Smoking Hot Technology

The topic du jour in the leisure and hospitality space is currently the smoking ban, coming in to effect on 1st July 2007: many people in the sector are either turkeys, running around, manically achieving nothing and bemoaning the new legislation, whilst the ostriches are sticking their heads in the sand, blindly hoping that the problem will go away.

The smart ones, however, seize the opportunity to compete to set themselves apart from their competitors. They embrace the changes and create a competitive advantage through innovation.

They're already showing Sky Sports in the bar and they have a garden where people can smoke after July 1st. Why not combine the two? The visionaries are adding a pagoda outside, and patio heaters - why not a screen too?

Flatscreen technology has evolved. We're now installing outdoor, ingress-protected screens that are completely weatherproof, coupled with weatherproof speakers. The screens have a hard coating to protect against accidental damage and a secure mounting to prevent theft. For peace of mind, an insurance product is available too.

Those that really get it are installing now. As one said,

"I'm not waiting until the start of the football season. I want customers to be coming in all summer, knowing I've got an outdoor screen so that when the football season starts, they'll be back".

Wise words indeed. Otherwise, you missed your opportunity, your profit is being drunk at the pub down the road that saw an opportunity and grabbed it with both hands.

Media Distribution

Running good quality video and audio distribution is expensive, right? Getting that Sky content around your Hotel, Gym or Pub has got to be a royal pain in the neck, and really complicated, surely?

Not guilty on all counts.

The MediaStar range creates a versatile set of kit to distribute a number of video sources to any number of screens, and even control the boxes remotely; hell, this is so simple, you could use it at home, and many do.

The system dispenses with the defacto, ageing coaxial cabled solution that is fast becoming extinct as viewers demand better quality images and audio. It uses CAT5 cabling (or upward if you'd prefer).

Don't panic: this isn't IPTV. It's not going to take up huge amounts of bandwidth on your precious IP network. It merely uses CAT5 as a medium to carry the content.

This, of course, is another manifestation of the convergence taking place in the IT and AV spaces. It takes a different kind of knowledge and experience than a typical AV install.

And whilst we're talking about convergence, this handles any video source: you could even integrate CCTV cameras in to it, and see the images on any screen, screens that might include the PCs on your network, for example.

I know the question you're asking yourself. There's too much of a buzz around it to not be thinking, 'what about HD?'. Well, the standard install doesn't cater for it, but there is a product that will distribute HD, and this is IPTV. It will convert video and audio content to data, distribute it across your LAN, convert it back and present it on the screen in all it's glory. The question here is, is your LAN man enough for the job?

It's a great delivery medium that produces good quality, distributed video and is scalable. What more could you need?

The World is Flat, After All

Perception is a wonderful thing, isn't it? Yes it's fine, until you want to change it, to get some out of their paradigm. Take flat screen technology, for example:

I learned recently that even within a manufacturer's product range, consumer units differ vastly to commercial units. Yes, really. Even to the point, I was surprised to learn, that they use different technologies to support greater use, reliability and life expectancy. It's a totally different unit in many cases.

The difficulty is, there are to many companies on the web 'shifting tin'. Buying a box, adding a 4% margin, and don't actually have a clue what they are selling. And usually, the customer doesn't really understand what they are buying either. It's a transaction that in many cases can never end in happiness. The customer expects champagne service for beer money, and the vendor either can't afford to give it, or is just not interested in providing it.

It is common for manufacturers to specifically exclude commercial use of their consumer plasma and LCD panels from the warranty. That cheap unit from boxshifters.com falls over after three months, and you're going to have a fight on your hands to get it repaired or replaced, let alone as quick as you'd expect. And all that time, you've got a blank screen in your reception or in your bar - how does that make your business look?

If you're going to do it, do it right. You'll pay a bit more, but the increase in value is significant. I've heard far too many horror stories in far too short a period of time to recommend anything else.

Didn't we have a lovely time the day we went to Sony

Impressive. If I had to use one word to describe Sony's Video Conferencing technology, that's the word I'd use. The technology has moved on significantly since I last looked at it, now representing a real alternative to stacking up those air miles or spending four hours driving up and down the M6 or the M1.

I have always been a big fan of 'pressing the flesh' and face to face meetings with customers, but always get frustrated with car travel in particular; it always feels like 'dead time' when I could be doing something else. My time is such a precious commodity these days.

The range of product is good, with integration across its breadth, allowing implementation across a group to accommodate up to eight screens in a Head Office boardroom, for example, and then midrange meeting room systems in satellite offices and right down to desktop systems for remote workers.

Sony has done its homework and come a long way in a few short years. The most impressive part for me though, as ever, is the people part. Sony get it. And the product specialists really know their stuff, inspiring confidence in the product range, but more importantly in the after-sales support.

I particularly liked the integration of computer based outputs; 'death by PowerPoint' is still a very real possibility, unfortunately. Sony's IP CCTV range can also be integrated in to the network too, which presents some good opportunities for corporate and the SME.

So what do you really want from Video Conferencing? Arrive in your meeting room, power it up, make the call(s), have your meeting and then leave. With the right configuration, Sony's kit makes this a reality; if you can use a phone and a PC, then this is a doddle.

Is Video Conferencing an alternative to 'pressing the flesh' and meeting new clients in their own environment? No. But as a viable proposition for internal meetings and those project meetings with existing clients, it's a no-brainer and very easy to justify a business case for it.