Charles Eckel

We continue our series of interviews with IMTC members by speaking with Charles Eckel, the Technical Leader II, Media Experience and Analytics at Cisco, and the IMTC SIP Parity Activity Group Leader.

IMTC: How many companies participate in your group today?

Charles Eckel [CE]: We had 12 participating companies from SIP Parity at the last SuperOp Event: Acme Packet, Avaya, BlueJeans, Cisco, Huawei, LG, Lifesize, Magor Corporation, Polycom, Avaya, Teliris and Vidyo.

IMTC: What is the key technology you are testing and what role does it play in UC and communication in general?

CE:  The SIP Parity Activity Group focuses on multimedia telecommunications applications, including providing a video profile for SIP that matches all the capabilities of H.323.conferencing.

IMTC: What standards are being tested?

CE: SIP (RFC 3261), SDP (RFC 4566), RTP (RFC 3551), and H.264 (RFC 6184)

IMTC: What is the group value to the industry?

CE: We do the following:

• We organize interoperability SIP Parity test efforts, both virtual and face-to-face. This is done in cooperation and coordination with both the Conferencing Interoperability Activity Group and with SIPit (where practical).
• We provide a forum for members to agree on an overall SIP profile for video. The objective is to bring it to full-feature parity with H.323 video communications.
• We educate members on the most recent developments in SIP standards and market evolution.

IMTC: Why are you a member of this group and what value does it bring to your company?

CE: Third party interoperability is important to Cisco, and this is the best place for dealing with interoperability issues related to enterprise video conferencing.

IMTC: What were the most important achievements of your group in 2012? How did it support the industry?

CE: Among our achievements:

• Security Best Practice liaison review period and addressed comments.
• SuperOp! 2012 characterization of SIP Video Profile and Role Based Video.
• Best Practices, and ad-hoc testing of Security Best Practices.
• We began investigation of potential areas for SIP Parity AG/PSS AG interworking.
• SIP Video Profile Best Practice as IMTC document approved by SIP Parity AG.
• Draft version circulated and comments received.
• IETF BFCPBIS nearing completion of BFCP via UDP.
• The Binary Floor Control Protocol (BFCP).
• Session Description Protocol (SDP) Format for Binary Floor Control Protocol (BFCP) Streams.

IMTC: What are your plans for 2013?

CE: There are a few: 

• SuperOp! 2013 characterization of SIP Video Profile, SIP Role Based Video, SIP Security Best Practices.
• Update Role Based Video Best Practice and Test Case documents based on output of IETF BFCPBIS WG.
• Publish SIP Video Profile Best Practice as an IMTC document (available to IMTC members), which aims to list the use cases that are associated with the bandwidth, flow control, intra-frame request functionalities, and to provide recommendations on best current practice in this field. This document should serve as a reference for video services based on SIP/SDP, from the point of view of a user-agent with video capacity.
• Publish Role Based Video Best Practice as IMTC document, which describes the best practices for implementing role-based video stream (RBVS) functionality in SIP that is comparable to H.239 for H.323 systems. In particular, it covers the use of video for content sharing, including floor control, alongside main video..
• Update SIP Security Best Practice and Test Cases documents based on output of IETF BFCPBIS WG.
• Publish Security Best Practice as an IMTC Document, which describes best practices for implementing security in SIP-based video conferencing end devices.

IMTC: What do you think will change in your field or technology you are testing in the future?

CE: Protocols and implementations will continue to improve and evolve, and there will be blending of what was traditionally enterprise-specific with that which was traditionally consumer focused (e.g. BYOD).

IMTC: What kind of value do you think IMTC brings to your company?

CE: The SIP Parity group is the best place for dealing with interoperability issues related to enterprise video conferencing. The best practices and SuperOp events are very useful to moving our implementations and those of the rest of the industry forward.

IMTC: Thank you, Charles, for the interview.

The “SIP Video Profile Best Practices” provides implementation guidance enabling interoperable SIP-based video conferencing applications. The recommendations provided in the document are the result of contributions from technical experts of  several companies participating in the SIP Parity Activity Group of the IMTC.

