Will desktop video conferencing replace room-based video conferencing?

Research shows that room-based video conferencing is much more common than its desktop counterpart.

According to the May 2011 InformationWeek Desktop Video Conferencing Survey, 34% of respondents had desktop video conferencing system deployed with an extra 10% saying they were planning to do the same over the following 12 months. The same poll showed that 78% of the respondents had already implemented a room-based video conferencing system, even though these are usually more expensive and difficult to use.

Still, desktop video conferencing adoption seems to be growing, and could, in a near future, take over room-based video conferencing.

Room-based video conferencing is tied to management and employee training. It’s great and very important to have a room where one can have a meeting with a possible partner or a client through video, or a place where employees can attend seminars without having to leave their office.

But desktop video conferencing, which can be deployed on every computer without the need of a specific space, can be very useful in a working environment and increase productivity substantially. By deploying and implementing a unified communications system, which includes desktop video conferencing, collaboration among employees and between employees and management will increase considerably.

When asked the question “Why is your company using or evaluating desktop video conferencing?” the top answer with the 38% of the responses was “to improve collaboration among employees”, followed by “to reduce travel costs” with 31% and “to improve collaboration with partners and customers.”

The main reason for the disparity between room-based and desktop video conferencing is because the latter was always considered to lack the video quality of the first, which is partially true. Today, this gap is closing especially due to technological developments. Solution vendors have realized that in order to sell video conferencing systems they need to prioritize image quality while maintaining connection speed.

New solutions available in the market, such as RHUB 6-in-1 web conferencing and remote support appliance, deliver a high quality service which can match any room-based video conferencing system, being easier to use and deploy while being cheaper to implement, requiring little to no maintenance.

As technology progresses and vendors come up with new solutions it is only expected that not only desktop video conferencing will catch up with room-based video conferencing, it will surpass it.

Over half of the workers in India Telecommute

According to a new Ipsos/Reuteurs survey, 20% of workers telecommute frequently, while almost 10% work remotely every day.  The new poll asked to more than 11,000 people over 24 countries about their remote working habits and found out that telecommuting is particularly frequent in the Middle East, Latin America and Asia.

The research shows that the country which is leading the telecommuting revolution is India, where over half of the workers do their jobs from the comforts of their homes. Following India is Indonesia with 34%, followed by Mexico with 30% and then by Argentina, South Africa and Turkey.

On the other side of the spectrum, as the most telecommuting reluctant countries, are Hungary, Sweden, Germany, Italy, France and Canada.

“It is really a story about the emerging markets and I am not sure if that is because the West is about to pick up the trend. They are definitely still skeptical, “ explained Keren Gottfried, research manager at Ipsos.  

“But they see a lot of advantages. Europe and North America afree that telecommuting is a great way to retain women. It provides less stress because of less commuting and provides a better work-life balance,” she added.

Even those that aren’t telecommuting full time at the moment are looking forward to embrace the possibility, with 34% of them stating that they would like to telecommute full-time.

Balancing work/life is often thought of as being one of most positive things about telecommuting, but the survey also stresses that telecommuters are often considered to be more productive than regular workers since they have more control over their work space.

On the downside, concerns were also expressed that telecommuting could be socially isolating and that it could create more conflicts at home.

Still, one thing seems to be certain: remote work is here to stay.

According to a recent survey by Accountemps, remote work in the U.S. alone has increased 33% in the last three years, a trend that is expected to continue over the next five years.

Among the reasons that are leading more and more people to telecommute every year are:

·         increasing CEO awareness of what remote work can do for them and their employees;

·         and cheaper and better technologies available in the market, such as RHUB remote support and remote access appliance.

As Keren Gottfried said in an interview: it “gives you the opportunity to work when you are most productive.  You are working when you know you are best able to get the work done.”

New Research shows that Video Conferencing setups make hacking easy

According to Rapid7, a provider of security risk intelligence solutions, thousands of video conferencing systems raise several security concerns and are vulnerable to hacking.

