As the time necessary to reach the other side of the globe reduced, globalization became more than a phenomena. People started to share ideas and news, economy and culture of distant countries integrated, and technology started to spread more rapidly. Globalization demanded faster and realistic communication, and as the cost of display and high speed Internet reduced, video conferencing became a faithful channel of groupware.
History
The very first Video Conference was established with the invention of the television.Analog Video Conference used two separate closed-circuittelevision systems connected with cables for news reporting andon satellites.However, this technology could not become the standard form of communication because of the high cost, big machines, and low quality of the video. When digital telephony transmission networks became available in 1980s, the first commercial Video Conferencing system from PictureTel Corp. was sold to companies. It was early 1990s when a better video compression technology was developed with the
foundation of the IP (Internet Protocol). With the new video compression technology, laptop-based and desktop-based Video Conferencing came into the market. Finally, in 2000, video calling started to gain a public face using free Internet-based softwares such as Skype, iChat, and MSN.Impact of Video Conferencing
Reasonable cost of high speed Internet, development of high resolution and small displays, and improvement of video camera and speaker qualities have made video calling and conference more available to the public. Engineers and Designers’ streamline models of cellular phones, webcams, and laptops gave the public an alternative. For friends and family who are far apart, video calling is a great alternative that is used to ease their longing for each other. Video calling has also proved its convenience in commuting visual information to others.Apple’s release of iPhone 4 this summer has been an issue from a year ago when the information about its new features slipped. One of the features that brought the most attention was video calling, which makes phone calls more interactive and fun. Video calling let us have conversations with people in distant like in person and share what we see. Apple released iPhone 4 with a very effective slogan, “This changes everything. Again” and “Phone calls like you’ve never seen before”. True to its slogan, video calling using cellular phone has once again changed everything.
Visual information is especially useful for differently abled persons. People who have difficulty hearing and speaking rely on sign language to communicate with others. As such, video conferencing has been a special interest to them. Video Conferencing, with the fluidity of information, has enabled differently abled persons to communicate more easily than previously offered Video-Relay Services. Multilingual Sign Language Interpreters can also converse in distant with mute and deaf parties when there are no on-site translators.
Video conferencing brings more effective education over the Internet. Over 1 billion Internet users around the world connect to the web for information. Internet surfing became a part of our daily routine, and abrupt disconnection must be profoundly unsettling. Wikipedia and other online scholarly paper search engines are usually helpful, but video conferencing offers something more, as clearly articulated explanation is easier to comprehend than a long passage full of information. Using video conferencing, home schooling students or underprivileged students can benefit by enrolling in free online tutoring services that are offered by most universities. Video conferencing allows educators and students in different locations to connect to each other. Two-way communication is essential in education, and video conferencing solves all ambiguousness caused by stacks of written information.
Video conferencing also connects health and medication providers, like doctors and nurses, with the patients. This technology is also called telemedicine. With the help of video conferencing, patients can receive diagnosis, consulting from doctors local and abroad. Whether it is a routine checkup or an emergency, it has become easier for the patients to receive help.Business partners use video conferencing to share ideas and make presentations of their progress. Business partners doing short term and long term project have to share information about how the project is being progressed through meetings. When business partners are in different countries, it is easier to do so through video conferencing instead of travelling abroad each time.
For the past few years UCC (User Created Content) has been a big trend in Korea. UCC is easy to create using digital cameras, webcams, and video cameras installed in cellular phones. UCC makers do not have a specific age range, and there are no specific subjects. UCC websites are similar to YouTube. Now, with the help of Video Conferencing technology, broadcasting in real time is made easy. People can broadcast what they are doing, where they are, and what is happening in real time. And this is one of the most attractive aspects of Video Calling. You can share important moments with your family or share what you see with friends far away.
Problems
Video Conferencing is one of those miracles that have more room to grow. The current technology of Video Conferencing is limited. Although the Multipoint Control Unit allows people at more than two remote points to connect, Video Conferencing only provides audio and video data to the users. All presentation material must be sent to each person beforehand so that everyone can have it open on his or her own computer. One other misleading thing about Video Conferencing is eye contact. Most video cameras attached or installed on a computer or a phone is above the screen. Consequently, the users naturally look at the screen to see the other party or themselves. Sometimes lack of eye contact can give a very misleading impression that the other person is not paying attention. Furthermore, Video Conferencing makes most people become appearance sensitive. Although Video Conferencing is easily available to the public, the psychological pressure of being video streamed has prevented Video Conferencing from becoming more commonly used.
Future of Video Conferencing
The future of Video Conferencing is still bright. With the development of Smart TV, the problem with launching and annotating on presentation materials in real time will be solved. Moreover, engineers are researching and developing a virtual world, and video conferencing will be a part of it. Sooner or later, all surfaces will become a display surface with small cameras installed. We will be able to talk to people in 3D and real size in just a tap. When Haptics technology further develops, we will be able to see, hear, touch, and maybe even smell the other side of the world.Conclusion
The exponential growth of technology seems to make everything thought as magical in the past possible, with exception of time travelling. We are no longer amazed by the spectacle of our voice dispersing to others on the other side of the globe. Now, our figure dematerializes in this room and reappears in another room. Portable phones and computers have become daily necessities, and using internal cameras and microphones, regular phone calls using just audio can be replaced with phone calls using both audio and video. Integration of high speed Internet and video camera brought us a whole new dimension: dissolution of distance and warping of time.
Reference
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videoconferencing
2.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_video_telecommunication_services_and_product_brands
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