A draft version of the document was shared in 2012 via liaison statements to ECMA, IETF (RAI Area and SIPCORE Working Group),  ITU (SG 16), SIP Forum, and UCIF. The resulting official IMTC document incorporates feedback from these organizations and well as lessons learned from interoperability testing performed at SIPit 27, in 2010, as well as at SuperOp! in 2011 and 2012. It will serve as a fundamental building block of interoperability testing at SuperOp! 2013.

IMTC Blog: Bo, thanks a lot for your time! How many companies participate in your group today?

Bo: 9 companies are participating in the group today: Ericsson, France Telecom, Huawei, Intel, Nokia, RADVISION, Samsung, Sony Mobile, and ST-Ericsson.

IMTC Blog: What is the key technology you are testing and what role does it play in UC and communication in general?

Bo: IMS voice/video according GSMA recommendations PRDs IR.92 and IR.94. This VoLTE initiative is based on 3GPP and the LTE radio access technology which is becoming the basis for all future mobile systems.
3GPP defined telecommunication and IP-based multimedia services are well recognized for mobile and personal communications.

IMTC Blog: What is the group value to the industry? And why does it operate in IMTC?

Bo: To provide IOT possibilities for 3GPP defined IP-based multimedia services. IMTC is a well-recognized organization for interoperability testing.

IMTC Blog: Why are you a member of this group and what value does it bring to your company?

Bo: The enhancement of telecommunication is a key interest for our company. Device IOT testing of 3GPP defined IP-based multimedia services and associated GSMA profiles such as IR.92 (VoLTE) and IR.94 (Video) is an important area to achieve this.

IMTC Blog: What were the most important achievements of your group in 2012? How did it support the industry?

Bo: There are few:

•  The activity and number of companies has increased.
• The test documentation for IR.92 is enhanced with more test scenario e.g. SRVCC and IMS Emergency.
• We have also introduced test documentation for IMS conversational video service according GSMA PRD IR.94.

IMTC Blog: What are your plans for 2013?

BO: We have 3 main goals for 2013:

• Participate in the IMTC SuperOP! event.
• Provide more face to face test opportunities.
• Include GSMA PRD IR.39 “IMS Profile for High Definition Video Conference (HDVC) Service” in the scope for test documentation and face to face testing.

IMTC Blog: What do you think will change in your field or technology you are testing in the future?

Bo: 3GPP defined IP-based multimedia services will become more important for delivering audio, text, video and graphics direct to people in information based services.

IMTC Blog: What kind of value do you think IMTC brings to your company?

BO: IMTC is an organization for engineers that allows to take part of the telecommunication evolution and make it happen in real live testing environments.

We thank Bo for his time and look forward for the upcoming SuperOp! event.

In 2012, it’s safe to say that their vision has yet to become a reality. Of course imagining what the future will look like is second nature to all of us. Science fiction has always been a popular genre since it offered a glimpse into the unknown.

But what if you could assemble a panel of experts to help you gaze into the future? What if you could learn what tomorrow will look like from the people shaping it today?

That’s exactly what we at IMTC have done. Twice.

On June 26, 2012, we held our bi-annual 2025 Virtual Conference, which revolved around the question: how will technology impact our lives in the year 2025?

In his introduction to the conference, IMTC President Anatoli Levine said, “We produced the first 2025 event in 2010 as a sort of ‘crystal ball’. The goal of the 2025 event is to be able to look back and see how visionary we were and how close to this vision the technology actually became.”

In order to answer the question of what 2025 will look like, we brought together thought leaders from a variety of industries, all of which have a major affect on our daily life, be it in the way we live (our home environment), the way we work (our office environment), our health, our methods of transportation, and even the way we shop.

Following the success of the second 2025 IMTC Virtual Conference, we began exploring the possibility of creating a book that would share our vision for the future with our peers in the industry. The result is an interactive eBook that is now available for free download at the App Store.

The IMTC eBook is comprised of the predictions of thought leaders from today’s most innovative companies on how technology will impact our lives in 2025. These include, amongst others, Cisco, Samsung, Avaya and Viaccess-Orca.

While the subjects addressed by the eBook range from telemedicine to smart cars, and from the work environment to shopping, its main themes are cloud computing, automated data collection and personalization, as these have only just begun to shape our world.

The 2025 IMTC eBook will enable you to learn what tomorrow will look like today. Thus, it is much more than a “crystal ball”, it is a roadmap to innovation and success.

