Video-conferencing market to gain greater interoperability

The market for video-conferencing gear is about to get smaller--but also more interoperable--as Cisco prepares to close its acquisition of rival Tandberg in the next few weeks.

On Monday, the European Commission approved the $3.4 billion acquisition, and the U.S. Department of Justice said it will not challenge it. With these two anti-trust approvals in place, Cisco's acquisition of the Norwegian manufacturer can go through. 

To win the EC's blessing, Cisco agreed to enhance interoperability between its multi-screen video conferencing offerings and those of competitors. Regulators in Europe and in the United States voiced particular concern about a loss of competition in telepresence technology, which is a form of "immersive" video conferencing that can generate life-sized images, making teleconferencing feel almost like "being there."  

Cisco must divest to an independent body its TelePresence Interoperability Protocol (TIP) and the open source software used by those who implement TIP. The company must provide royalty-free information on how it implements the protocol to promote interoperability between its systems and competitors'. Europe also is requiring Cisco to appoint an independent monitor to watch over the company's regulatory commitments.

The Justice Department said that the "evolving nature of the videoconferencing market" makes the deal between two of the largest player not anti-competitive. It is expected that greater use of open standards and greater interoperability among vendors' competing products will make video conferencing more widely deployed.

Even as it was championing its regulatory approvals Monday, Cisco announced that Bank of America is about to install the largest Cisco TelePresence system to date.  Bank of America will deploy 200 conferencing units worldwide this year to "enhance associate and team effectiveness."

For more information:
- see the European Commission announcement
- see the U.S. Department of Justice announcement
- see the Cisco press release on regulatory approvals
- see the Cisco press release on Bank of America TelePresence system

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