* The new products and services, which range from personal desktop to multi-screen room systems, offer high-definition video collaboration
Avaya has announced a new portfolio of video communications and collaboration products and services. Headlining the solutions is the Avaya “Flare Experience”, delivering collaboration capabilities across video, voice and text. The new products and services, which range from personal desktop to multi-screen room systems, offer high-definition video collaboration. The systems (including the video component) are designed to integrate with the Avaya Aura, and it leverages Avaya Aura Conferencing and Avaya Aura Messaging.
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Commenting in a statement, Kevin Kennedy, Avaya’s president and CEO said, “to be fully productive, employees need to simply connect via easy-to-use, fully integrated video, voice and text capabilities. This is the heart of Avaya’s people-centric approach to collaboration and the means to faster, better results with less effort and a lower total cost of ownership. We’re delivering a more potent collaboration experience at one-third the cost using substantially less bandwidth over other solutions on the market today.”
The Avaya Flare Experience was developed on the Android operating system. It provides users with:
* A “touch and swipe” interface so employees can check messages, schedule meetings and appointments, and receive alerts or reminders.
* Drag-and-drop voice and video calling and conferencing, allowing separate sidebar interactions via voice, email or IM.
* A singular view of multiple directories, including corporate and personal, Facebook, Twitter and others.
* The ability to download productivity and business applications, including Android-based tools.
The Flare Experience will initially be sold with the Avaya Desktop Video Device “but will soon be made available for other environments, including PCs, laptops, tablet PCs, and smartphones,” according to Avaya’s roadmap. The Avaya Desktop Video Device comes equipped with an 11.6-inch HD touchscreen with video and audio supported by a HD 720-pixel camera and HD-quality voice supported, with mobility supported using SIP and Wi-Fi. The device also can use USB connection for connectivity to an optional keyboard or handset with 3G/4G access. Upcoming versions will support remote access over VPN connections and 4G access. The Avaya 9600 Series Deskphones support voice, conference control, instant messaging and presence capabilities, along with desktop integration with Microsoft Outlook for contact management.
A recent Webtorials survey predicted that use of video is expected to grow rapidly as costs decline and as ease of use and quality improves; the study projected that the number of users who will make frequent use of videoconferencing will grow by over 400% over the next two years. But according to the study, to enable the explosive growth four obstacles need to be overcome: the high cost of equipment and bandwidth; the need for a special room; lack of integration with other applications and data sources; and frequent, disruptive issues during videoconferencing sessions. We’ll highlight more on this study in next week’s newsletter.
