12 smartphones and tablets, including LG’s Optimus G Pro, Samsung’s Galaxy S4, Sony Xperia ZL and Xperia Z. Mobile 3.0 accommodates .jpg, .png, HTML, .pdf, PowerPoint, Excel and Word.
- Vidyo unveiled VidyoConferencing 3.0. The company said that it features a newly designed integrated desktop. Vidyo introduced a number of new products, including VideoDesktop 3.0, VidyoWeb, VidyoRemote, a sharing and collaboration app and integration capabilities with AMX and Crestron room control platforms.
- IntelePeer and Vidtel announced a partnership. The companies will deliver what they call highly flexible videoconferencing services in support of internal and business-to-business collaboration. The core of the agreement is the integration of Vidtel’s MeetMe cloud-based video conferencing service into IntelePeer’s SIP trunking platform.
- Interoute, which claims to own Europe’s largest cloud services platform, launched SmartPoint. The company said that it is an out-of-the-box platform that enables customers to choose from pre-configured components.
- UCStrategies and other sites report that Pexip, a software-driven videoconferencing vendor, has been formed. The company, which is led by ex-Cisco and Tandberg executives, has offices in New York, Oslo and London. The story lays out the new service, which will be exclusively sold through channel partnerships:
Infinity is described as a “truly virtualized conferencing platform” by Pexip, and this means that it is made up of a collection of virtual machines which operate on x86-based servers, and can work with virtualization tools that users already have in place. According to the company, users can also increase port capacity on-demand through the virtualization element, and can perform upgrades with zero downtime.
Cisco acquired Tandberg in 2009.
