Video Conferencing - A Checklist

What do you wish to achieve?

• Point to Point รขโ�ฌโ�� two locations only at any one time
• Broadcast Live รขโ�ฌโ�� from one site to many รขโ�ฌโ�� watch and listen
• Broadcast pre-recorded รขโ�ฌโ�� from one site to many รขโ�ฌโ�� watch & listen
• Multipoint รขโ�ฌโ�� three or more sites with Q&A between any, relayed to all
• Multipoint - three or more รขโ�ฌโ�� plus broadcast from any to satellite sub-groups as a watch and listen.
• Live with session taped for future edit and distribution
• Person to person/s with video & audio & data manipulation across participants รขโ�ฌโ�� e.g. sharing documents, drawings with or without live edit and audit of changes made.

  With whom do you wish to communicate by videoconferencing?

• Only inside your company
• From your company to sister/ contractor/ supplier companies
• With your customers
• With your prospects

  Frequency of system use

• Ad hoc
• Estimated use per annum (min/max)
• Weekly
• Monthly
• Quarterly

  Installation type

• Custom built static installation รขโ�ฌโ�� i.e. a designated room
• Desktop location/s รขโ�ฌโ�� i.e. from the office desktop PC
• Mobile "roll-about" system -
• Off-site facilities required รขโ�ฌโ�� going to a dedicated videoconference facility

  Options required

• Record, Edit & Distribute by hardcopy (CD/DVD)
• Record, Edit & Distribute by softcopy (Web cast)
• Broadcast live via direct links to named recipients/ groups
• Broadcast pre-recorded across one or more time zones
• Log who watched and listened and when
• Multiple persons at One or Two (group to group videoconferencing รขโ�ฌโ�� e.g. design teams, board to local management)
• Multiple participants at Three or more sites

  What are your current IT capabilities?

• ISDN 1
• ISDN 2
• ISDN 30
• LAN รขโ�ฌโ�� Cat5/ Cat5e/ Cat6
• LAN รขโ�ฌโ�� Fibre
• LAN รขโ�ฌโ�� wireless รขโ�ฌโ�� type?
• WAN รขโ�ฌโ�� bandwidth?
• VPN รขโ�ฌโ�� bandwidth?
• Internet access, dial-up 56k
• Internet access , Dial-up 128K
• Internet access , Broadband 1Mb
• Internet access , Broadband 2Mb
• Internet access , Broadband 4 Mb
• Internet access , Satellite link
• Internet access , permanent fibre/ cable link
• T1 / T2 / T3 / T4 (aka DS-1/ DS-2/ DS-3/ DS-4)
• OC-1 / OC-3 / OC-12 / OC-38

  Impact on your system รขโ�ฌโ�� to be considered

• Bandwidth load
• Current capacity used & unused & reserved (max/ min for each)
• Planned bandwidth use รขโ�ฌโ�� excluding video conferencing
• Contention ratio
• Speed
• Video quality รขโ�ฌโ�� predominantly static (talking head รขโ�ฌโ�� Yes/No)
• Hardware at point of display
• Hardware at point of transmission
• Hardware at point of distribution

  Points to consider

• Budget
• What do you spend currently on flights/ travel/ accommodation per annum?
• Write-off period for cap ex
• Leasing options
• IT infrastructure
• Cost and timescale of increased capacity and hardware -if required

James Hunter works for Status AV, a premier provider of video conferencing solutions in the UK.