The move to the desktop
Aside from multiple participants on the screen at once, with a moderator having control, he noted that line-of-sight adjustments are not yet available at the lower end. Shimmin said these trends indicate the gap between free video calling, which now is available in high definition, and the high-end telepresence setups used by some hd cables companies is “narrowing.” But there are still some differences. In addition to Skype’s move upward to high definition, and Cisco’s move to the desktop, he noted peripheral maker Logitech’s acquisition last month of LifeSize Communications, which has more than 9,000 video-conferencing customers who use the technology in large enterprises, small to midsize businesses, and nonprofit and government organizations.