Expect 2009 to be another solid year for telepresence, for at least two reasons. One is the steadily declining cost of hardware. For example, LifeSize Communications’ Express system sells for about €3,259 sans HD display. All of that makes it easier for more enterprises to make a business case for telepresence.
Another market driver is budget-cutting: Sure, telepresence systems and the bandwidth they require are still relatively expensive. But those costs often are offset by savings in flights and hotels when executives – the major users of telepresence – don’t have to travel as often.
“I think telepresence will be big, in part because they’ve now come out with executive models, which are for individuals at a price point that’s a lot more attractive than $300,000 [€236,000] for a room,” says Stan Schatt, vice president and research director at ABI Research, which tracks the telecom and tech industries. “Telepresence is already a force in multinational [enterprises] and Europe and will continue to grow pretty significantly.” (Thanks to InAVate for this interesting information).
Another market driver is budget-cutting: Sure, telepresence systems and the bandwidth they require are still relatively expensive. But those costs often are offset by savings in flights and hotels when executives – the major users of telepresence – don’t have to travel as often.
“I think telepresence will be big, in part because they’ve now come out with executive models, which are for individuals at a price point that’s a lot more attractive than $300,000 [€236,000] for a room,” says Stan Schatt, vice president and research director at ABI Research, which tracks the telecom and tech industries. “Telepresence is already a force in multinational [enterprises] and Europe and will continue to grow pretty significantly.” (Thanks to InAVate for this interesting information).