RESEARCH NOTE. Workplace Service. Hot Vendors in Video Conferencing, 2015

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1 June 11, 2015 Author: David Mario Smith Hot Vendors in Video Conferencing, 2015 Summary: Videoconferencing is at an inflection point: emerging software-based offerings are disrupting traditional hardware vendors. Here we look at four emerging players. Topic: Collaboration Issue: Who are the Collaboration providers and how will they evolve? The world is becoming more connected and interactive, and the workplace is no exception. Partly because consumer devices include video and mobile networks do a better job of transmitting video, people are using video much more than even two years ago. This research note discusses the shift that is occurring and how video collaboration can be a game changer. In his book, The World Is Flat: A Brief History Of The Twenty-First Century, Thomas Friedman describes a world of expanded access and opportunity, a more level playing field brought about by technology and globalization. Geographic distances are now irrelevant, as collaboration tools enable real-time interactions between people in different cultures, geographies and time zones. The Workplace Gets Closer While emerging collaboration tools like video make the world flatter, they also make it smaller. This shrinkage is dramatically evident in the workplace, where enterprises find themselves in a much broader and more diverse ecosystem of organizations that are enmeshed in a dense web of interactions. Even more noticeably, the people within these global enterprises find their teams expanding to include co-workers in many other organizations and in different geographies and time zones. My coworkers are no longer in the same building or department as me. The new worker has to be much more collaborative across groups, distances and affiliations. Video-Enabled Collaboration Explodes As video-enabled collaboration has emerged, it has brought a sense of face-to-face reality to virtual communication. People use video tools like Skype, Google+ Hangouts and Facetime more Copyright 2015 Aragon Research Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Aragon Research and the Aragon Research Globe are trademarks of Aragon Research Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. This publication may not be distributed in any form without Aragon Research s prior written permission. The information contained in this publication has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Nevertheless, Aragon Research provides this publication and the information contained in it "AS IS," without warranty of any kind. To the maximum extent allowed by law, Aragon Research expressly disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information and shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in such information. This publication consists of the opinions of Aragon Research and Advisory Services organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice. Although Aragon Research may include a discussion of related legal issues, Aragon Research does not provide legal advice or services and its research should not be construed or used as such. Aragon Research is a private company and its clients may include firms or financial institutions that have financial interests in entities covered by Aragon Research. Further information about the objectivity of Aragon Research can be found at aragonresearch.com

2 and more in their personal lives, to connect with their families and loved ones. In my own life, letting my mother see her grandkids via video on her smartphone or tablet is priceless. This growing use of video has raised workplace expectations for seamless, high-quality real-time video interaction with colleagues in support of business activities. The BYOD and consumerization phenomena have made video accessible to anyone, anywhere, anytime. People want the same access in their professional lives to get their work done. This research note is not intended to be a complete list of vendors in the markets being discussed. Rather, it highlights vendors with interesting, cutting-edge products, services or technologies. For 2015, we highlight these Hot Vendors in Videoconferencing: Acano Highfive Pexip Zoom 2015 Aragon Research Inc. and or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Page 2

3 Acano Note 1: Acano at a Glance Acano is a fast-growing company with a fresh perspective on audio, video and web conference interoperability. Location: Headquarters in London, England; global locations across the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia CEO: O.J. Winge Key Offerings: Team Workspaces, Video/ Audio/Web Conferencing Interoperability Availability: Available online Website: Figure 1: Acano Software Can Run on Most PCs and Mobile Devices. Founded in 2012, Acano is one of the newer players offering cloud and software-based videoconference capabilities (see Note 1). Acano and these other new providers are disrupting the market and competing with traditional videoconference vendors such as Cisco and Polycom. Acano positions itself as an interoperability solution that can integrate traditional room systems with a wide range of endpoints and devices. It also supports the emerging WebRTC protocol, so the depth and breadth of its interoperability should increase with the expansion of that evolving architecture. What makes Acano hot is its ability to integrate multiple room systems and endpoints, so enterprises can still use their existing video infrastructure investments (see Figure 1). It lets teams keep all the resources they need to work together in one place that can be accessed with a single click. Enterprises looking for a lower-cost video solution that can integrate existing investments should evaluate Acano. Those that want to video-enable smaller conference or huddle rooms should also evaluate cloud video options like Acano Aragon Research Inc. and or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Page 3