This week, we spoke to Dr. István Sebestyén, Secretary General of Ecma International. István joined Ecma after working for 21 years in the field of standardization at Siemens where he served as Director of Standards specializing in Multimedia and Enterprise Communication networks. Previously he had worked in various standardization bodies such as ITU, ISQ, DIJ and the IMTC of which he was also the president.

Hello István. I know that you hold close to twelve patents. Could you tell us a bit about them?

Yes with pleasure. I did the patents when I was at Siemens and when I noticed that patenting in standardization (especially on multimedia standards) was becoming a frequent occurrence. Filing for patents is a bit like betting on the future of technology since you file patents based on anticipation. Whether or not your bet was a good one doesn’t really matter, what does matter is that it is very easy to get a patent. I hope its different today. Anyway, when I filed for those patents it was a defensive move on behalf of Siemens and they own the patent, not me personally.

As a former president of IMTC, how important are the IMTC activities for the industry?

They are very important for the industry, as they cover marketing, education and interoperability testing. Those things are usually not done by Standardization Bodies. IMTC hosts interoperability testing events and demonstrations throughout the world in order to better the services offered to end users. It is an important function which enables manufacturers and service providers working on novel products to ensure the quality of their future products. In addition, the scope of the interop testing offered by IMTC is something that no company could perform on its own.

Currently, you are the Secretary General of ECMA International. Can you tell us more about it? What is the difference between organizations like IMTC and ECMA?

The difference is exactly what I have outlined above. We set standards, but we do not do deal with other aspects such as education and marketing. That’s the main difference, we focus on the standards themselves, IMTC focuses on all the rest.

Looking at the video conferencing industry today, can you give us a prediction for the future of video communications? How will the video conferencing world look in 5 years’ time? What will it look like in 2025?

I have no idea! There are many different possible scenarios. We may continue on with what we are doing today, only with faster and better media coding, more integration with the web, etc. The problem is that we have no standards, except for basic internet standards, and that everything goes through downloading and updates like Skype. But where are we headed? I really can’t say.

No one can predict the future of telecommunications, but we at IMTC like to try. Be sure to come back next week for another interview with a different IMTC member.

IMTC Announces 18th Annual SuperOp! Interoperability Testing Event for Multimedia, Products and Services!

MPEG DASH, Voice and Video over LTE and Telepresence

to be in Forefront of Testing and Validation Efforts

San Ramon, CA – October 24, 2012 – The International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium (IMTC) announces that SuperOp! 2013 will be held April 26-May 4, 2013, at the Porto Palacio Congress Hotel and Spa in Porto, Portugal. SuperOp! is the major international telecommunications multimedia standards and products interoperability testing event of the year that brings the industry together to achieve enhanced service levels for the end user.

Organized and conducted by the IMTC annually, SuperOp! hosts the leading companies developing multimedia telecommunications products and services worldwide. SuperOp! is well-known for enabling unprecedented opportunities to perform rigorous interoperability testing and is a “must-do” event for equipment manufacturers and service providers developing new product, service and feature releases.

“Duplicating the wide diversity of equipment, protocols and vendors available at SuperOp! would be extremely costly and impractical for any company to do in its own test lab,” said Anatoli Levine, IMTC President and Director of Product Management for RADVISION, an Avaya Company (RADVISION). “SuperOp! is the premier telecommunications industry multimedia standards and products testing event and we strongly encourage and invite IMTC member and non-member companies alike to participate.”

All IMTC Activity Groups will be participating in the testing activities, including:

