January 2013 Volume 34
Dear Subscribers,
Happy New Year! It is only 17 days into the new year and we have already been buried in news and
product announcements. The big story this month:
Polycom and AT&T have joined forces! AT&T originally built their business exchange around Cisco
Telepresence becoming one of Cisco’s original customers and managed service partners for the technology.
The business exchange connects over 130 customers for inter-company telepresence and videoconferencing
including over 1/3rd
of the Fortune 100. They have connectivity to about 4,000 rooms. Now they are
joining forces with Polycom, offering Polycom equipment bundles, adding Polycom video network
infrastructure, and connecting Polycom customers to the business exchange. What does this mean for
Cisco? Andrew Davis at Wainhouse Research kicked off a flurry of speculation when he predicted that
Cisco will leave the hardware-based videoconferencing market in 2013. Cisco had been hit with mass
defections of TANDBERG employees including CEO Fredrik Halvorsen, President Geir Olsen, CTO
Hakon Dahle, and others leading industry pundit David Danto to speculate that 2013 will be the year that
the entire country of Norway will resign from Cisco. AT&T says the Polycom deal is strictly additive and
good for customers and they remain committed to Cisco. Time will tell if Cisco remains committed to
hardware-based telepresence and videoconferencing or drops it like Umi… and Flip… and Eos…
Reminder: We are gearing up to continue our coverage in the next issue of
Telepresence Options Magazine which will be printed in late February and put into
the mail on March 1st
for delivery to 100+ countries this year. This year is a double
issue with the print version of our recently redesigned Telepresence and
Videoconferencing Catalog. You can subscribe for free at
www.TelepresenceOptions.com/magazine. If you are interested in advertising in the
issue, we just kicked off our 2013 advertising program.
Thanks for reading,
Howard S. Lichtman
Publisher - Telepresence Options
AT&T & Polycom Partner on Telepresence and
Videoconferencing - What does it mean for Customers and
Cisco? January 16, 2013 | David S. Maldow, Esq.
We appear to be at a turning point in the
history of visual collaboration. Internal use of
business videoconferencing is now becoming
commonplace, and the challenges preventing
full ubiquitous video in business to business
are being attacked with a renewed energy.
One of the success stories on the B2B front
has been the AT&T business exchange which
includes over 130 organizations globally. AT&T
appears to be building on this with a new
working agreement with Polycom. The new
agreement includes a few elements, such as AT&T offering service bundles including
Polycom products, the use of Polycom infrastructure at AT&T, and the use of AT&T MPLS
services by Polycom. Continue reading...
The All New 2013 Telepresence and Videoconferencing
Catalog Is Live Online!
January 14, 2013 | David S. Maldow, Esq.
We are pleased to announce the launch of our all new and updated on-line Telepresence and
Videoconferencing Catalog for 2013. The new TPO Catalog is the most comprehensive third party
sourcebook of telepresence, videoconferencing, and visual collaboration solutions on the web. Unlike
similar efforts, the TPO Catalog does not require sponsorship for basic inclusion. This means the catalog
can include every company of interest. As a result of basing entry on relevance, rather than sponsorship,
we hope to create a truly valuable public resource for the visual collaboration community.
On March 1st, we will be publishing a print version of the catalog which will be mailed out with the next
issue of Telepresence Options Magazine to 100+ countries and distributed at every major tradeshow
and industry conference. Please click through to learn more about how you can receive, and/or be
included in both the online and physical version of the new catalog. Continue reading...
Telepresence Options is now on Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Xing, RSS, and YouTube
CES 2013: Hands On With The Oculus VR Rift, Virtual
Reality's Greatest Hope
I spent some time and got a little dizzy with the impressive Oculus VR Rift head-mounted display.
By Will Greenwald PCMag
LAS VEGAS--I don't know if I've seen the future of virtual reality, but I do know I've seen its best chance
in decades of amounting to anything. This renewed hope comes from the Oculus Rift from Oculus VR,
and my short time playing with it has convinced me that it can make first-person games immersive to an
unforeseen extent.Continue reading...
