|
Home >
Audio and Web
Conferencing
Hosting your own audio and web conferencing equipment -- the pros and cons of the in-house solution
December 13, 2005
By: Bob Whitehead
Choosing a solution for your audio and web conferencing
needs leads you to two different types to select from. Many
well-known companies like
WebEx
and Microsoft
offer what are known as hosted solutions. However, you can
also host your own web conferencing equipment, creating an
in-house solution. Each has their own set of advantages and
disadvantages.
One big selling point of an in-house system is the
security. You own the actual web conferencing hardware and
software license. Everything occurs behind the company
firewall and on the company intranet.
Sonexis ConferenceManager is an example of this type of
conferencing solution, which implements passwords and pin
numbers for security.
ConferenceManager also allows the ability to add audio
conferencing either through your existing voice over IP or
PBX system that integrates easily into your meeting, giving
you more options for interactivity. VoIP is a cost-effective
way to confer with audio and now it can be easily combined
with your own in-house web conferencing capability.
Hosted solutions most often require monthly maintenance
fees, while some limit the number of meetings you can have
in a month. In-house systems are paid for up-front and, if
you use web conferencing technologies often, pay for
themselves over time. However, the features of a hosted
solution can be tailored to your needs so you are only
paying for features that you truly use, whereas
ConferenceManager Release 4 provides a fixed set of most of
the features required for comprehensive business
collaboration and web conferencing like:
- Annotation and sharing of standard Microsoft files
such as PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets, and
Word documents.
- Recording audio conferences for later playback.
- Application sharing for software demonstrations.
- Remote control of the host's desktop applications to
conference participants.
- Scheduling and notification
manager to setup and manage conferences.
- Synchronous
browsing of web sites.
- Interactive whiteboard to
visually markup documents and take notes.
- Polling and
voting feature to gain feedback from conference
participants.
If online meetings aren't a vital part of your business
communication, it's best to stay with a hosted solution.
Running the conferencing solution from the company server
does offer its own set of challenges, especially when it
comes to supplying technical support for the meetings. But
for a company with extensive conferencing needs, the
in-house option could be quite beneficial.
About the Author
Bob Whitehead is a successful freelance writer and
contributor to Web-Conferencing-Zone.com. Your
definitive guide to web conferencing services, online
collaboration software and web meetings for business.
Also See:
[ Free P2P file
sharing programs, networks & legal issues ]
[
Interactive web conferencing tools for more interactive
presentations ]
[ Free file
sharing programs and their issues with computer security ]
Home Page:
[ Web-Conferencing-Zone.com ]
Related Articles
[ top of page ]
|