• Packet Switched Streaming Services (PSS) Activity Group will focus on HTTP streaming tests. They will focus on MPEG-DASH tests and continue to test HLS and MS Smooth streaming. For MPEG-DASH testing, PSS-AG will focus on streaming, which includes on-demand as well as live streaming only for ISOBMFF profiles as defined in ISO/IEC 23009. Testing will include adaptive streaming using variant streams with alternate resolution, with alternate bitrates and testing out security/encryption. The following companies are members of the PSS AG and will participate in the PSS Interoperability Testing: Allegro DVT, Fraunhofer, Nextreaming, Nokia, NXP, Orange, PacketVideo, Qualcomm, Real Networks and Samsung.
• IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) Activity Group will focus on testing IMS voice, video and SMS services over LTE, commonly known as VoLTE (covered by GSMA PRDs IR.92 and IR.94). Participating companies are expected to be ST-Ericsson, Intel, Qualcomm, RADVISION, Nokia, Sony Mobile Communications and Samsung. Companies that are not members of IMTC but interested in VoLTE interoperability testing are invited to apply for participation in SuperOp! 2013 event.
• Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Parity Activity Group will conduct testing focused on their approved Best Practice documents and associated Test Case documents for SIP Video Profile, Role Based Video Streams in SIP, and SIP Security, plus additional ad hoc testing for SIP, H.323 and Telepresence interoperability. Acme Packet, BlueJeans, Cisco, Huawei, LG, Lifesize, Magor, Polycom, RADVISION, Teliris, and Vidyo are expected to participate in this testing at SuperOp! 2013.
• The SVC Activity Group will conduct interoperability testing of H.264 SVC video. LifeSize, Polycom, RADVISION, and Vidyo intend to participate. The group will also solicit participation from non-member companies that have relevant products.

In addition, IMTC members will conduct testing for Telepresence Interoperability Protocol (TIP), H.323 and other relevant video communication protocols and implementations.

The SuperOp “rules of engagement” ensure that tests are performed in confidence with respect to participating company products or applications and that specific test results are not publicized.

A variety of cost-effective sponsorship opportunities — a great way for companies to position themselves as leaders in the multimedia telecommunications industry and show their commitment to standards and interoperability — are now available to all interested entities. More information is available here.

IMTC is also very pleased to announce that on Oct. 8-10, 2013, we will celebrate our 20th anniversary with an exciting Anniversary Forum event, “Today and tomorrow of visual communications, building on 20 years of technology breakthroughs,” including keynote presentations, technology updates and seminars, award ceremony and reception. The 20^th Anniversary Forum will also be held at the Porto Palacio Congress Hotel and Spa in Porto, Portugal.

About the International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium (IMTC)

The IMTC is an industry-leading, non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and facilitate the development and use of interoperable, real-time, multimedia telecommunication products and services based on open international standards. The IMTC hosts interoperability testing events and demonstrations throughout the world. IMTC has hosted numerous events to test IMS, VoLTE, SIP, H.323, 3G-324M, TIP, 3G PS Streaming, and other Voice over IP products and services with each other. The IMTC Board of Directors includes representatives from AT&T, RADVISION, an Avaya Company, Cisco Systems, Ericsson, Huawei, Intel, LifeSize Communications, Nokia, Polycom, Qualcomm, Samsung and Vidyo. Membership is open to any interested party, including vendors of audio, document, and video conferencing hardware and software; academic institutions; government agencies; and non-profit organizations. The IMTC is making “Rich Media happen Anywhere, Anytime.” Further information can be found at http://www.imtc.org .

Contact:

John Ehrig
IMTC Executive Director
925.275.6677
jehrig@inventures.com

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]]> http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/29/imtc-announces-18th-annual-superop/feed/ 0 http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/25/more-than-a-trend-cooling-down-data-centers/ http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/25/more-than-a-trend-cooling-down-data-centers/#comments Thu, 25 Oct 2012 19:59:51 +0000 IMTC http://blog.imtc.org/?p=3050 Nowadays, it seems that the environmental “go green” trend has impacted every aspect of our lives. Supermarkets no longer use plastic bags but rather encourage shoppers to purchase bags made out recycled materials, Ereaders are marketed as a

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n eco-friendly solution to the destruction of the rainforests and even the auto industry has adopted the notion of sustainability by investing in the development of electric cars. But what about large corporations whose massive array of IT devices and data centers also impact our environment? Wasn’t there a big hoopla a few years ago about how data centers are going green as well?

According to a recent article in InfoWorld, while the buzz may have ended, the trend is still very much alive. Apparently, large companies and corporations are still looking to increase their energy efficiency be it in order to reduce IT expenditure or decrease their damaging impact on the environment.

The article goes on to quote six green practices that have been adopted by a wide array of companies all looking to increase the efficiency of their data centers. These practices include taking a holistic approach to efficiency, generating one’s own power supply by using solar panels and finding cooling methods such as liquid cooling.

If any proof was needed that the corporate world is still looking for new strategies to become more energy efficient, it arrived just last week as Internet giant Google opened the doors of its data centers for the first time in history. The company that has already revolutionized the way we think, work and process information is also a pioneer in adopting new cooling practices.