What is New and Cool at the Consumer Electronics Show
David Danto is the former head of telepresence, videoconferencing, and
multimedia at JP Morgan Chase and Lehman. Now he is the Principal
Consultant for Multimedia, Video, and AV at systems integration
powerhouse Dimension Data. David is on the ground at the Consumer
Electronic Show and is providing the most sophisticated analysis of
what is new and cool found anywhere on the Internet. David will be
reporting daily and we will be updating this page daily with his breaking
reports.
Continue reading...
PanaCast: The Next Generation of Full Room Video
Coverage
January 7, 2013 | David S. Maldow, Esq.
Here at Telepresence Options, our focus has always been on applying and adapting videoconferencing
technology in ways that provide a more natural and immersive meeting experience. We have come a
great way from the dark ages of pixilated postage stamp sized images. Today's top of the line
telepresence systems address many of the more distracting elements of remote meetings, by providing
full sized images, improved eye contact, proper room layouts and screen positioning, high quality audio,
etc. However, even the best systems still have a few limitations that take away from the natural meeting
experience. One such limitation is the fact that with most solutions it is not easy (and in many cases not
even possible) for the remote participant to simply look around the room.The PanaCast, from Altia
Systems, solves this problem with a novel and elegant approach. The concept is certainly resonating.
The company reached their Kickstarter goal three times over, and expect to start shipping soon, as they
continue to add new features and capabilities.Click through to see how PanaCast solves the room
coverage puzzle. Continue reading...
Arkadin Acquires Novasight as Acquisitions of
Videoconferencing Managed Service Providers Continue
January 1, 2013 | David S. Maldow, Esq.
Arkadin has acquired Novasight, with a focus on rounding out their existing service offerings with
Novasight's ability to support traditional videoconferencing environments. We recently covered this
continuing trend of larger service providers and organizations acquiring VC MSPs. It appears that
videoconferencing is no longer such a special and separate beast, and it can now live happily in the same
stable as the rest of your IT menagerie.
November 2012: Arkadin Aquires Novasight
October 2012: SPS Acquires Providea
April 2012: Yorktel Acquires First Connections
February 2012: IEC Acquires G2J
January 2012: Arkadin Acquires ConferencePlus
January 2012: AVI-SPL Acquires Iformata
June 2011: Polycom Acquires HP Halo
April 2011: AVM Acquires VC-Net
February 2011: Carousel Acquires Omni Presence
February 2011: Presidio Acquires Blue Water Communications
September 2010: Dimension Data Acquires mvision
April 2010: Viju Acquires CityIS Continue reading...
TPO Interview: Theo Economides - Videoconferencing
Adoption
December 27, 2012 | David S. Maldow, Esq.
Here at Telepresence Options we have often touched upon the particularly trenchant adoption
problems in the videoconferencing industry. Unfortunately, once someone is turned off to video, they
tend to stay turned off, as the phone provides a ready alternative. In my opinion, the biggest turn off for
potential adopters of VC happens when they are forced to suffer through a failed meeting, or even a
compromised meeting experience.In the past, experience compromises were difficult to avoid due to
technology limitations. Today, the technology has more than caught up, so with a comprehensive
adoption strategy including planning, training, support, and expectation management, you can expect
real results. In order to share some unique expertise and insight into the adoption puzzle, we spoke with
good friend Theo Economides (above left), who is a lecturer and consultant focused on helping clients
deal with, and overcome, the adoption hurdles endemic to the VC arena.
Continue reading...
Telepresence Options: New Articles and Stories
From our on-going review of the most important stories on telepresence
technologies and reporting on the telepresence industry.
Browse the New Articles and Stories Archives
Subscribe to receive new articles via RSS or via e-mail.
AT&T Allows FaceTime for Limited Data Users. What
About Unlimited?
By BRIAN X. CHEN
Bits
AT&T said on Wednesday that it would allow more of its iPhone
customers to use Apple's videoconferencing app, FaceTime,
over its cellular network. But customers with unlimited data
plans are still left out.
AT&T published a blog post that said it was letting customers
with its tiered, limited data plans use FaceTime over the
network. Previously, it had reserved this privilege for customers
who subscribed to its newer shared data plans.
Continue reading...
Living on Video in Las Vegas: Steelcase at CES
By UCStrategies Staff
Last weekend in Las Vegas, Steelcase changed the way workplaces
view video conferencing. Their concept was just one of many on
display throughout the week at this year's International Consumer
Electronics Show.
