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About Video Conferencing
In these times of limited travel budgets and the pressing need to get
more done in less time, the AV Systems video conferencing service offers
the benefits of face to face meetings arranged on short notice and at
very low cost compared with the long travel times and high travel costs
involved in a typical business trip. Using video conferencing is highly
time and cost effective because you can be there without having to go
there.
The use of high quality video conferencing not only saves travel time
and money, but permits rapid response to changing business conditions
and customer requirements and allows consultants, lawyers and other professionals
to be more available to their clients. In addition, the use of live, television
quality video conferencing offers many new possibilities for sales presentations,
legal depositions, contract negotiations, job interviews, seminars and
distance learning on a worldwide basis.
AV Systems provides video conferencing services at many Santa Fe area
hotels and meeting facilities on a daily rental basis. For these larger
groups the incoming video image is projected on a large screen while the
camera at this end provides the remote presenter with a clear picture
of the audience and their response to the presentation.
Video conferencing can be used to present an important speaker or corporate
VIP on a large screen at your next meeting or training session in Santa
Fe. AV Systems can provide all the equipment and technical support necessary
to support large screen video conferences. Because video conferencing
can be arranged on short notice, it provides a great back up plan in case
your high paid keynote speaker can’t get to Santa Fe due to scheduling,
weather or airline problems.
AV Systems also provides facilities for individual and small group video
conferencing services on an hourly rental basis from our comfortable and
private video conferencing room located at our offices in mid-town Santa
Fe. Call 505-982-6300 for information.
Video Conferencing Questions and Answers
» What is Video Conferencing?
Two way video and sound between two or more locations using video
cameras, microphones and high speed digital communications lines. Think
of it as simple and reliable two way television to and from anywhere
in the state, the country or the world.
» Is Video Conferencing a New Technology?
Two way video conferencing using the world wide dial-up ISDN telephone
network has been in use by major corporations, higher education and
all levels of government for over 30 years. In the past the equipment
was complex and expensive. In recent years the equipment, particularly
from industry leader PolyCom, has been greatly reduced in cost and size
making the benefits of video conferencing available to everyone.
» How is a Video Conference Meeting Conducted?
The equipment at either end of the meeting can initiate the call by
simply using the built in ISDN dialer or entering an internet IP address.
The equipment at each end completes the connections and the combined
video and voice link is established. This takes just a few minutes and
the parties at both ends see each other immediately and can exchange
greetings just as if they were in the same room. The video cameras at
each end can be remotely adjusted for the best view of the people in
the meeting. The clear sound and high picture quality make it easy for
the meeting participants to interact in a natural and relaxed manner.
» Can the Image from the Remote Location be Projected
on a Large Screen?
Yes, the video images are TV video and can be fed to either a projector
or a TV monitor. One popular use for large screen video conferencing
is to bring a VIP or celebrity speaker to a conference at a local hotel
or conference facility and use an LCD projector and large screen to
make the image of the speaker easily viewed by the entire group. Since
the speaker can see the meeting room while making their presentation,
the fielding of questions and answers is very natural and makes for
a smooth, effective interaction. This is also an effective way to conduct
seminars where there are a few seminar leaders at one location and a
large group of attendees at the other location.
» Can the Meeting Include PowerPoint Slides or
VCR/DVD Video?
Yes, a video conference presentation can be enhanced by the addition
of video from a VCR, DVD player, document camera or computer. If computer
generated presentations such as PowerPoint are to be used, the higher
computer resolution images must be down converted to standard TV resolution
for transmission and display. This can result in loss of image detail
and care must be taken when preparing the presentation not to use small
type or line drawings.
» What Does Video Conferencing Cost?
An individual or small group (up to eight people) video conference
can be conducted from the AV Systems conferencing room for as little
as $250 per hour plus any third party service charges. For large groups
at hotels, the AVS video conferencing services start at $450 and up
depending upon screens, projectors, sound systems and technician time.
The hotel provides and charges for the broadband Internet or ISDN service
and the meeting room. An installation of video conferencing equipment
in a conference room will cost from $10,000 to more than $25,000 depending
upon the size of the room and the features desired.
» Video Conferencing over ISDN or IP Networks?
At present there are two types of digital networks being used for video
conferencing. These are the switched (dial-up) digital telephone network
known as ISDN and the packet switched IP network known as the Internet.
Both networks are global, reliable, and use well defined international
protocols and standards, but have very different bandwidth demands and
cost structures when used for video conferencing.
Although it has been in use for video conferencing for over 40 years,
ISDN service is still a widely used telecommunications service. The
ISDN service is configured by your local phone company as three circuits,
each of 128Kb, to provide 384Kb of end to end digital bandwidth. Monthly
charges are in the $200 to $300 range depending upon the company providing
the service. In addition, long distance charges apply to all of the
ISDN circuits involved when dialing out of the local calling area.
Increasingly public and private video conferencing services are using
the Internet for reliable digital communications. The public internet
continues to improve in available end to end bandwidth and the newer
video conferencing equipment can adapt to changing IP network conditions
while maintaining good video and voice transmission. Dedicated corporate
networks provide excellent video quality, however IP network security
and firewalls may make communicating into and out of corporate networks
difficult. As a result some organizations use IP for internal conferencing
and ISDN for communicating with outside or public remote sites.
Third party conferencing and bridging services can provide the signal
conversion necessary for IP originated calls to connect to ISDN equipment
or provide ISDN to IP connections.
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