Palo Alto, Calif. - HP has established a new category
in videoconferencing with the introduction of HP SkyRoom, affordable,
high-definition videoconferencing software that offers live, real-time
collaboration for instant face-to-face meetings with no subscription
fees.
HP SkyRoom is based on breakthrough video and image communication technology developed in HP Labs, the company's central research arm. Elements of this technology were used by NASA's Mars rovers to transfer high-resolution images back to Earth.
HP SkyRoom is the only videoconferencing tool to offer real-time collaboration for up to four people over a standard business network for $149 - less than the cost of round-trip airfare from San Francisco to Los Angeles.
Until now, companies have had few options for videoconferencing - expensive enterprise telepresence systems or Internet freeware tools that strip out the subtleties of human interactions and don't allow for the sharing of rich media content such as video and computer-aided design manipulation.
HP SkyRoom will be included as a standard feature -- at no cost -- on select HP business desktop and mobile workstations and for free for a trial period on many upcoming HP premium business PCs and notebooks. HP SkyRoom can be used on workstations or PCs from Dell, Lenovo or Sun that meet minimum technology requirements. Companies now have the power to change the economics of travel and reduce their carbon footprint while preserving the value of personal human interaction.