This giant of the global furniture market company is showing their
solution to physical appearance and acoustic issues with video
conferencing with its new Living on Video conference setting.
Continue reading...
Alex Doyle Joins Vidtel By Dave Michels UC Strategies
Recently Alex Doyle took on the role of VP of Marketing at Vidtel. If you are not
familiar with Vidtel, it offers a variety of cloud-based video conferencing
services including meet-me conferencing bridge services and an any-to-any
service that traverses video through most firewalls. For its unique and
innovative contributions, the firm was featured last year in the Enterprise
Connect Innovation Showcase.
Continue reading...
TeleStrong Delivers Allied Health To Aged Care Remotely
Written by Kate McDonald, Pulse ItinShare
Allied health services provider HealthStrong has launched a new
telehealth service to provide healthcare by video conference to the
aged care industry.
HealthStrong has provided allied health services such as physiotherapy and podiatry to residential aged
care facilities for over a decade under the company's former name Clinicall. It has now branched out
into providing some of those services through its telehealth arm TeleStrong, as well as setting up
CareStrong for the community care sector. Continue reading...
Attack of the Telepresence Robots!
Rick Lehrbaum, BYTE | January 11, 2013 11:30 AM
Devices: Bring Your Own Human!The growing trend
toward telecommuting and outsourcing has driven
companies to seek ways for remote workers and
teams to communicate and collaborate more
efficiently and effectively. This need has inspired a
handful of innovative high-tech startups to create a
new market: remote telepresence robots.Although
remote workers and contractors have depended on
real-time audio/video communications tools for many years, including Skype, Facetime, Google Talk,
and various dedicated video-conferencing equipment and service, nothing truly offered a "being there" -
- or better yet, "moving around there" -- experience. What was lacking was the ability to work within the
remote environment, chatting with managers and staff, attending both scheduled and spontaneous
meetings, and solving problems encountered through those interactions. Continue reading...
Google Fiber-Inspired SightDeck Brings Hollywood Effects
To VC Pitches And Telepresence Meetings By Ben Paynter Fast Company
Part corporate meeting telepresence, part
stand-alone film studio with baked in special
effects, the system is backed by Kansas City,
one of the first chosen for Google's Fiber
project.One of Kansas City's first city-backed
ventures to capitalize on the speed of Google
Fiber is set to officially launch next week.
Fittingly, it's from a company that could help other entrepreneurs speed up how they pitch their own
products. Continue reading...
Romo gen 3 Gains Lightning Connector, We Go Hands-On
(video)
By Myriam Joire EnGadget
Remember Romo, the adorable iPhone-faced track-
equipped robot? We met up with Romotive in Vegas at CES
2013 to play with the 3rd generation model that was
recently launched on Kickstarter. The company also gave us
an exclusive first look at a 3rd generation prototype with
Lightning connector. We sat down with CEO Keller Rinaudo
to discuss the new robot and catch up on what the team's
achieved over the past year. Continue reading...
112th Congress Finished Its Term By Taking Away More of
Your Privacy, In The Worst Possible Way By Trevor Timm EFF
The 113th Congress was sworn into office last week and will start regular
business later this month. They'll have a huge, and perhaps
unprecedented, slate of Internet related legislation in the next year,
including potentially taking up a dangerous new Internet surveillance bill--
which we will detail in the coming days and weeks.But before they do,
they should take a lesson from the 112th Congress on how not to conduct business. In their final official
week of existence--and the cover of holidays--the 112th Congress used underhanded and undemocratic
tactics to pass two bills that have terrible effects on your online privacy. Continue reading...
Microsoft's IllumiRoom Projects Images Beyond your TV
ISPR [From Gameranx] by Alex Co on 9th Jan, 2013
IllumiRoom Projects Images Past Your TV, Looks Stunning
Microsoft's research labs have just released a trailer for
IllumiRoom, which projects images beyond your TV! You
need to watch it to believe it.
