SAN JOSE, Calif. - October 25, 1999 - Cisco Systems, Inc. today announced the Cisco IP/VC product family, a videoconferencing solution providing a reliable, easy-to-manage, cost-effective foundation for deploying next-generation Internet Protocol (IP)-based videoconferencing solutions while preserving legacy investments.
The new IP/VC product family comprises the IP/VC 3510 multipoint control unit (MCU), the IP/VC (H.320-to-H.323) 3520 and 3525 videoconferencing gateways, the IP/VC 3530 video terminal adapter (VTA) and the Cisco Multimedia Conference Manager (MCM), an H.323 gatekeeper/proxy. This IP/VC family is compatible with H.323-compliant endpoints, whether they are desktop units or room-based systems, from a variety of vendors.
Combining leading-edge technology from Cisco and RADVision, Inc., the new product family dramatically expands Cisco's position in the IP video market. Cisco believes real-time communications over the Internet, as supported by the ITU H.323 standard, is ready for business-critical communications because of a trend toward integrating data, voice and video on a single IP infrastructure as well as an increase in cost-effective bandwidth. This announcement continues to build upon Cisco AVVID (Architecture for Voice, Video and Integrated Data), launched in September 1999.
"Videoconferencing technologies have been undergoing dramatic changes over the last few years," said industry analyst Alena Carroll from Frost & Sullivan, a market research firm following the industry. "The integration of videoconferencing with the PC and the Internet world is rapidly changing the marketplace, based on recently developed standards such as H.323. The customer interest in the internetworking technologies is growing fast, and Cisco is well-positioned to take advantage of this promising market."
Videoconferencing is already being used by companies to cut costs and improve productivity in a number of ways, including virtual meetings and online training. It's also taking root in education, primarily in e-learning. Frost and Sullivan expects the market for videoconferencing products and services to triple between now and 2005.
"As customers migrate to multiservice networks they want to consolidate their data, voice and video traffic, and they are looking to Cisco to play a leading role in providing complete solutions," said Jack Bradley, general manager of the Cisco Video Internet Services Unit. "To boost productivity and cut costs, customers are moving beyond e-mail and the Web to more interactive and personal communications, like IP-based videoconferencing."
Cisco IP/VC adds a scalable, reliable and manageable solution set to Cisco AVVID, which is a flexible, standards-based architecture for integrating voice and video traffic on a data infrastructure. By deploying a complete solution with Cisco AVVID, customers can implement Internet-based business models while achieving a lower total cost of ownership for the overall network.
The Cisco IP/VC solution includes the:
- Cisco IP/VC 3510 multipoint control unit (MCU). It allows participants in multiple locations to join a videoconference with full, real-time interactivity. The IP/VC 3510 supports 15 simultaneous sessions, and offers video, voice and T.120 data collaboration.
- Cisco IP/VC 3520 and IP/VC 3525 videoconferencing gateways and systems that let users connect IP-based H.323 videoconference endpoints to installed ISDN-based H.320 systems. The products offer BRI, V.35 and PRI interfaces to the switched network.
- Cisco IP/VC 3530 video terminal adapter (VTA), a self-contained unit that connects a single H.320 room-based system to an IP-based H.323 network. It allows companies to protect their legacy investments while implementing new H.323-based multimedia networks.
- Cisco Multimedia Conference Manager (MCM) software, an H.323 gatekeeper and proxy. The MCM provides videoconference control and bandwidth management functions, and implements QoS for conferences running over a WAN. MCM, which is part of the Cisco IOSR feature set, runs on a variety of Cisco routers, including the Cisco 2500, 2600, 3600, 7200 platforms, plus the MC3810 multi-service access concentrator.
Pricing and Availability
List price for the Cisco IP/VC Multipoint Control Unit is U.S. $19,950. The Cisco IP/VC 3520 Gateway ranges from U.S. $9,890 to $10,640, and the Cisco IP/VC 3525 lists for U.S. $29,450. The Cisco IP/VC 3530 VTA is priced at U.S. $4,350. The Cisco MCM is a Cisco IOS. image that can be purchased as an upgrade, starting at U.S. $2,300, or as a standard software feature, starting at U.S. $3,100. All products are now available and ready for shipment within 30 days.
Cisco Systems
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