Addressing growing demand for enterprise video and telepresence solutions and adding to the industry’s broadest visual communication portfolio, Polycom, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCM) announced the Polycom Converged Management Application™ (CMA™) designed to dramatically simplify the deployment and management of enterprise video networks and the use of desktop, group and telepresence solutions for users. A key component of the solution is CMA Desktop™, a tightly integrated enterprise desktop video application capable of supporting high definition (HD) video, voice and content while scaling to thousands of users across an organization.
Polycom CMA and CMA Desktop further the Polycom VC2 vision of video as a pervasive component of unified communication in the enterprise – enabling people to call anyone, anywhere, anytime from any device. The new solutions provide the foundation for future, enhanced integration with Polycom strategic unified communications partners, including Avaya, IBM, Microsoft and Nortel.
“Our customers are using video and telepresence more frequently and broadly to promote faster decision-making and improved knowledge transfer; streamline operations and improved organizational productivity; and to reduce costs and carbon emissions associated with travel,” said Joe Sigrist, senior vice president and general manager of video solutions at Polycom. “Part of Polycom’s comprehensive solution for enterprise visual communication, the Polycom CMA and CMA Desktop will help our customers to confidently and cost-effectively extend the productivity-enhancing benefits of video and telepresence throughout their organizations while providing additional benefits and return on investment from previous installed Polycom products.”
Comprehensive Video Network Management
Polycom CMA is a comprehensive video network management solution that vastly improves a customer’s ability to simply and securely deploy, provision and manage extensive visual communication devices across their organization. Polycom CMA gives IT leaders control of all desktop, group and telepresence visual communication systems, as well as video call activity across their distributed enterprise network. CMA helps to streamline workflows through centralized management of conferences, devices and systems and provides gatekeeping, scheduling and directory management. IT administrators can automate software updates and establish policy-based provisioning of endpoint and infrastructure capabilities, as well as manage bandwidth based on network topology, business requirements and operational needs.
CMA supports hardware and software endpoints (desktop, group, telepresence) and infrastructure systems (bridges, recording and streaming servers, etc.) and is designed to seamlessly integrate with IT best practices, policies and existing directories. For example, CMA supports Active Directory and LDAP/H.350 directory services, offers integrated scheduling through Microsoft Outlook, IBM Lotus Notes or a web interface, and supports standards-based provisioning through XML and standards-based presence through XMPP. Secure conferencing is ensured through AES media encryption and TLS certificates for secure signaling.
To help simplify the use of video and telepresence solutions, Polycom CMA allows Polycom video devices to share presence information as a part of user contact lists (desktop, group and telepresence) either on their endpoint or within the CMA Desktop application. Users simply click on the name to launch a call. All call specifications are provisioned based on profiles previously defined by the IT administrator.
Scalable Desktop Video Collaboration
Polycom CMA Desktop is a highly scalable, PC-based desktop video software application that allows users to create contact lists from a corporate directory and then easily launch video calls by clicking on contacts. The application allows users to see presence details (i.e. online, offline, available, busy, etc.) for software and hardware video devices and then easily connect to other users, or other standards-based video conferencing systems, including personal, room and immersive telepresence solutions. It supports standards-based, high-quality visual communications previously unavailable in a desktop video application, including support for HD video, HD voice and multimedia content (H.239 content sharing) including presentations, videos and images in full, native resolution.
Because Polycom CMA Desktop is a tightly integrated component of the Polycom CMA management application, it gives administrators unprecedented control over desktop video on their network. Previously, desktop video applications were often deployed as individual software clients that operated with limited management control over activity or bandwidth usage. With Polycom CMA Desktop, IT administrators can use standard Microsoft Installer (MSI) file to deploy the client across their campus or can send out as a simple download. This allows IT administrators to apply policy-based provisioning for desktop video as part of a common, centralized management application just as they do for other video solutions.
“The ability to centrally monitor and manage systems installed throughout the world is a key part of a successful, high performance videoconferencing environment,” said Ira Weinstein, partner and analyst at Wainhouse Research. “Polycom’s CMA and CMA Desktop offerings provide the basic set of tools that IT managers need to scale their desktop, group, and telepresence-capable videoconferencing deployments cost-effectively and efficiently.”
Links to additional related information:
» Whitepaper – Scalable Infrastructure for Distributed Video
Pricing and Availability
Polycom CMA, which includes seat licenses that can be used for endpoints, infrastructure and CMA Desktop, is planned for availability in October with a starting MSRP of US$20,000. Polycom solutions are available through certified Polycom channel partners.
About Polycom
Polycom, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCM) is the global leader in telepresence, video, and voice solutions and a visionary in communications that empower people to connect and collaborate everywhere. Please visit www.polycom.com for more information.
Polycom reserves the right to modify future product plans at any time. Products and/or related specifications referenced in this press release are not guaranteed, and will be delivered on a when and if available basis.
Polycom and the Polycom logo are registered trademarks, and Converged Management Application and CMA are trademarks of Polycom in the U.S. and various countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ©2008, Polycom, Inc. All rights reserved.
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