Today's corporations are constantly seeking more efficient methods of
operation. Many have found that enhancing their communications
infrastructure by incorporating collaboration and videoconferencing
applications will provide important benefits. These include improved
employee productivity, accelerated business processes and a reduction in the
cost of real-time, face-to-face interaction.
VCON's revolutionary Media Xchange Manager(MXM), a software-based solution,
combined with a network of IP-based videoconferencing endpoints, MCUs and
gateways, provides all the tools necessary to exploit the full potential of
face-to-face interactive communications over any distance. It is finally
possible for a company to deploy dozens to thousands of endpoints at a
relatively low cost, and allow for centralized management, administration
and billing, with a host of features never before available.
What is the Media Xchange Manager?
The MXM is a suite of integrated client/server applications and services
which provide the network administrator with the tools to manage, administer
and monitor videoconferencing endpoints on their networks from a remote
console. Users will have access to functionality and ease-of-use never
before available at the desktop or conference room.
MXM Supports a Multi-Vendor Environment
VCON understands that in order to be deployed enterprise-wide,
videoconferencing technology must support a multi-vendor environment. Many
large enterprises already have some combination of videoconferencing
endpoints and network infrastructure components produced by various vendors.
The MXM is designed to work seamlessly in a multi-vendor environment,
allowing the enterprise to continue using its pre-existing equipment. Users
of non-VCON equipment can finally enjoy the centralized management,
administration, configuration services, and features that were never
previously available to them. By migrating functionality and control to a
network server, large quantities of IP video endpoints can be deployed with
greater manageability and functionality than ever before.
As an example, MXM's distinctive multi-vendor platform simplifies dialing
both internally and externally. Dialing both internally and externally is
not easy in an IP network. The user must know an IP address for internal
calls, and then in order to make calls externally through the ISDN network
they need to know the dialing syntax information for each type of Gateway
they may utilize.
No longer, MXM simplifies both internal and external dialing and makes it
work just like a PBX. Think about how a business user makes telephone calls
today. If they wish to dial internally, they simply dial an extension
number. If they are dialing an outside party, they dial "9" and the
telephone number. Now with MXM a user can simply "map" their
videoconferencing extension number to the IP address so that their
videoconferencing number is the same as their telephone extension.
Additionally, the MXM simplifies Gateway dialing by freeing end users from
the need to know the type and location of the Gateway system through which
they are dialing. They simply dial "9" and the outside number. The MXM does
all of the prefix and suffix insertions making it easy on the caller. In
this sense, the MXM becomes a universal interface, making videoconferencing
as user-friendly as dialing a simple telephone number through their PBX.
Quality of Service (QoS)
Today's business environment requires that companies utilize technology to
enhance and optimize productivity. The MXM will boost enterprise efficiency
via a variety of innovative features. When an organization increases the
number of videoconferencing endpoints across it's enterprise, it risks
over-utilizing existing bandwidth. While it may be possible to increase
overall bandwidth, this is a costly solution. A less expensive alternative
is to more efficiently manage available bandwidth. Not all users require the
same Quality of Service (QoS) and the MXM's set of policy services ensures
that those enterprise users who most need bandwidth are able to access it
equally, over time.
Ease of Scalability
VCON recognizes that not all organizations may be able to outfit their
entire enterprise network with advanced videoconferencing capabilities from
the outset. For those that prefer to initially provide the technology to a
select group and to later expand their use of the technology based on the
success of the system and the organization's available funding, the MXM
provides an ease of scalability rarely encountered. The MXM software-based
license key upgrade allows an enterprise to plan a gradual deployment of
videoconferencing endpoints without requiring complicated installation of
new MXM software to support additional users. This ease of scalability puts
the enterprise in control of all decisions relating to how and when to
expand their videoconferencing capabilities.
