Personal Telepresence is an OxymoronPersonal Telepresence is an Oxymoron

Today I received a press release from Tandberg letting me know that the company has shipped "10,000 Personal Telepresence Units"; itgoes on to note that the numbers show "rapidly growing interest in telepresence use beyond the meeting room and onto individual desktops." Meanwhile, Cisco today announced its own line of "personal" telepresence systems, the Cisco TelePresence System 500. All of which is good news for video conferencing, but it highlights a key misconception in the market: Telepresence isn't personal.At Frost & Sullivan, we think the most critical part of any telepresence system is that it deliver an immersive experience. That's accomplished by multiple screens, cameras and microphones, strategically placed in a purpose-designed room where attention is paid to the smallest detail, include the color of the paint on the wall. The goal is to make it truly feel as though every one is in the same room.No matter how clear its audio and video quality, a desktop video conferencing unit can't deilver that kind of all-encompasing environment. Which isn't to say its not a useful thing, or that high-definition video conferencing isn't changing the experience for all. But it isn't telepresence.