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Traditionally, videoconferencing has been predominantly used by the business world. From its early development in the early 1970's to the recent surge in interest since TANDBERG became part of Cisco, the key application for video-based communications is to enhance business decisions and add value to an organisations bottom line, usually from huge savings on travel budgets. Of course, there are instances of video communications infiltrating life outside of business situations, with varying degrees of success, be it web conferencing from Skype or mobile phone based video calls. Despite those examples, video communications outside of the office has yet to achieve the same level of popularity as in the corporate environment. Earlier this year the launch of the iPad from Apple received massive amounts of speculation surrounding what applications and key features it might incorporate. Amongst these was the potential for users to utilise video conferencing on the new product. However, upon its launch, it was clear that video conferencing was not yet going to be one of the features of Apple's new platform. Interestingly though, the discussions of videoconferencing as an application on tablet PCs has not disappeared. A number of reviews and commentaries following the launch of the iPad discussed not just what was missing from the product, but also what they would most like to see in its next incarnation. Videoconferencing was very much in the thick of features which customers perceive to be desirable in tablet PCs. Apple is not the only company considering the idea of combining video communication functionality and mass consumer computing products. HP, Sony and Dell, amongst other technology giants, are currently developing their own tablet or slate PCs to rival the iPad. Speculation has been building that video conferencing capabilities could be used as one of the key differentiating features for future competing tablet PCs. Whether the products incorporate video cameras in to the overall design or feature the ability to use peripheral webcams, such as the PrecisionHD camera from TANDBERG, there seems to be a real opportunity for videoconferencing firms to exploit a new dimension of personal computing. But what benefit would come from a wider commercial exposure to videoconferencing? The more a technology permeates through society, the more people become accustomed to it being a fundamental and effective communication tool. Once videoconferencing attains wider application beyond business boundaries, resistance and scepticism towards video communications will begin to fade. If your employees are comfortable using video conferencing at home, then it's more likely they will embrace video conferencing and telepresence in the workplace, thus driving video adoption and improving utilisation.
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