During Samsung's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) keynote,
Microsoft demonstrated one of the projects they're working on and this one has a gaming slant to
it.Microsoft's Research lab calls it "IllumiRoom," and it projects images outside of your TV while you're
playing games. According to the official site, IllumiRoom " is a proof-of-concept system from Microsoft
Research. It augments the area surrounding a television screen with projected visualizations to enhance
the traditional living room entertainment experience." Continue reading...
Silent Skype Calls Can Hide Secret Messages For your eyes only (Image: Patrick Sinkel/AP/PA)
By Paul Marks NewScientist
Got a secret message to send? Say it with silence. A new technique
can embed secret data during a phone call on Skype. "There are
concerns that Skype calls can be intercepted and analysed," says
Wojciech Mazurczyk at the Institute of Telecommunications in
Warsaw, Poland. So his team's SkypeHide system lets users hide
extra, non-chat messages during a call. Continue reading...
Tely Labs Signs Gem To Distribute Video Conferencing
Solutions By Greg Lockley, PCR
As part of its on-going UK expansion plan, the firm has appointed Gem
Distribution to promote and sell its Tely HD video systems.Tely Labs'
products include the telyHD and telyHD BE, which are designed with
business users in mind to offer complete and comprehensive video
conferencing solutions. telyHD Business Edition incorporates high-
quality, multi-party video calling, desktop sharing and document
collaboration into a price range accessible by businesses of any size
base. Sreekanth Ravi, CEO of Tely Labs, said: "Gem is one of the largest
hardware and software distributors in the market place and will provide substantial reach to our target
audience. Continue reading...
Why Video Is Better for Closing Deals By admin
Over the last few years, video chat has become the newest addition in
the effective salesperson's toolbox. As the technology has improved
by leaps and bounds, it's become better at recreating the nuances of
in-face communication - yet even as video chat has progressed to
perfectly replicating face-to-face conversation, it still requires just a
fraction of the time of a traditional sales trip. That means in-person quality for over-the-phone time
commitments. Imagine being able to make personal, highly effective sales calls at the "speed of phone"
and you've got an idea of just how big a game-changer video chat has become. Continue reading...
CES: Plastic Logic Shows Off Papertab, A Tablet As Thin
And Flexible As Paper
Touts a 10.7in plastic touchscreen display
By Lee Bell The Inquirer
LAS VEGAS: A FLEXIBLE TABLET that is as thin as a piece of paper
has been shown off at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) today,
touting a fully interactive 10.7in plastic touchscreen display.
Developed by Plastic Logic, which has worked with Intel Labs and Queens University to develop the
technology, the tablet is powered by a second generation Intel Core i5 processor and aims to replace the
need for paper. Continue reading...
Wainhouse Predicts Cisco Videoconferencing Exit in 2013
and Other New Year Prognostications
Via the Wainhouse Research Bulletin
As we move into 2013 some of our analysts couldn't help taking the
bait I offered and put their names on the line. "Take a stance," I said.
"Be wild." Note that many of these are pure speculation, our once-a-
year chance to have fun thinking about the sublime and the ridiculous
-- or what is truly happening (depends on the analyst). From the likely to the daringly provocative, here
are some Wainhouse Research analyst predictions for the coming year. Continue reading...
Is Archos' $130 TV Connect too good to be true? Sort of, but
its tablets aren't bad
By Ryan Waniata, Digital trends
Archos' TV Connect claims to pack a lot of functionality into a tiny 0
box, including access to Android apps and video conferencing, but the
final product remains rough around the edges. Meanwhile, Archos'
tablets aren't too shabby.
Despite yesterday's wave of 1080p smartphones, Ultra HD televisions and OLED wonders, we came to
CES 2013 excited to check out the humble Archos TV Connnect. The Android-powered device offers to
turn your "dumb" TV into a smart one and deliver video conferencing for a reasonable $129.99. It also
includes access to all of Android's apps, voice recognition, and a controller-driven user interface with a
full keyboard, which is supposed to feel more like you're using a tablet than a controller. Unfortunately,
our hands-on experience did not live up to our initial expectations. Continue reading...
Federation Bridges Video Conferencing Sales Gap
By Kelly Tea, Channel Partners,
Hamstrung by tight IT budgets and global workers using mismatched
endpoints, businesses are demanding flexible video collaboration that
runs on mobile devices, desktops, laptops, TVs and room-based
systems. But that's not all -- they want platforms of all kinds to talk to
one another -- Skype to Polycom, Facebook to Cisco, Google Talk to
LifeSize, for instance. There's little patience left for walled-garden conferencing. Continue reading...
