Update Jan 7 2009: CES almost has started in Las Vegas (see this CNN article). They say attendance is down. Still pretty darn big if you ask me! I was CTO at the now defunct “TeleCon” Conference and we were happy to get 20,000 attendees. But, I’m pretty sure that live shows will, over time, draw less and less people to them. On line Virtual Conferences exist and are getting better…hmmmm, maybe I’ll research that topic and post the info here.
This article states that at the CES Show in Las Vegas this month, Cisco will introduce several new products for the home.
Included in these products are a “Telepresence” version for your HDTV, and a streaming player for watching video over the Internet.
Verrrryyy inteerrrtesting.
I have long held the view that videoconferencing to the home would be a natural on your TV (see this web page of an article I wrote in 1995, scroll down to 6 PM if you are in a hurry).
Of course, my views on Internet streaming to watch movies using a device such as VUDU (hmmmm, do I smell a buyout after all VUDU is a neighbor of Cisco’s) and other Internet streaming technologies is well known to you…my dedicated readers:
I think Internet video will change the world and will shorten the life of Blu-Ray (although I am totally enjoying watching my Blu-Ray movies).
As for videoconferencing with Cisco, they need to come up with a VERY inexpensive product for the home… or it will not fly. The home user (especially in these horrid economic times) do not have the cash that a major corporation has (or had). Since Cisco is used to charging over $300,000 per end for their “Telepresence” units…they have a long way to go.
On the bright side….
Cisco getting into home Internet streaming of video (if it is true), and giving the good college try for home videoconferencing (if it is true) can only help the videoconferencing and collaboration technology space.
TelBitConsulting wishes them luck….time will tell if they can succeed.
TechyMike: Technology Made Easy 