4 Highfive Note 2: Highfive at a Glance Highfive offers an all-in-one videoconferencing solution that can connect to any monitor or laptop. The low price and ease of use are proving to be attractive to buyers. Location: Redwood City CA CEO: Shan Sinha Key Offering: Highfive Availability: Available online Website: Figure 2: Highfive Makes It Easy for Office and Mobile Users to Collaborate. Highfive, based in Redwood City CA, is all about making video conferencing so easy that anyone can configure and manage it (see Note 2). With a simple, compact design, Highfive video and web conferencing mounts on top of any monitor or TV screen (see Figure 2). Design and price are what make Highfive hot. The complete system, including camera, costs only $1200. Many other systems cost thousands more, making this one of the more disruptive plays in the market. Enterprises looking for a solid offering to help to put video into both conference and huddle rooms should evaluate Highfive. The ease of use and the all-in-one camera/microphone design make it a good value that is sure to disrupt the current video and web conferencing market Aragon Research Inc. and or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Page 4

5 Pexip Note 3: Pexip at a Glance Pexip is a software-based video audio and web conferencing solution that runs on standard off-the-shelf hardware, on premises or in a private or public cloud. It can connect an unlimited number of traditional video endpoints, along with Microsoft Skype for Business (Lync) users with browsers and mobile devices. Location: Headquarters in Norway; offices in New York and the UK. CEO: Simen Teigre Key Offering: Infinity Availability: Accessible online Website: Figure 3: Pexip Supports a Variety of Endpoints and Devices. Pexip is another new emerging videoconference service provider, started by former Cisco and Tandberg executives. It brings an open, virtualized software-based approach to video conferencing with its Infinity product, which runs on any standard off-the-shelf server (see Note 3). One of Infinity s major promises is that it can scale to an unlimited number of users in any size organization, providing visual collaboration infrastructure for every employee. One thing that makes Pexip hot is its implementation of browserbased support for joining virtual meetings with various endpoints and communication systems (see Figure 3). Infinity seamlessly joins legacy videoconferencing solutions from the likes of Cisco, Polycom and Lifesize with any other software or hardware UC solution, such as Skype for Business (Lync), as well as web browsers and audio callers via its Virtual Meeting Rooms. Infinity s virtual meeting-room capability can connect an unlimited number of endpoints and communication tools to complement or replace both videoconferencing and telephone conference services. Enterprise planners responsible for video collaboration should look at Pexip, especially if they have existing investments in legacy hardware systems from providers like Cisco and Polycom and require further interoperability or large-scale deployments Aragon Research Inc. and or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Page 5

6 Zoom Note 4: Zoom at a Glance Zoom is a cloud video conferencing provider that supports video webinars on desktop and mobile devices. Location: Santa Clara CA CEO: Eric Yuan Key Offering: Zoom Availability: Available in the ios and Android app stores, and online for Windows and OS X. Website: Figure 4: Zoom Offers Mobile App Sharing and Conference Room Integration. Zoom has emerged primarily as a videoconference provider, and is increasingly being used for video webinars (see Note 4). Zoom supports up to 25 video presenters or participants for audiences of up to 3000 attendees. This is useful for events with multiple presenters or panelists. There are host controls for managing panelists, Q&A and recording. Both presenters and presentations can be shown at the same time. Essential for webinars, its reporting and analytics capabilities are very usable. Zoom is hot because of its mobile-enabled video conferencing, which stands out in the market. Mobile was not an afterthought, but a design requirement for Zoom. It also integrates with H.323 and SIP room systems (see Figure 4). Enterprises interested in a low-cost, HD-based desktop and mobile video webinar service should look at Zoom. Zoom also has a growing partner ecosystem, so expect to see more partners using and offering Zoom communication services Aragon Research Inc. and or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Page 6

7 Aragon Advisory Customers of existing videoconference hardware should evaluate the new software-based options to complement their current investments and video-enable the entire organization. Make video an integral part of your overall collaboration strategy. When evaluating videoconference products, plan for the network impact and get guidance from providers on network requirements. Bottom Line Video conferencing is evolving away from traditional hardware systems as infrastructure costs prevent many organizations from making those investments. Cloud and software based offerings that integrate with existing investments are more attractive. Also for small and midsized enterprises, this option yields a better ROI for leveraging video collaboration Aragon Research Inc. and or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Page 7