The Future's Bright, Says Nimans
Channel Pro,
Distributor says acquisition of videoconferencing specialist will help
resellers gain foothold in growing market. Nimans has said its recently-
announced acquisition of videoconferencing specialist Videonations will
open the door to a multi-million-pound industry to resellers. The
Manchester-based distributor claims the purchase of the
videoconferencing specialist will offer "a new world of...sales opportunities" to the channel. Continue
reading...
Immersive Telepresence: Microsoft To Add Hugs,
Handshake, Even Anxiety To Teleconferences
The boring teleconference may become more touchy-feely if
Microsoft has its way.
Lesley Ciarula Taylor Staff Reporter at the Start
Microsoft has won a patent to add real hugs, handshakes,
document handovers and even a touch of anxiety to virtual
meetings. The patent covers a variety of systems with
separate components that can add or subtract features. Among them: a cultural component that blocks
one person from sending culturally inappropriate feedback (a tap on the shoulder, for example) to
another. Continue reading...
QNX Bringing HTML 5, 4G LTE, Video Conferencing to
Future Cars
By Daniel P. Howley, LAPTOP staff writer
One of the biggest names in car technology, QNX, is here at CES
2013to show off its new QNX CAR application platform 2.0. The
system represents a huge upgrade to the company's current
offerings and includes such features as in-car 4G LTE, HTML 5
compatibility and more. Continue reading...
New Panasonic Televisions Watch You By Glenn Derene, Popular Mechanics
Last year, TV manufacturers introduced sets with built-in gesture and
voice controls. The interfaces were clunky and felt stapled on--both
journalists and customers responded with an enthusiastic "huh?" It's easy
to see why TV makers would conclude that gesture and voice have a
natural place in the television user interface, after all, TV menus are getting
more and more complicated as "smart sets" try to do more and more. Plus,
Microsoft's Xbox 360 accessory, Kinect, showed that people really can get
excited about gestural interfaces. But the Kinect shines primarily because
of its value as a gaming device. But do people really want to talk to their TVs and wave their hands
around just to change the channel? Continue reading...
Double-Speed USB 3.0 To Arrive Next Year
The first devices that take advantage of the new standard's
10Gbps data-transfer speed should arrive in 2014. Too bad for
Thunderbolt.
by Stephen Shankland CNET
USB 3.0 became mainstream in 2012, and a double-speed version
is due arrive in late 2014. That could mean Thunderbolt stays a rarity. Computing industry powers are
doubling the data-transfer speed of USB 3.0 from today's 5 gigabits per second rate to 10Gbps. The
move will uncork speed bottlenecks of external SSD storage devices, open up options such second
monitors, and help confine the even faster Thunderbolt interface to a high-end niche. But it won't
happen immediately. The specification should be done in mid-2013, which "will enable initial products
to appear in late 2014 with a much broader availability of products in 2015," according to the USB 3.0
Promoter Group, which announced the faster Universal Serial Bus work today at the CES show.
Continue reading...
How Fast Does "Virtual Reality" Have To Be To Look Like
"Actual Reality"?
Low latency is important to an effective VR display but might not be everything.
by Kyle Orland - ARS Technica
For decades now, virtual reality has been a pipe dream concept, well ahead of the technology needed to
realize it. Generating a convincing 3D world that precisely and instantly matches the head-tracked
position of a player's gaze was well beyond the headsets that proliferated in research centers and on the
market up through the '90s. It has only been recently that products like Sony's prototype gaming
headset and the upcoming Oculus Rift have seriously attempted to create believable virtual reality
headsets using modern head-tracking and display technology. But there are some who think the
technology in these systems still hasn't been developed far enough to create a truly believable, head-
tracked virtual reality. Valve's Michael Abrash laid out this case in a detailed blog post last weekend,
suggesting that VR headsets need a "Kobayashi Maru moment" to solve the inherent problem of display
latency that plagues current and upcoming headsets. Continue reading...