WIRED magazine’s Steven Levy, who was allowed to enter Google’s holiest of holy sites, was able to talk to the architect of Google’s innovative cooling techniques which have become standard practice in the company’s many facilities.

One of Google’s innovative cooling techniques is absorbing the heat generated in the heart of the data center by using coils filled with water. Once the water has passed through the data center it is pumped out of the building, cooled off by air and then pumped right back in. In addition, Google makes use of what natural resources can be found in vicinity of its facilities such as canal water in Belgium or seawater in Finland. Theses energy practices have enabled Google to achieve “unprecedented energy savings”.

However, despites Google’s success in attaining a higher degree of energy efficiency, there is still some distance to cover.

A recent New York Times article revealed that on a whole, massive data centers are still wasteful, inefficient and many fail to meet environmental requirements. As the whole industry shifts to cloud services, companies operating huge data centers will be forced to address the issue of energy efficiency in a much more serious way. That means more manpower, creative thinking and above all, money.

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]]> http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/25/more-than-a-trend-cooling-down-data-centers/feed/ 0 http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/19/future-of-cars/ http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/19/future-of-cars/#comments Fri, 19 Oct 2012 01:41:06 +0000 IMTC http://blog.imtc.org/?p=3044 On June 26, 2012, IMTC held its bi-annual 2025 Virtual Conference. The main issue discussed in the conference was how will technology impact our lives and operate in 2025?

Nowadays, video communication has reached a point of ma

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turation as TV’s support Skype video conferencing and smartphones are capable of delivering HD quality videos. These are all part of larger phenomenons such as TV content personalization, second screen applications and TV everywhere. In addition, motion and gesture control, as well as 3D telepresence, have all become a reality. But where are these technologies leading us? What will our offices or living rooms look like as we head into the future?

One of the participants in the conference was Mark Roberts, CMO at NexTraq, who talked to Anatoli Levine about the future of cars.

Mark brings more than 20 years of technology sales, marketing and product management experience to the leadership team of NexTraq as it’s CMO. His mission is to ensure that NexTraq is the number one provider of GPS fleet tracking solutions in the telematics industry.

Prior to NexTraq, Mark was Vice President of Partner Marketing for Polycom, where he oversaw global alliance, service provider and ARENA partner marketing strategy and implementation. He has held sales and marketing management positions within 3Com and Intel.

When asked whether the Google car is the future of motor vehicles Mark said that even Google doesn’t know where its car will be in 2025. However, he did go on to say that Google has offered a fresh take on the future of cars by creating a fleet of vehicles that is able to drive itself thanks to an array of sensors and access to Google Maps’ extensive database.

Currently, cars are viewed as more than just tools that take us from one place to another as many people find pleasure and enjoyment in driving. In fact, some car manufacturers, such as BMW, have even marketed themselves as the “ultimate driving experience”. But if we adopt Google’s innovative approach to vehicles, cars will become nothing more than large vessels that take us from one place to another in the fastest and safest manner.

According to Mark, another aspect of vehicles that is destined to change by 2025 is our interaction with the car itself. Researchers at MIT have conducted several studies on real life issues and have offered some fascinating solutions. For instance, they have created a small camera that could be installed in vehicles owned by people who are on various kinds of medication. The camera is able to detect whether the driver has become drowsy or sleepy and if so the vehicle can take corrective measures such as playing loud music.

Lastly, the future of cars may lay in their ability to communicate with each other. Equipped with an array of sensors and cameras, cars will be able to talk to one another relaying information such as speed, velocity and even when they plan to turn right and exit the highway. Mark added that R&D divisions are already examining solutions in this direction.

Want to hear more about the future of cars? View entire conversation with Mark in the video below:

]]> http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/19/future-of-cars/feed/ 0 http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/11/more-than-a-trend-ford-expected-to-expand-its-byod-policy/ http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/11/more-than-a-trend-ford-expected-to-expand-its-byod-policy/#comments Thu, 11 Oct 2012 08:55:44 +0000 IMTC http://blog.imtc.org/?p=3029
In recent years, the Bring Your Own Device trend (or BYOD for short) has taken corporate America by storm. BYOD refers to instances in which employees bring their personal devices, such as smartphones and tablets, to the workplace and use them for work related tasks. While companies used to place an emphasis on uniformity, providing all employees with the same software and hardware, many are now embracing the BYOD trend given its financial advantages.

