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The Conferencing Zone Week in Review: Yamaha, India, and More

By Mandi Nowitz
Web Editor

Video conferencing was the hot topic this week in The Conferencing Zone and it is no wonder why. Not only does it enhance work meetings but it allows for students in rural areas have access to experiences that they otherwise wouldn’t. In case you missed anything, this is the perfect time for The Conferencing Zone Week in Review.

India’s legal system is now utilizing video conferencing, helping to address over 6,000 judge vacancies. Using this tool in the court system has long been a safety mechanism as well as a way for inmates to communicate with family and loved ones. Ultimately, video conferencing in the prison system will save it $43 million in government funds.

A $215,000 grant was awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant program to the Pittsylvania Count School system. This will allow for virtual field trips with the purchase of a camera and camera station for each of the 20 schools. "It kind of acts as an equalizer between what students here in the rural area have access to versus what students in a more urban area have access to," says Pittsylvania Co. Schools Assistant Superintendent for Operations, Dr. Jeff Early.

Virtual conferencing is getting a facelift, thanks to PGi. GlobalMeet has introduced its 5.0, replacing iMeet and ReadyTalk (News - Alert) Meeting. "Whether it's a desktop, just a straight browser or a mobile device, it's one click into the meeting to join it, or to start it if you're a host," said Patrick Harper, CTO at PGi, based in Atlanta. It supports up to 125 participants with a goal of hosting up to 500 down the line.

Finally, the Yamaha YVC-1000MS is ready to be seen. It will be showcased at the Microsoft (News - Alert) Tech Summits and is Skype for Business-certified. This is the first product from the company to receive this certification- Certification Version 3 tests- the highest Microsoft standards. “Because Skype (News - Alert) for Business continues to be the platform of choice for collaboration, there’s no better place for us to highlight the benefits of our speakerphone system, which meets Skype for Business’ stringent certification standards,” said Russell Harpham, director of EMEA at Revolabs (News - Alert). 

And there you have it; The Conferencing Zone wrapped up in a neat little package. Come back early and often next week for more news and announcements.