Conferencing has been in place within the enterprise for a number of years, yet video conferencing has really only taken off in the last 10 as telecommunications technology evolved to support high quality video interactions.

In the most basic of explanations, video conferencing is a set of telecommunications technologies that allow two or more locations to interact with the use of two-way video and audio transmissions happening at the same time. A type of groupware, it has also been referred to as visual collaboration.

Video conferencing is not the same thing as a videophone call as video conferencing technology is designed to serve as a conference tool among multiple people instead of one individual. Video conferencing is today an intermediate form of videotelephony that was first deployed in the commercial sector by AT&T (News - Alert) in the early 1970s with Picturephone technology.

To make video conferencing a reality, there must be digital compression of the audio and visual streams in real time. This serves as the core technology in video conferencing. The codec performs the compression and rates of up to 1:500 can be achieved. This focus can result in a digital stream of 1s and 0s that are sub-divided into labeled packets that are then transmitted through a digital network.

Specific features need to be in place to enable video conferencing, including video input that may rely on a video camera or a Webcam; video output through a television, computer monitor or projector; audio input through a microphone, CD/DVD player, cassette player or other audio outlet source; audio output generally through loudspeakers associated with the telephone or display device; data transfer, whether it is a digital or analog telephone network, Internet or LAN; and a computer to serve as the data processing unit to tie all other components together.

There are essentially two different kinds of video conferencing systems: dedicated systems and desktop systems. A dedicated system has all the required components packaged into a single piece of equipment.

A number of devices generally make up the dedicated video conferencing solution, including large group video conferencing equipment that in non-portable and used for large rooms or auditoriums; small group video conferencing equipment that is still non-portable, but much less expense; and individual video conferencing solutions that tend to be portable and meant for a single user.

Desktop systems tend to be add-ons to standard PCs that transform them into video conferencing devices. A variety of cameras and microphones may be used with the computer, which contains the necessary transmission interfaces and codec for video conferencing.

AVerMedia is one provider in the video conferencing space focused on designing, manufacturing and marketing multimedia, Internet TV and consumer electronic products. The company’s approach has always been to adopt the advanced technology incorporated with concepts of ergonomics, environmental protection and user behavior to ensure the development of innovative and high-quality products throughout the market at affordable prices.