Hybrid Conferencing Converges PSTN and VoIP Calls

Companies that have branches across the globe now rely on virtual meetings to help them collaborate remotely. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is the primary protocol of choice for most organisations as it brings down the calling costs while delivering unparalleled sound quality throughout the conference. However, this factor can cripple a business firm in regions where VoIP services are not available. PSTN networks, on the other hand, are used for telecommunication in most parts of the world, but connecting two calls on VoIP and PSTN networks was not possible earlier. However, the advent of hybrid conferencing has altered this scenario completely and given such organisations a viable medium of communicating remotely. Online meetings running on hybrid conferencing are ideally suited for companies whose employees make use of both types of connections, as per their location. Arkadin Oneplace, powered by Adobe Connect, is a reliable solution that can be used for combining all the advantages of VoIP, PSTN, web conferencing and video calls to create the most feature-rich virtual meeting suite for all remotely distributed organisations. With provision for as many as 100 group members in a single meeting room, this solution is indeed the best for any company looking to create an environment that supports web meetings over multiple channels of communication. While using a sound hybrid communication suite, users can not only enjoy High Fidelity (Hi Fi) audio calls based on VoIP and PSTN networks but also High Definition (HD) videos. Since 77 per cent of Australian consider visual communication a necessity in any meeting, this solution can be suitable for companies whose employees want to see the body language of the group members in virtual meetings. Therefore, personnel located in cities as well as in the outback, where the penetration levels of the VoIP is lower as compared to cities, can communicate with support of HD videos for better understanding the reactions of the group members. Web conferencing based collaboration is one of the most important features of any online meeting since it allows the concerned parties to liaise seamless across vast distances. Some standard features of web meetings held using hybrid conferencing suites like breakout rooms, enterprise level Instant Messaging (IM) and provision for creating permanent URL for frequent meetings make these meetings best for companies off all sizes. Flexibility, such as layout customisation, and scalability of these suites make them perfect for any company, whether large or small. Moreover, users can fluidly share a host of documents, applications and videos at the same time to facilitate collaboration. Considering that Australia has the highest number of Smartphone users in the world and as many as 93 per cent companies in the country will commission a mobile workforce by 2013 itself, mobility has become an essential part of virtual meetings. There are many hybrid conferencing solutions that come with full support for mobile devices like iPad, iPhone and iPhone Touch, Android tablets and Blackberry phones through dedicated applications. Users who access these solutions through such gadgets can easily set up a meeting using a reliable 3G connection for remote communication, thus catering to all their conferencing requirements on the go.