Conferencing Solutions

Audio and video conferencing enables effective communication and online business meetings from any place without the need to be physically present at the meeting. Conference call is basically a phone call where the calling party can have more than one party to participate in the call. Business organizations can opt for audio conferencing or video conferencing, or both according to their needs.

Audio Conferencing

An audio conference can be referred to as a conference call where more than two parties participate. This is a versatile feature in communication technology and can be set up in a way that all parties are able to participate or listen to calls. Audio conferencing is a highly used tool in business organizations and its demand is very high because of its cost-effective and user-friendly benefits.

Audio conferencing using IP network works almost similar to the traditional analog telephone conference calls. With IP audio conferencing, the callers are connected to a conference bridge and a server with the help of phones or computers. With traditional phone systems, circuit switching is used. The telephone system routes the calls through a series of interconnected switches until it reaches the Conference Bridge. Packet switching is used for IP audio conferencing, instead of circuit switching, which opens up a brief connection and is enough for sending a packet data from one system to another. The data is sent over the Internet through the most efficient path. If a business is using an IP network for its telephone system, users can connect to the conference bridge either through external lines or via a VoIP network.

Uses of Audio Conferencing

In business, situations may arise where a group of people from different locations or departments need to discuss a topic, issue, or to reach a decision. A manager can make a meaningful decision after taking input from all involved participants in the conference call. Conferences like these can be facilitated without any travelling.

Video Conferencing

Another type of conferencing technique commonly used nowadays is video conferencing technology. In video conferencing, a set of communication technologies allows more than one location to communicate simultaneously with two way video and audio signal transmissions. Real time digital compression of video and audio streams is the core technology in video conferencing system.

With the advent of Internet Protocol, packed based communication system came to light. Video conferencing using IP network not only enabled a cost effective solution, but also delivered video communication to the desktop. These were obvious benefits that encouraged more businesses switch to IP network. Video conferencing systems using IP also delivered a huge benefit to the end users.

In business, it is a must to meet business partners and to attend both company and client meetings. This requires travelling, which imposes a travel cost. IP-based video conferencing enables face-to-face communication without moving from the workspace. This eliminates travelling as well as the cost involved in it. IP-based video communication systems are less expensive and do not have the need for any extra circuitry. Again, video conferencing using IP networks do not require dedicated lines and can share the allocated bandwidth.

Uses of Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing has a huge number of uses, and some are listed below:

• In the education field, video conferencing can bring students from various communities and disciplines to communicate with each other. Even in distance learning programs, video conferencing is a key communication tool where lectures can be delivered to students at far away distances.
• In business, company meetings and client meetings take place frequently. Travelling involves both time and costs. Under these circumstances, video conferencing is the best solution. This also enables management to communicate with employees working in distance locations quickly and effectively. Business trainings are also possible. In addition, companies can also conduct interviews using video conferencing technology.
• In the medical industry, the same technology is useful. It might happen that a patient needs medical advice but is unable to visit the physician. With video conferencing, one can have an online conference with the physician and get necessary guidelines. This cannot replace the physical visits, but, sometimes, this may be the only way to meet a particular doctor.

About BCS Consultants

BCS Consultants offers complete range of products and services for networking and communications. In communication we offer on-premise systems from companies such as Toshiba, private cloud based IP, and public cloud based IP Phone systems.

Call us today on (949) 333-1020 for your networking or communication needs.