Video Conferencing Grows 28.7 per cent in Australia, Cloud-based Services Most Profitable in the Future

The recent Frost and Sullivan report on video conferencing stated that the sector grew by a healthy 28.7 per cent in Australia in 2011. The share was divided into cloud-based and hardware-based video calling solutions, with Cisco and Polycom taking up 95 per cent of the market, though companies like Vidyo and Teliris also competed well too. The report also estimated that the prospects for endpoints, infrastructure and services will amount to AUD 700 million by the end of 2018, which indicates the huge demand for online video conferencing in coming years. The most notable part of the report was that the main growth for vendors and channel partners in the market has been for cloud-based multipoint video conferencing and managed services only. Video conferencing services in Australia are popular in sectors like Financial Services, Government and Professional Services. Personnel of organisations working in these fields can use such solutions to better understand the body language and expressions of the target audience. Managed and unmanaged video collaboration services in the market are delivered over the cloud collaboration platform as it supports scalability, which enables a large number of users to access the same video content in real-time and eliminate hardware costs. Due to this service delivery model, organisations need not spend heavy amounts, which will show in the bottom lines, and still collaborate better despite long distances. Video quality is the most important part of any virtual face-to-face conference and new-age solutions in this field, such as ArkadinVideo, make use of Scalable Video Coding (SVC) to optimise multipoint video transmission. Participants can even host HD video conferences with utmost ease using HD cameras in such solutions, without any lag, which will help improve the overall user experience. Not just videos, such solutions can be used to transfer applications and document to turn the remote meeting into a full-fledged online event for enhanced collaboration and productivity. Vendors that provide video conferencing services in the Australian market understand that simplicity and convenience of usage is a key factor in promoting video conferencing solutions. Therefore, they render browser-based solutions that can be operated from a Windows or Apple computer over ADSL and Wi-Fi connections. Such solutions can be used in conjunction with specialised room systems or conventional conference room equipment as well, depending upon the users’ choice. A streamlined interface with one-click access and provision to set up video calls from the desktop itself also help enhance the overall video calling experience. As Australia has the second highest number of Smartphone users in the country, vendors make sure that the video conferencing solutions they provide can be accessed from the modern gadgets. The advanced solutions available in the market can be used on Android and Apple Smartphones and tablets over reliable 3G and 4G connections. This will fill communication gap between people who are located in remote areas of the country and need to interact with a group of peers on a regular basis. Features like Presence Status and Directory, simple audio and video controls for participants, total security and fast implementation are also part of the standard video conferencing package in such handheld devices too.