Apple TV Predicted to Have FaceTime Videoconferencing
By Aabha Rathee Wallst Cheat Sheet
If there's talk about Apple's rumored television, Piper
Jaffray's Gene Munster can't be far behind. The analyst told
PC Magazine's Sascha Segan that the probability of the
iPhone maker releasing a TV product in 2013 was very high.
Continue reading...
Telemedicine Startup Drishti Eye Care Raises Funding From Lok Capital
What not to wear in a video conference call
Build Your Own Google Glass
Facebook Tests Free Voice Calling in Messenger App
Video-Conferencing Firm Nuvixa Changes Name To Personify
Iowa Implementing Face Recognition Program To Track Sex Offenders
Congress Disgracefully Approves the FISA Warrantless Spying Bill for Five
More Years, Rejects All Privacy Amendments
Student Creates Device To Capture Aroma Of Meal On a Postcard
The Story of Dropcam, a Little Hardware Start-Up With Its Head in the Cloud
(Video)
The New Informatics: Productivity Meets Collaboration
Microsoft Patents Long-Distance Virtual Handshakes, Hugs
Six Predictions for Cloud Collaboration in 2013
71 Percent Of Businesses Not Collaborating Effectively
Telehealth Is A $620m Video Conferencing Black Hole
Giant Burning TV Log Sends Fire Crews Scrambling
Telepresence Industry Press Releases
Check out the latest news from the companies on the forefront of
telepresence technologies, telepresence managed services, and inter-
networking telepresence.
Browse the Industry Press Release Archives
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Frontier Capital Completes Growth Investment in
ConnectSolutions January 14, 2013
Frontier Capital is pleased to announce its investment in ConnectSolutions, Inc., a
leading private-cloud service provider of Unified-Communications-as-a-Service
(UCaaS) solutions for large enterprise and government organizations.
Continue reading...
Cloud Videoconferencing Management Solution from your
iPad & iPhone. MyEasyVision will be Featured at Team
Polycom 2013 in Vancouver, BC Canada - February 4 - 7,
2013.
MyEasyVision is a Software-as-a-Service Videoconferencing &
Telepresence Management Solution for Telco Carriers,
Video/Telepresence Managed Services Providers, Audiovisual
Integrators, Network & Hosting Providers. G2J Videoconferencing
Management Solutions, delivered via cloud-based MyEasyVision
platform are securely accessible via any network (private/public) and
fully technology-agnostic. With its carrier-grade, multi-tenant MyEasyVision platform built in-house, G2J
provides monitoring & management services that increase the utilization of videoconferencing
deployment by ensuring all systems are on, all the time, and calls start on time with the highest possible
quality. Continue reading...
Videoconferencing Users Group, VCI-Group, Points
Members to Elliot Gold's TeleSpan 18th Annual Predictions
for the January VCI-G Live
Minneapolis, Minnesota (PRWEB) January 14, 2013. The VCI-Group
schedules and plans a monthly live webinar, called VCI-G Live, to help
educate and inform the 500+ companies and over 5000 individuals in their community on cutting edge
market and technology trends in the videoconferencing industry. This month however, VCI-Group is
encouraging its membership to attend TeleSpan's 18th annual prediction event in lieu of their normal
"VCI-G Live" event. Continue reading...
AT&T AND POLYCOM TO ADVANCE INNOVATIVE
VIDEO CAPABILITIES
DALLAS and San Jose, Calif, January 15, 2013 - As organizations of all
types look to accelerate the adoption of video-based communications
and video-enabled business processes, AT&T and Polycom, Inc.,
(Nasdaq: PLCM) announced today a strategic agreement to personalize,
mobilize and virtualize video meetings. Enabled by the industry-leading AT&T Business Exchange, MPLS,
Internet and mobility networks and the Polycom RealPresence Platform, the agreement will create
greater availability of cloud-delivered video communication capabilities - giving customers unmatched
choice in when, how, and where they collaborate. Continue reading...
