When someone calls a meeting at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, it’s not unusual to find people rushing past conference rooms as they head to their PCs. During the past couple of years, the Blacksburg, Va.-based university has begun shifting many of its business and academic gatherings to the virtual world of Web teleconferencing. "It’s a tool we use to broaden participation and provide convenience," says Patricia Jackson, Virginia Tech’s associate vice president of IS and computing. "Why bring everyone to a central location when a videoconference provides the same benefits at a lower cost?"

Virginia Tech isn’t the only organization nurturing an interest in teleconferencing. Although teleconferencing has existed in one form or another for more than 30 years, costly equipment, installation and connectivity services have hampered widespread adoption. But a new generation of inexpensive Web-driven teleconferencing technologies, widely available low-price broadband connections and a renewed corporate interest in cost cutting have begun to push teleconferencing into the spotlight.

The market for Web-based teleconferencing services in the United States is projected to skyrocket from $62 million in 2000 to $238.6 million in 2003, according to Frost & Sullivan, a technology market research company in San Jose, Calif. "When organizations look at what’s available today, they realize that teleconferencing has moved beyond being just a supercharged conference call," says David Alexander, a teleconferencing industry analyst at Frost & Sullivan. But Alexander admits that teleconferencing technology is still far from perfect. It remains encumbered by shaky software, lingering bandwidth constraints and unpredictable connections. "But a growing number of firms are beginning to see enough potential in the technology that they’re willing to accept the risks in order to reap the benefits," he says.

New Technologies

An array of sophisticated technologies such as streaming video, document sharing and instant messaging?tools that enhance productivity and make online sessions more like a real meeting?have transformed teleconferencing. Virginia Tech, for example, gives each of its conference participants Vigo?a self-contained, five-pound teleconferencing system that includes a speaker, a detachable video camera with built-in microphone, a speaker tower, a headset, a USB hub and software. When plugged in to a PC, the $1,200 unit can transmit real-time video over an IP network. Polycom offers a similar product. The company’s ViaVideo is a $600 USB-based teleconferencing station that supports voice, video and data communication. "These personal devices allow workers to conveniently participate from their own offices rather than a conference room," says Christine Perey, president of Perey Research & Consulting, a teleconferencing market research company in Placerville, Calif.