Conferencing Solution Providers

Dedicated conferencing solution providers, such as InterCall http://www.intercall.com, provide their own networking architecture and custom software. This is an option to use if you’re a business – even a relatively small one – and need the software customized to your uses.

InterCall’s conferencing ranges the gamut from web conferencing (allowing someone running the conference to run a slide show as part of a chat session), all the way up to high-speed IP-based video conferencing (where everyone participating is on live video) over a dedicated fiber optic network.

InterCall can even recommend vendors to wire your business for fiber to facilitate video conferencing. InterCall touts its products and services as being ideal for small to medium sized businesses, and for one-to-many presentations, like sales meetings and financial reports. In particular, InterCall is a boon if you want to minimize business travel expenses. Its one-time setup fees are comparable to one or two round trip business-class air fares at current market prices.

If you’re not up to having dedicated services set up, InterCall also offers an Event Solutions package, where one of their specialists will help set everything up and go through a dress rehearsal of the technology to make this work for your needs and your business.

This level of support is one of InterCall’s primary differentiators from free and competing services. A lot of businesses lack the expertise or the manpower to do this themselves beyond the bare bones functionality of NetMeeting or Instant Messenger programs.

One of InterCall’s competitors in the conferencing solutions field is ACTTel (www.acttel.com), which offers reserved operator assisted web, audio and video conferencing solutions over the internet, including pass code security.

While their prices are a bit lower, they don’t offer dedicated support for one time usage, though they appear to have more technical offerings in Voice over IP telephony and telephone integration, allowing clients to use their phones to call a toll-free number to access an audio conference. One minor limitation on ACTTel’s offering is that conferences are limited to 50 participants, plus one host.

For users in Canada and Australia, conferencing solutions are more or less run by the telephone companies, such as Bell Canada and servicepoint.com. No doubt, as the market matures, there will be competing private options for conferencing as well.

As broadband gets more widespread, and more homes are built with direct fiber optic connections by utilities, expect conferencing to move from the corporate sphere into the private home, following the path set by Instant Messenger programs in the ‘90s.

http://www.allconferenceservices.com/conferencing-solutions.html

Advantages of Video Conferencing Services

1. Video Teleconferencing Communication (VTC) bases its success and the success of its operators on connecting people with the services they need in order to operate effectively with little effort and minimal investment.

2. By eliminating geographical restrictions, businesses who take advantage of video conferencing services are able to improvise and improve their operations at the drop of a hat

3. Meetings can be held with selected participants in a controlled setting that is either well planned or spontaneous – thus eliminating past problems with time consuming logistics of travel and accommodations.

4. Video conferencing services offer managers the ability to approach and solve the ever-changing demands of an evolving marketplace with a few clicks of the mouse.

5. The ability to share, coordinate and evaluate digital or audio presentations from the other side of the world can be performed in seconds.

6. Allows management, employees, contractors and even clients to conduct simultaneous communication and collaboration on time sensitive projects.

7. Able to provide noticeable dollar savings by reducing and, in some cases, eliminating the need for others to travel to a pre-determined conference site.

8. Able to hold board meetings in a consistent manner on regular schedules.

VTC gives moderators the ability to control attendance, time, content and frequency of meetings. This communication tool allows the moderator the freedom to invite participants of their choice while being able to deny access to anyone whose presence is not welcome. In addition, the moderator is able to effectively shadow and monitor conversations between other participants in the meetings.

Depending on the software utilized, VTC technology gives the moderator the unique ability to integrate scheduling requirements with automated emailing functions. Moderators can organize unlimited future teleconferencing virtual board meetings prior to the actual dates of the conference.

Consultation advisory emails are followed up by automated responses from intended participants well in advance of planned meetings so there is never any guessing as to who will attend and how long they will participate at any given time.

Enhanced video conference service is an easily managed module which enables moderators the freedom to achieve their business goals via the well-oiled machinery of enhanced communication, which ultimately offers them the opportunity to dedicate their expertise to the business’s other most valuable commodity – time.

In addition to increasing productivity and communication within the Company, video conferencing provides tangible savings in time that previously would be spent idle in airports and hotels, not to mention the expenses of airline tickets and room accommodations. In addition, with today’s unpredictable airline security issues, safety considerations need not be addressed on a consistent basis.

With less travel, more opportunity to share and co-ordinate information globally and the ability to monitor and control various aspects of a far-reaching field of command, an effective manager will soon see the benefits of video teleconferencing.

The time and money saved can be re-invested in other pursuits such as increased sales, marketing and advertising, which of course will be a huge asset to the bottom line.

Video conferencing with its desktop moderator control is limited only to the imagination of its manager. Online meetings, product demonstrations, after sales service presentation to clients and staff training sessions are only a few of the many advantages of virtual communication.

No other business module grants the freedom of connectivity and communication like the real time module of video conferencing services.