Glowpoint Names Peter Holst President and CEO
Glowpoint Inc., (NYSE MKT: GLOW), a leading global provider of cloud and managed
video services, today announced that its Board of Directors has named Peter Holst
president and chief executive officer, effective today. It is anticipated that Mr. Holst will
also join the Board of Directors. Holst succeeds Joe Laezza, who is stepping down as
President and CEO and resigning as a member of the Board. To facilitate a smooth transition, Mr. Laezza
will continue to serve as an advisor to Mr. Holst and the Board for the remainder of the first quarter of
2013. Continue reading...
DVE Telepresence Recognized for Ultra Realistic VC by C-
Suite Quarterly Magazine's Winter Edition
IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 14, 2013 -- /PRNewswire/ -- Digital Video
Enterprises, Inc. (DVE) today announced that is has been
recognized by C-Suite Quarterly Magazine (www.csqmag.com) in
its 2012-2013 Winter Edition as a special innovation of note
among other leading innovative companies and academic
institutions in Los Angeles. Continue reading...
Revolve Robotics Enables Video Collaboration For Business
SAN FRANCISCO - Jan. 10, 2013 - Revolve Robotics, an emerging leader in
mobile-controlled personal robotics, today announced that Kubi, their easy-
to-use robotic tablet platform for video collaboration and telepresence
applications, is now interoperable with leading enterprise video conferencing
solutions. Kubi enhances existing conferencing tools by giving remote users
control of the tablet through swivel, pan and tilt actions, enabling them to "look around" and interact
with remote environment as if they were actually in the room. Continue reading...
Sony Xperia Z - Sony's First 5.0-inch Full HD Quad-core
Phablet with Android Jelly Bean and 13MP Camera
Sony Xperia Z is the first Full HD and Quad-powered Android phablet introduced by Sony in
its Xperia series. It is now available for pre-order from MobiCity, Australia's best online
mobile phone store.The IP55 & IP57 certified water and dust-resistant device exhibits a
super sleek 7.9mm thin rectangular bar form make featuring a 5.0-inch Full HD Reality
Display having a screen resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels and an extremely high pixel density of 443ppi.
Continue reading...
Steelcase - Video Is Impacting The Way We Live, Work and
Learn
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As video becomes a dominate
communication tool in the workplace and in the classroom, challenges such as
inadequate space, lack of privacy, and concern over physical appearance are making the transition
difficult for many people. Steelcase, a global leader in office and education environments, is displaying
concept spaces and technology, this week at the HigherEd TECH Summit at CES, that better address
these key barriers and create a more intuitive, dynamic, and natural videoconferencing experience.
Continue reading...
MCU1.com Launched Following Successful Beta Test
Media Network Services (MNS) today announced the public launch of MCU1.com
following a successful beta test period involving 100+ beta testers from around the
world. MCU1.com is now operational and present with Multipoint Control Unit
(MCU) infrastructure in Americas, APAC and Europe. Continue reading...
InfoComm Releases New AV Systems Performance
Verification Checklist
FAIRFAX, VA - January 10, 2013- InfoComm International, the trade association
representing the commercial audiovisual industry, is pleased to offer a member-
developed resource which will provide owners, consultants and integrators with
comprehensive verification criteria to determine if the AV system achieves the client's objectives and is
performing in accordance with the system design. Continue reading...
ScienceLogic Named InfoWorld 2013 Technology of the
Year Award Winner
RESTON, VA--(Marketwire - Jan 10, 2013) - ScienceLogic, a
leading data center and cloud management software vendor,
announced today that the company has received the 2013 InfoWorld Technology of the Year Award.
Selected by IDG's InfoWorld Test Center editors and reviewers, the annual awards identify the best and
most innovative products on the IT landscape. Winners are drawn from all of the products tested during
the past year, with the final selections made by InfoWorld's Test Center staff. All products reviewed by
the Test Center are eligible to win. Continue reading...
HealthSpot Sets Out to Reinvent Healthcare Through
Technology
Las Vegas, NV - CES Booth Grand Lobby-3 - January 7, 2013 at 5:00
AM PST - At CES 2013, you will be able to experience the crossroads of
healthcare and technology into a better healthcare system for
tomorrow. HealthSpot, a pioneer in patient and provider-driven
healthcare technology, has developed a breakthrough telehealth
system that provides high-quality medical diagnostic technology to
patients anytime, anywhere. Being unveiled in the Grand Lobby, CES attendees are invited to
presentations and live demonstrations of patients receiving care from across the US. Continue reading...