These security issues might become a big problem for companies that don’t take their video conferencing security serious since many remote conferences take place in corporate meeting rooms, where sensible information is discussed. 

According to HD Moore, Rapid7 CSO and Chief Architect, “many of these [video conferencing systems] are naked on the internet.” He estimates that over 150,000 systems on the internet can be easily hacked into allowing intruders to listen to private conversations using the system’s microphone and watching the conference through the computer cameras.  

In an interview, Moore has said that the biggest mistakes in corporate video conferencing are the auto-answer feature and deploying a video conference without being firewall protected. Moore also added that while many systems are protected behind a firewall, many of them cannot handle the H.323 protocol, leaving the system accessible to intruders.

Moore, while researching for systems vulnerabilities, has accessed video conferences which took place at boardrooms as well as law offices, venture capital firms and research facilities.

“Often, where video conferencing equipment gets located are the same places where the most sensitive meetings take place,” said Mike Tuchen, Chief Executive of Rapid7.   

According to both Moore and Tuchen, stopping such attacks isn’t hard though it requires some technical know-how. One of the easiest ways of preventing spying is by disabling the auto-answer feature, they explained.

Another way might be looking for equipment that offers good security solutions and that it is easy to use and to monitor. With fully implemented security solutions, video conferencing appliances like RHUB Web conferencing appliance solution fully secure video conferencing meetings by barricading them behind firewalls and by using both SSL and proprietary encryptions. 

Protect your Video Conferencing with RHUB Web Conferencing Appliance

According to Rapid7, a provider of security risk intelligence solutions, thousands of video conferencing systems raise several security concerns and are vulnerable to hacking.

These security issues might become a big problem for companies that don’t take their video conferencing security serious since many remote conferences take place in corporate meeting rooms, where sensible information is discussed. 

According to HD Moore, Rapid7 CSO and Chief Architect, “many of these [video conferencing systems] are naked on the internet.” He estimates that over 150,000 systems on the internet can be easily hacked into allowing intruders to listen to private conversations using the system’s microphone and watching the conference through the computer cameras.  

In an interview, Moore has said that the biggest mistakes in corporate video conferencing are the auto-answer feature and deploying a video conference without being firewall protected. Moore also added that while many systems are protected behind a firewall, many of them cannot handle the H.323 protocol, leaving the system accessible to intruders.

Moore, while researching for systems vulnerabilities, has accessed video conferences which took place at boardrooms as well as law offices, venture capital firms and research facilities.

“Often, where video conferencing equipment gets located are the same places where the most sensitive meetings take place,” said Mike Tuchen, Chief Executive of Rapid7.   

According to both Moore and Tuchen, stopping such attacks isn’t hard though it requires some technical know-how. One of the easiest ways of preventing spying is by disabling the auto-answer feature, they explained.

Another way might be looking for equipment that offers good security solutions and that it is easy to use and to monitor. With fully implemented security solutions, video conferencing appliances like RHUB Web conferencing appliance solution fully secure video conferencing meetings by barricading them behind firewalls and by using both SSL and proprietary encryptions. 

There are fewer remote workers in governmental agencies

In November the American City & Council (ACC) has conducted a survey which found out that 27% of respondents working in a governmental agencies are allowed to telecommute.

In the same survey another question was asked: “Considering the growth of mobile device usage and the greater broadband features, do you plan to allow more employees to telework?” The answer is, at least, surprising. A staggering 75% answered “No.”

What might this number mean? Governmental agencies are getting behind when it comes to revolutionize the workplace and to implement telecommuting as a viable work option. 

Elaborating on their responses, some of the respondents have said that showing up for work is one way of showing the public that they are accountable, while another explained that remote work was only available to accommodate those that are physically challenged and other special cases.

It seems as if governmental agencies still don’t understand what remote work means and what it can do for them, as studies have showed that telecommuting reduces travel expenses and increases productivity as well as employee happiness.

Sure, many governmental employees cannot do their jobs from the comfort of their homes but imagine how much governmental agencies would save if they allowed a more significant part of their workforce to work from home.

