INDUSTRY NEWS

22 December 2008

Telepresence market set for massive growth

The global market for telepresence - video conferencing software that makes it seem as if all participants are in the same room - is set for phenomenal growth in the next several years.

According to ABI Research, the whole market, including equipment, network services and managed services, will grow from $126 million (£85 million) in 2007 to almost $2.5 billion (£1.7 billion) in 2013.

The research company explained that the appeal of telepresence lies in the realism that it is able to deliver via high-definition, life-sized video, closely lip-synched audio, coordinated room décor and special technologies enabling eye contact.

Stan Schatt, vice president of ABI Research, said: "Hundreds of senior executives are talking to virtual friends around the globe.

"The telepresence illusion is so real that many execs forget the person they're talking to is not really in the same room."

Despite the high price of the technology, the analyst explained that it remains attractive to firms because of the high cost of travel, in terms of money, time and carbon emissions.

Meanwhile, Gartner has claimed that more than 25 per cent of content that workers deal with on a daily basis will come in the form of pictures, video or audio by 2013.

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