GestureTek Systems Inc. Is Appointed The Distributor of
DISPLAX SKIN Multi-Touch Product for the USA and
Canada
Toronto, Canada, Jan 8, 2013, GestureTek System Inc. is proud to announce
that it has been made the exclusive distributor for the Skin Multi-touch
product for the USA and Canada by Displax Interactive Systems. This
innovative product is a thin transparent film that can be easily placed on
glass, windows, monitors, or virtually any surface to allow that surface to
enable multi-touch interaction by one or more users.. Continue reading...
Yorktel Taps Dan Missbrenner to Lead West Coast
Operations
Eatontown, NJ (January 9, 2013) - Yorktel (@Yorktelcorp), the global leader in video
managed services, today announced the appointment of Daniel A. Missbrenner as Vice
President of Commercial Sales for the Western Region (U.S.). In this capacity, Dan is charged
with extending the company's worldwide footprint in Western US target markets, and will also oversee
operations for the region. Continue reading...
AVI-SPL Expands International Presence With New Offices
in the UK and Canada
TAMPA, Fla., - January 8, 2013 - AVI-SPL, the world's leading video communications partner, is pleased
to announce further international expansion with the opening of four new offices outside the U.S.,
including London, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto. "AVI-SPL is committed to being a truly global
provider," said AVI-SPL CEO John Zettel. Continue reading...
Vidyo Selected by HealthSpot as Exclusive Video
Conferencing Partner at CES 2013
HACKENSACK, N.J., Jan 08, 2013 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Vidyo, Inc., the first
company to deliver personal telepresence, today announced its collaboration
with HealthSpot(TM), a pioneer in patient and provider driven healthcare
technology. HealthSpot has integrated Vidyo technology into its cutting-edge
telehealth system that provides high-quality medical diagnostics to acute
care patients anytime, anywhere. Anchoring the telehealth system is the HealthSpot(TM) Station, a
private, walk-in kiosk that offers patient access to diagnosis and treatment by board-certified doctors,
via Vidyo-powered HD videoconferencing and interactive digital medical devices. HealthSpot will
demonstrate the Vidyo-enabled HealthSpot Station in the Grand Lobby (booth 3) at this week's
Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Continue reading...
Soglowek Selects SURF's Orion Video Conferencing System
Surf Communications Solutions (SURF), a global leader in multimedia
processing and applications, announced today that Soglowek, Israel's
leading producer of food products, has selected SURF's Orion enterprise
video conferencing solution for company-wide use. Continue reading...
Phoenix Audio Technologies Chosen by Vidyo to Provide
Audio Solutions for Vidyo Users Worldwide
BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Phoenix Audio Technologies, a world leader
in real time audio solutions, today announces enhancing the partnership with
Vidyo Inc. a world leader in personal telepresence and video conferencing
solutions. "We are very proud that Vidyo has chosen to add the Duet PCS as a
recommended personal audio solution for Vidyo users worldwide" Continue reading...
Fortemedia's Latest Voice Processing Technologies Bring a Better Voice
Recognition Experience to Lenovo Laptops
Draper Introduces Video Conferencing Accessories at ISE
Videxio Adds Support For Microsoft Lync To Its Video As A Service Platform
GEO Semiconductor Completes Acquisition of Maxim Integrated Digital Video
Processing Business
LG Begins Rollout Of Eagerly Anticipated OLED TV
Jell Networks to Distribute SoliCall Pro Software
Businesses Could Save On Travel Costs By Better Utilising Audio Or Video
Conferencing, Says The Remark Group
Call: ECLAP 2013 - Conference on Information Technologies for Performing
Arts, Media Access and Entertainment
Vci-Group Continues To Grow Past Polycom Users Group, And Elects New
Officers And Expands Vendor Communications With Circle Of Leaders In 2013.
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Telepresence People
Name Company New Title
Adi Regev ClearOne VP of Videoconferencing Business
John Latini Polycom Director Global Accounts
Alex Doyle Vidtel VP of Marketing
Bob Kiszka Vidyo Regional Sales
Brett Busch Whitlock Global Account Executive
Daniel Missbrenner Yorktel VP Commercial Sales (Western US)
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