Still, some people, like Steve Oppermann, believe that in 2012 more governmental agencies will institute and expand remote work programs.

Steve Oppermann, an HR & EEO consultant, has said to the website GovPro that he thinks “the federal Telework Enhacement Act, as well as administration support, will continue to have a positive effect on expanding telework.” 

The Telework Enhacement Act was created to stimulate and accelerate the rate at which governmental agencies implement remote working policies, but it might not enough if the agencies don’t perceive what telecommuting can do for them. As long as telework is seen as second rate work, telecommuting will have difficulty in becoming a standard practice in governmental agencies.

Remote working solutions, such as RHUB 6-in-1 web conferencing and remote support appliance, can revolutionize the way the agencies relate with their employees, increasing their own productivity while cutting on costs.

Governmental agencies are getting behind in adopting remote work

In November the American City & Council (ACC) has conducted a survey which found out that 27% of respondents working in a governmental agencies are allowed to telecommute.

In the same survey another question was asked: “Considering the growth of mobile device usage and the greater broadband features, do you plan to allow more employees to telework?” The answer is, at least, surprising. A staggering 75% answered “No.”

What might this number mean? Governmental agencies are getting behind when it comes to revolutionize the workplace and to implement telecommuting as a viable work option. 

Elaborating on their responses, some of the respondents have said that showing up for work is one way of showing the public that they are accountable, while another explained that remote work was only available to accommodate those that are physically challenged and other special cases.

It seems as if governmental agencies still don’t understand what remote work means and what it can do for them, as studies have showed that telecommuting reduces travel expenses and increases productivity as well as employee happiness.

Sure, many governmental employees cannot do their jobs from the comfort of their homes but imagine how much governmental agencies would save if they allowed a more significant part of their workforce to work from home.

Still, some people, like Steve Oppermann, believe that in 2012 more governmental agencies will institute and expand remote work programs.

Steve Oppermann, an HR & EEO consultant, has said to the website GovPro that he thinks “the federal Telework Enhacement Act, as well as administration support, will continue to have a positive effect on expanding telework.” 

The Telework Enhacement Act was created to stimulate and accelerate the rate at which governmental agencies implement remote working policies, but it might not enough if the agencies don’t perceive what telecommuting can do for them. As long as telework is seen as second rate work, telecommuting will have difficulty in becoming a standard practice in governmental agencies.

Remote working solutions, such as RHUB 6-in-1 web conferencing and remote support appliance, can revolutionize the way the agencies relate with their employees, increasing their own productivity while cutting on costs.

52% of the companies planning to increase their spending in network equipment

After a 2008 and a 2009 which took the world on big ride through economic recession, making companies big and small delay their ICT investment and network upgrades, 2011 finally saw the global economy take the first steps towards economic recovery and analysts are now expecting that companies all over the world will resume their investments and spending in better infrastructure.

According to a new GIA (Global Industry Analysts, Inc.) report which takes a look at the global networking hardware and software industry, the information technology and communications (ICT) market will reach $214.2 billion in 2015, with 52% of the companies planning to increase their spending in network equipment in the immediate future. 

With networking speeds going beyond the 10-Gigabit Ethernet and with the increase of cheap and innovative solutions available in the market which take advantage of such speeds, enterprises are feeling the pressure to update their networks to avoid server congestions.

The market for Ethernet Switches will also start to grow to 2012, after having slowed down in 2009 and 2010, in part due to a global economy coming back from a deep recession, in part due to an increase in the adoption and deployment of data centers. Another market that will notice an increasing demand is the Router segment, since the use of Remote Access Servers and Virtual Private Network is increasing as well.

The fact is that, with increased networking speeds, SMBs are starting to feel the need to give their employees better solutions to enhance communications at the enterprise level. Such solutions include video and web conferencing, which allow companies to deploy conferences, as well as remote support, which allows companies to remotely provide assistance to their clients directly on their computers, saving money and time and increasing productivity.

The increase in investments is expected to rise especially in the government, healthcare and financial sectors.