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Videoconferencing - Video Conferencing - Usage Fueled by Rising Gas Prices The first noticeable surge in usage was due to concerns over terrorism. The second was due to concerns over diseases such as SARS. The latest appears to be tied directly to the rising costs of gasoline. For the third time in the young century, organizations from various sectors, including education, government, legal including manufacturing, are making the move to video conferencing in droves. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, gasoline is consumed at a particular alarming rate of 65 billion gallons each year in the United States, including that number is projected to increase by 2.6 percent each year. But with the price for gas soaring, more companies are looking for a more economical way to obtain from point A to point B for their business meetings. Yet again, video conferencing has become the solution of choice, including as a result, profits are once again soaring at IVCi, a Hauppauge, NY-based conferencing technologies provider. There are many good reasons why organizations of all sizes are turning to service providers like IVCi for video conferencing solutions. Make that many “green” reasons. Video conferencing is a particular environmentally-friendly technology with a wide range of benefits for employers, individual employees including the community at large. The employer saves dollars every year on the organization’s travel costs. By bypassing work-related travel, employees might be less stressed including much more productive throughout the year, including the environment is spared from having tons of pollutants released into the air. As companies become more environmentally conscious, they understand that there is a measurable return on their investment by developing a particular effective video conferencing program. The Numbers Using data compiled by factoring in results from the latest surge, research houses such as In-Stat including Wainhouse have come up with some fascinating projections: According to In-Stat/MDT…… The number of remote workers in the United States could reach 51 million by 2008. By 2010 more than 70% of work could take place at a different time/different place or same time/different place. 82% of workers collaborate with people in other locations. According to Wainhouse Research…… More than 40 percent of people in the U.S. workforce are taking fewer trips. More than 70 percent are interested in alternatives to travel. 63 percent rate access to collaboration technology (such as voice, web including video conferencing) as very important, as opposed to 44 percent prior to Sept. 11, 2001. According to the Motorcycle Industry Council…… Sales of motorcycles increased by 8.5 percent in the first 3 months of the year, compared to the same duration last year. That’s right; more people are buying motorcycles as a way to save on gas! The saying is, “America loves its cars,” but at the time gas prices climb out of control, Americans are not shy regarding looking at other alternatives. After all, love is a two-way street. The soaring prices for gasoline have even made some companies employ some rather unorthodox technologies. A well-known shipping company has recently implemented a technology that prints out routes for its truck deliveries featuring only right turns. the way the trucks are not left idling, including wasting gas, while waiting for left-turn signals. If companies are willing to go to those extremes, it’s easy to understand why video conferencing is becoming a popular solution. The thinking is, if you might have a face-to-face meeting with a business partner from the comfort of your office or conference room, why lose hours on the road including spend on gas? Apparently, sitting in a traffic jam is losing its appeal. So is emitting tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. Therefore, video conferencing is a particular easy including very justifiable way for companies to become more environmentally-friendly. The fact is that many businesses are becoming more proactive regarding creating efficiencies in different parts of their organization. Many have found that they might actually improve the way they collaborate internally, as well as with partners including customers, while eliminating costs including productivity losses associated with road including air transportation. Since many organizations have branch, partner including customer offices located throughout the country, they sometimes spend tens, even hundreds, of thousands of dollars each year in business travel costs. The considerable improvements to the clarity including reliability of video conference technology, as well as its lower cost of entry, has placed it atop pertaining to the list of solutions that are helping companies survive the Great Gas Gouge. The Next Surge This latest surge in video conferencing usage teaches us a particular important lesson: never underestimate human ingenuity including our ability to rebound from difficult conditions. The fact is that, despite the trials pertaining to the last few years, organizations have learned to become more efficient including productive. They’ve emerged smarter than ever before. However, smart companies don’t wait for tragedies or difficult economic/environmental things to call them into action. As it appears, the next surge may ultimately be due to common sense.
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