Saudi journalists got a glimpse into the future today during an exclusive demonstration of Cisco Systems’ revolutionary TelePresence Meeting solution. The system, being launched in the Kingdom by Cisco KSA, creates a virtual “room within a room” in which people thousands of miles apart can interact as if seated across a table. The reporters, appropriately, learned of the new technology during a remote face-to-face meeting with company executives.
Already hailed as a world-changing technological breakthrough, TelePresence uses high-definition video, rich audio and real-time interactive elements to provide levels of clarity and collaboration that are far more advanced than previous video conferencing systems. Because of this, TelePresence is expected to lead to a dramatic increase in remote meetings, which will save companies time and money while leading to less congestion at airports and on roads.
“Today, with the launch of TelePresence, we are witnessing a major shift in the way business will be conducted in the Kingdom,” said Dr. Badr Al-Badr, General Manager, Cisco KSA. “This technology brings Cisco’s Human Network to life in a way that no other communication platform has previously managed. To be able to sit in an office with someone in London or Tokyo, without having to leave one’s own office, this will have an immediate effect on companies’ productivity and employees’ quality of life.”
Al-Badr added that using TelePresence is as fast, simple and reliable as making a phone call. “There will be no need for training, no coming into the office three hours early to do a systems check,” he said. Al-Badr also noted that the TelePresence “Auto Collaborate” feature allows users to share information, such as presentations or documents, at the press of a button.
Abdulaziz Al-Zaid, Marketing Manager, Cisco KSA, highlighted the advanced technology that has made TelePresence an industry leader, including its 1080p flat-panel displays, which, with TelePresence 3000, can be set up to create a 3-D effect around a table. “With previous video conferencing, there was still always the sense that participants were remote from one another,” he said. “With TelePresence, you catch every gesture, the slightest change in facial expressions, and the clearing of someone’s’ throat. It really is as if the person’s sitting right there.”
TelePresence is built on Cisco Service-Oriented Network Architecture, making for security and reliability, and ensuring that the system can be seamlessly integrated with pre-existing enterprise groupware and unified communications systems.
