Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing

What is Video conferencing?

• Video conferencing is a communications technology that integrates video and audio to connect users anywhere in the world as if they were in the same room. 
• This term usually refers to communication between three or more users who are in at least two locations, rather than one-on-one communication, and it often includes multiple people at each location. 

• Each user or group of users who are participating in a video conference typically must have a computer, a camera, a microphone, a video screen and a sound system. 

• Another requirement is a connection to the communications system that is being used, which in the 21st century usually is the Internet but might also be a satellite-based system, a broadcast signal or other communications technology. 
• When using video conferencing, participants can see and hear each other in real time or close to it, allowing natural face-to-face conversations and visual elements that are not possible with voice-only communications technology.

 

Various components of VC Equipment:

Following are the basic components of a videoconferencing system
• Codec
• Camera
• Control system
• Display equipment
• Audio system

 

Multipoint Videoconferencing:

• Multipoint videoconferencing allows three or more participants to sit in a virtual conference room and communicate as if they were sitting right next to each other.
•  Multipoint Videoconferencing is possible using Multipoint Conference Server.. MCS is the central point of connectivity for endpoints.

• It enables different networks, different bandwidths and different types of endpoints to communicate effectively.
• Multipoint Conference Server acts as a switching device, connecting multiple sites at the same time to become part of same conference.
• It also provides facility to run multiple conferences with varying data rates, to operate in parallel over one network.
• The digital video signals from various Codecs are fed to the MCS, which is controlled through a workstation, (commonly a PC) to monitor and control various conferences.
• Accounting and scheduling related jobs are done through the workstation.

 

Increase Productivity and Reduce Costs

• Interacting face to face is now possible regardless of location.
• Video conferencing brings your meetings to you, instead of having to deal with the headache of traveling.

Participate with just a web browser

• Moderators have two options: a full featured video and application sharing program or a web based version with slimmed-down features.
• With our quick and easy download you can be up and running in minutes

Benefits of Videoconferencing

• Video conferencing connects individuals in real time through audio and video communication over broadband networks enabling visual meetings and collaboration on digital documents and shared presentations. 
• In the early days, participants connected between central meeting rooms outfitted with video conference hardware, but new technologies allow participants to connect remotely over a network through multiple devices like laptops, desktops, smartphones and tablets.

Advantages

1. Significant Travel Savings

The constant climb of air travel prices barely seems like news anymore, and smart organizations are finding alternatives.  Not only is video conferencing a direct replacement for many in-person business trips, but because there is virtually no cost to add additional key employees to a virtual meeting, you can easily bring the right team together.

2. Improved Communication

Video conferencing restores many visual cues necessary in long distance communication. Social psychologist Ray Birdwhistell demonstrated years ago that non-verbal communication constitutes about two-thirds of the communication between people. For example, eye contact enables us to ‘get’ a message from a speaker that voice communication alone may not successfully convey, creating essential social bonds and shared understandings. Audio conferencing and e-mail lose these non-verbal cues.

3. Increased Productivity

Everyone has experienced the classic never ending “conference call from hell,” and video conferencing all but eliminates those problems, even from large group calls.  Important meetings are shorter and more effective.  Video conferencing users report saving a minimum of two hours a week with the technology. The interactivity of group collaboration and document sharing greatly increases productivity.

4. Conferencing Quality

All of the pros and cons of video conferencing hinge on quality. Early versions of video conferencing quality had uneven clarity of the audio and video broadcast. Today, these problem still remain for low-end and consumer systems.  However, state-of-the-art technology now delivers excellent, reliable audio and video quality, making this one-time disadvantage one of perception, not reality.

Disadvantages

 1. Physical Presence

Are virtual meetings a perfect replacement for physical, face-to-face meetings? People communicate non-verbally through gestures such as handshakes, high fives, and fist bumps.  Today, HD video conferencing ensures these cues transmit in high fidelity.  Salespeople can truly read a potential customer’s response, customers can assess a salesperson’s credibility, leaders can gauge their audience to see whether they caught the organization’s vision, and managers determine whether to hire an applicant.  Organizations concerned about physical presence can begin by using video conferencing in the most appropriate applications, such as training and internal meetings, where the gains from video conferencing are dramatically superior to a traditional audio conference call.

2. Quality Systems are Not Free

Some perceive conferencing systems to be expensive, but this is no longer true.  In the early days, organizations installed fully-outfitted central meeting rooms with cameras, lighting and hardware.  Today, high quality video conferencing is possible via cloud-based systems, and the need for expensive end-point hardware has dropped significantly.  Many organizations now install a centralized gateway that connects participants via a broadband network. While this installation does entail some up-front costs, it’s much lower than before, saves on bandwidth, and makes video conferencing much more widely available within an organization.

3. User Familiarity

While some people seamlessly adapt to change, including new technology, others find change disruptive.  Today’s video conferencing systems are significantly easier to use, and some systems (like those available from LifeSize) eliminate intimidating remote controls and multiple devices that were common in the past.  In fact, LifeSize now supports workers’ existing mobile devices (the “bring your own device” or BYOD phenomenon) such as mobile phones and tablets, making the experience far more familiar and accessible than in the past.