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Where Can the Power of Video be Unleashed?

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PCQ Bureau
New Update

Video-conferencing technology has been around for longer than you might imagine. It was way back in 1930 when AT&T held the first public video-conferencing session using photo-electric cells for capturing video and a bunch of loud speakers for the audio. After this, in 1964 the first commercial video-conferencing product became available. Yet, video-conferencing equipment and implementation costs have always been so high that not everyone could afford it. Today, however, the scenario seems to be changing. Digital communication is becoming cheaper and video-conferencing equipment is becoming affordable, compact, and user friendly. The number of players offering video-conferencing solutions and equipment is also increasing, making it more easily available. Companies are seriously considering it as a means of cutting down bloated travel budgets and are finding it useful in a lot of other areas. 

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When all else fails

This was how the discussion started at Inmarsat, the satellite communication giant, who is providing its services through VSNL in India. Their objective–to provide communication facilities from any corner of the world from places where there are no communication facilities, be it the top of Mount Everest, deep in the jungles, or even from snow-bound

Antartica. 

Communication can be in the form of audio, video, or data, depending upon the equipment you choose. Norway-based Nera Satcom, for instance, sells satellite phones and other satellite transceivers. One such equipment called the Worldcommunicator, offers 64 kbps throughput, which can be used for transferring video. It is ISDN compatible, and has an RS-232, IR, and USB ports for interfacing with external devices. You can, for instance, hook up a video camera with a USB interface directly to the Worldcommunicator and transmit live video to an ISDN terminal anywhere in the world. The phone itself costs around $8000, and Inmarsat charges $ 6—7 per minute to use its satellites using this device. 

Satellite communication is widely being used by companies the world over at places where there’s no other communication link. Construction companies use it to send regular updates of their sites to their headquarters. Oil companies use it for oil exploration and tea garden owners are using it to send their crop updates. 

Unfortunately, it can’t be used by the Indian corporate sector, as it’s still not legal. Currently, it can only be used by government departments and defense services. The service was recently legalized for the media. 

The uses of video conferencing can broadly be divided into two: To enhance your existing channels of communication and to reach remote, unreachable places. The former comes into play if you already have a channel of communication, but need to enhance it. This is where you already have telephones, but also want to see the person’s face while talking. In the latter, a place can be unreachable due to distance or other constraints, like lack of time. You don’t have enough time to fly down to your Mumbai office for a two-hour meeting, because of your existing project deadlines. Just have a video conference and use it show presentations, work on a whiteboard, etc. 

Distance learning, telemedicine and engineering are some of the early adopters of video conferencing. Larger companies are taking it up to reduce their travel budgets. It’s also being used by the defense and finds application in special areas such as monitoring nuclear power plants and wildlife. 

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Business meetings go hi-tech



Video conferencing came into the limelight post the 11 September World Trade Center attacks, when air travel became risky. Companies needed a solution to keep in touch with their customers, suppliers, partners and their own branches in different cities or countries. Video conferencing was the right option as it allowed them to keep in touch without sending anyone anywhere. 

In a corporate, video conferencing can be used to hold board meetings, display a product to an important customer before finalizing the deal, have the CEO address all regions about the company’s strategic directions, etc. Video-conferencing equipment can also let you see all the people involved in a meeting using multi-conferencing units. 

A company can also use video conferencing within its own local area network, because it’s possible to do it using a desktop PC. This can be useful in networks spanning a huge campus, where it would take long to travel to a meeting room.

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The teacher’s far away, but watching



One hot area for video conferencing is the education sector, where a teacher sitting miles away can deliver a lecture to students sitting in some other part of the world. This is much better than flying down the guest lecturer, as it saves time and other hassles associated with crossing global boundaries. Many education institutes, especially business schools, are considering video conferencing to gain a competitive edge over other institutes. 

Video conferencing can also be useful in huge campus areas, such as colleges and universities, provided of course that a network is in place there. A professor will not have to go to a classroom to deliver a lecture. Or suppose that during a classroom session, the professor needs to demonstrate something that is possible only in a lab (situated far away). With video conferencing, the students won’t have to go to the lab, thereby saving a lot of time. 

The doctor’s close by



In the medical world, video conferencing can be used to demonstrate an operation or give remote medical advice. For instance, a doctor can perform a critical operation, and use video conferencing to show other doctors or students how it’s done. A hospital can conduct a seminar and use video conferencing for other hospitals to see it as well as interact at the same time. Similarly, a doctor sitting in a remote or a rural area with minimum medical facilities can use video conferencing to consult other doctors for advice.

Anil Chopra

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