What do you wish to achieve?
Point to Point ?two locations only at any one timeBroadcast Live ?from one site to many ? watch and listenBroadcast pre-recorded ?from one site to many ?watch & listenMultipoint ?three or more sites with Q&A between any, relayed to allMultipoint - three or more ?plus broadcast from any to satellite sub-groups as a watch and listen.Live with session taped for future edit and distributionPerson to person/s with video & audio & data manipulation across participants ?e.g. sharing documents, drawings with or without live edit and audit of changes made.
With whom do you wish to communicate by videoconferencing?
Only inside your companyFrom your company to sister/ contractor/ supplier companiesWith your customersWith your prospects
Frequency of system use
Ad hoc Estimated use per annum (min/max)WeeklyMonthlyQuarterly
Installation type
Custom built static installation ?i.e. a designated roomDesktop location/s ?i.e. from the office desktop PCMobile “roll-about?system - Off-site facilities required ?going to a dedicated videoconference facility
Options required
Record, Edit & Distribute by hardcopy (CD/DVD)Record, Edit & Distribute by softcopy (Web cast)Broadcast live via direct links to named recipients/ groupsBroadcast pre-recorded across one or more time zonesLog who watched and listened and whenMultiple persons at One or Two (group to group videoconferencing ?e.g. design teams, board to local management) Multiple participants at Three or more sites
What are your current IT capabilities?
ISDN 1 ISDN 2ISDN 30LAN ?Cat5/ Cat5e/ Cat6LAN ?FibreLAN ?wireless ?type?WAN ?bandwidth?VPN ?bandwidth?Internet access, dial-up 56kInternet access , Dial-up 128KInternet access , Broadband 1MbInternet access , Broadband 2MbInternet access , Broadband 4 MbInternet access , Satellite linkInternet access , permanent fibre/ cable linkT1 / T2 / T3 / T4 (aka DS-1/ DS-2/ DS-3/ DS-4) OC-1 / OC-3 / OC-12 / OC-38
Impact on your system ?to be considered
Bandwidth loadCurrent capacity used & unused & reserved (max/ min for each)Planned bandwidth use ?excluding video conferencingContention ratioSpeedVideo quality ?predominantly static (talking head ?Yes/No)Hardware at point of displayHardware at point of transmissionHardware at point of distribution
Points to consider
BudgetWhat do you spend currently on flights/ travel/ accommodation per annum?Write-off period for cap exLeasing optionsIT infrastructureCost and timescale of increased capacity and hardware -if required
James Hunter works for Edric Audio Visual, a premier provider of video conferencing solutions in the UK.