By adopting a BYOD policy, companies can substantially reduce their IT expenditure as they no longer need to supply employees with PC’s, Laptops or Smartphones. Companies that implement a BYOD strategy also save millions of dollars as they no longer need to purchase expensive software. Lastly, Bring Your Own Device means that employees arrive at the workplace with sophisticated hardware that allows increased, if not constant, connectivity. This in turn enables companies to react to changes in the market in real time.

However, despite its many advantages, BYOD is also accompanied by two major challenges. The first is the need to have a corporate infrastructure that is compatible with a wide variety of devices and operating systems. The second and more substantial challenge derives from the need to ensure the security of confidential corporate information.

Ford, the American auto manufacturer, attempted to balance the advantages and disadvantages of BYOD as far back as 2007. The company created a task force dedicated to examining how the company could adopt a successful BYOD policy. The result came two years later when Ford was one of the first companies in the world to enable employees to view work related emails on personal devices using a program called ePOD or eMail on Personally Owned Devices.

While ePOD was a visionary BYOD policy it was also a limited one as Ford offered users no technical assistance and all subscription fees were paid by the employees themselves. Nonetheless, Since 2009, thousands of Ford employees have joined the ePOD program making it one of the most successful BYOD policies in the corporate world.

Now, Ford plans to take its BYOD strategy one step forward.

According to a recent report, Ford is expected to launch a new security system that will protect work related emails while providing employees with streamlined management and support for various devices as well as a “simplified user experience”. This represents a conceptual shift within the Ford corporation which first viewed its BYOD policy as a limited one that focused on employee comfort and not “good business”.

By expanding its BYOD policy, Ford has made it clear that BYOD makes sense for both employees and the workplace. It has also made it clear that BYOD has become much more than a trend, it is the future of corporate America.

]]> http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/11/more-than-a-trend-ford-expected-to-expand-its-byod-policy/feed/ 0 http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/02/telepresence-the-experience-of-natural-interactions/ http://blog.imtc.org/index.php/2012/10/02/telepresence-the-experience-of-natural-interactions/#comments Tue, 02 Oct 2012 13:52:02 +0000 IMTC http://blog.imtc.org/?p=3016

The 1996 hit movie Jerry Maguire, starring Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger, has long since reached cult status. Memorable quotes from the movie have become an integral part of day to day language. One quote that has entered the public lexicon is “show me the money!”

Nowadays, Telepresence is “showing the money” in the corporate world. It has enabled corporate giants to cut down on spending by delivering a reliable, advanced and immersive tool for remote conferencing.

By using Telepresence, large companies are saving money on travel costs while at the same time bringing together employees from around the globe. In an article dated the 16th of May 2012, the Forbes website quoted a Fortune 500 executive who said: “Every dollar that we have invested in Telepresence, the company saved four times that on return in travel cost avoidance”.

Telepresence also helps companies reach better and faster decisions thereby allowing them to react to changes in the market in real time. It has also been shown to increase the level of cooperation and creativity within the company. According to Forbes, Telepresence is so effective it even reduces the time to market for new products.

The question is- why?

It would appear that the impact Telepresence has on companies is a result of its immersive user experience. When using Telepresence, people located on opposite ends of the world feel as if they are sitting side by side in the same conference room. This experience is made possible by quality video and audio, but also by camera angles that enable the user to read the expressions of their counterpart.

Telepresence works because it allows the users to interact naturally, even at a distance.

In addition, Telepresence is a flexible product that can be used in different settings. It can be deployed in conference rooms when large teams come together to discuss a shared project as well as on a laptop for one-on-one conference calls. And while Telepresence could even be used on smartphones, one has to bear in mind that the smaller the device, the less immersive the experience.

As it continues to develop, Telepresence is destined to offer additional tools for increased remote collaboration such as high quality content sharing, point and highlight capabilities and even the ability to drag content from one screen to another.

However, there are two main obstacles that stand in the way of the continued growth of Telepresence. The first is that the service needs to be compatible with a growing array of devices and hardware such as smartphones, tablets and other personal devices. The second is that Telepresence relies on the size of its community of users. So, until it is adopted by a large share of the market, it will remain an innovative yet limited means of communication.

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