Improved IP Deployments to Fuel Growth in Videoconferencing Infrastructure Systems Market

Frost: The availability of a myriad of conferencing- and collaboration-related tools creates ambiguity on the best-fit solution to meet end-user needs. This in turn leads to longer sales cycles and slower adoption rates. Videoconferencing infrastructure systems vendors in Asia Pacific must emphasize on promoting clear product awareness and value proposition amongst the end-user community to address this. ,Revenues in this market totaled US$56.0 million in 2004 and can reach $181.1 million in 2011. Lack of interoperability and compatibility between discrete product platforms and vendor solutions has curtailed the integration process. Nevertheless, latest product developments are offering comprehensive end-to-end solutions that are likely to offset this problem to a large extent. With the ongoing transition from ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) to IP (Internet Protocol) platform, videoconferencing is set to witness a greater convergence of applications as varied as instant messaging, streaming, and web collaboration (mainly used in IP networks at present). Videoconferencing infrastructure systems vendors are further diversifying into areas such as third generation (3G) mobile videoconferencing, while focusing on improving the features and functionalities of their solutions. These vendors continue to emphasize on superior browser-based scheduling and management tools. The market - especially the high-end bridge segment - is beginning to experience rising competition from low-cost multipoint control unit (MCU) manufacturers across Asia Pacific.

Moreover, the recent shift in end-user perception of videoconferencing as an effective communication tool augurs well for the market. Its efficiency and benefits as an enhanced communication medium during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003, was instrumental in bringing about this change.

Capitalizing on this favorable customer discernment, service providers in Asia Pacific are presently focusing on network and infrastructure development, in anticipation of encouraging future videoconferencing deployments. They are paying special attention on strengthening their product portfolios, especially in the case of end-to-end products.

The market is experiencing a greater demand from the Government sector in China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. E-government initiatives have necessitated a wider use of videoconferencing tools to facilitate faster decision-making, better communications and higher productivity in government agencies.

In addition, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Asia Pacific region are evincing keen interest in desktop systems, a factor that could stimulate the videoconferencing infrastructure systems market in the long term. Overall, improvements in audio-video quality, technical advancements and dwindling prices, along with the high degree of convergence between video, audio, and web applications, is set to fuel the videoconferencing infrastructure systems market in the region. Asia Pacific Videoconferencing Infrastructure Systems Market Mobile video? Answers, Ericsson White paper Red Viking