AV News March 2022

The direct channel to the industry

March 2022 www.avnewsonline.com Page 14

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Workplace requirements, now?

HYPERVSN SmartV Novelty attracts a premium in digital signage, with leading brands frequently among those willing to explore the potential of innovative new technologies.

With the growing understanding of the latest coronavirus variant and the resulting relaxation of social measures to limit the spread of the virus.

Promethean ActivPanel Remains Global Market Leader for Interactive Displays The critical need for investment in the future of education continues to drive demand and increase Promethean’s ActivPanel market share Promethean continues to be a global leader for Interactive Flat Panel Displays (IFPD) technology, according to Futuresource Consulting’s Q4 2021 report on the World IFPD market. As education systems continue to navigate new COVID-19 variants and a larger shift back to in-person learning models, the demand for IFPD continued to increase for the last quarter of 2021.

Excluding sales in China, Promethean was the global K-12 education sector IFPD market leader from 2018 to 2021 collectively. From January to December 2021, Promethean achieved a 23.0% volume share of the total IFPD market.

In that same 12-month time period, Promethean remained the number one brand in the United States, United Kingdom & Ireland and took the lead in Germany. Most recently, in Q4 2021, the company held a strong lead in the United Kingdom and Ireland, achieving a 32.8% market share of the interactive flat panel display market.

As most transitioned back to the classroom, Promethean continued to partner with schools to provide a seamlessly integrated solution that includes interactive displays, teaching software, professional development, and support.

Promethean’s ActivPanel is designed to engage students, spark imaginations, and create aha moments. The ActivPanel includes Promethean’s lesson delivery software ActivInspire and ClassFlow, which provides

interactive lessons, activities, quizzes, and thousands of immersive resources, no matter the learning environment. Promethean’s 25-year tradition of designing products with teacher input has allowed the company to create innovative tools that make a lasting impact and continue to evolve with the classroom.

“As education systems in diverse communities settle back

into in-person learning, Promethean remains committed to providing a superior learning experience and the highest level of support to educators, students, and administrators,” said Chris Hand, Chief Revenue Officer at Promethean. “Emerging from a transformative time in education, Promethean is proud of the partnerships we made to deliver Interactive Displays to schools globally.”

Exterity rebrands as VITEC Exterity is now officially VITEC, marking a key milestone in the successful integration of both companies following the acquisition of Exterity in April 2021.

VITEC is a market-leading provider of IPTV, Video Streaming and Digital Signage Solutions that helps organisations harness the power of video to engage, empower and evolve.

The strengthened organisation will continue to deliver a wide range of best-in-class solutions across its markets, leveraging the expertise of the combined teams to best serve customers and partners around the globe.

The move has been further signified by new branding, incorporating the distinctive Exterity orange into the VITEC logo, giving a fresh new look to accompany the change.

“Since the acquisition, a lot of work has been going on behind the scenes – integrating business processes, gaining deeper

understanding of the combined product range, and bringing our teams together,” says Colin Farquhar, Senior Vice President of Sales at VITEC and former Exterity CEO. “We have been focussed on coming together as ‘one VITEC’, exploring product integrations and shared technologies to best serve our customers. We couldn’t be prouder to be part of the VITEC team, and we look forward to an exciting future.”

The combined company now has 375 employees across 16 countries, and work is ongoing towards maintaining and expanding upon the investment in Exterity staff and locations.

VITEC has acquired the previously leased Exterity HQ building in Dalgety Bay, Fife, Scotland, with a view to further expanding operations in 2022.

Furthermore, the team based in Dubai is moving to newly purchased premises in the Indigo

oped strongly, in areas such as unified communications, video conferencing, security and networking. I believe that the combined skill sets and capabilities of Midwich and Nimans bring a unique offering into the market in terms of providing complex solutions involving multiple technologies.”

“I know that partnering with Midwich was a big decision for the owners of Nimans, and we are delighted that they chose us to continue the legacy of the Company’s founder, Julian Niman. We have known the Nimans team for many years, and I believe there is a great cultural fit between the two businesses.”

Mark Lowe, Midwich UK &

Ireland Managing Director, commented: “Great people are what make a difference in our industry, and I am therefore delighted to be welcoming the Nimans team to our Group.

There will be a great many benefits and opportunities for our vendors and customers in the coming months.”

Richard Carter, Nimans Sales Director, commented: “When we met with Midwich the cultural fit was evident from the outset and the product fit is fantastic. Combining our efforts gives us a somewhat unique positioning in the UK with our ability to offer the exciting combination of UC, AV and Security”. Paul Burn, Nimans Purchasing and Operations Di-

Midwich acquires Nimans Limited Midwich has announced it has entered a binding agreement to acquire Nimans Limited and its subsidiaries from Nycomm Holdings Limited. Nimans is a UK based specialist distributor of unified communications, telecoms, collaboration and audio visual technologies. Based near Manchester, Nimans was founded in 1981 and has built a strong presence and reputation in the UK telephony hardware market.

In recent years the business has expanded successfully into new market areas such as unified communications, VOIP solutions, security, and networking. Key brand relationships include Yealink, Jabra and BT. The Company trades

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with over 2,500 telephony, IT and retail customers and employs over 200 staff. In its latest audited financial statements, for the year ended 31 December 2020, Nimans generated consolidated revenues of £114.3 million. Completion is subject only to FCA approval and expected in the first half of 2022.

Stephen Fenby, Midwich Group Managing Director, commented: “Nimans is a long-established business with a great reputation for technical excellence, customer service and logistics competence. Its traditional telecoms market has been changing, bringing with it new revenue opportunities which the company has devel-

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Philippe Wetzel, CEO, VITEC. “We knew the many natural technology and customer synergies between the two companies would enable us to extend our reach into new geographies, market verticals and partners.”

Continued on page 3

rector, commented: “This is a really exciting development for Nimans. For our staff it opens new opportunities within a group that shares our core values and secures an exciting future. For our customers and suppliers, it gives access to new markets and opportunities that can only be a win, win for everybody”. Stephen McIntyre, Nimans Marketing Director, commented: “There are many opportunities that come from our two well respected brands operating together in our burgeoning technology sectors. I am excited at the prospect of the new areas we can take the Nimans brand into, as well as offering even more choice to our existing customers”.

Build value into your IFPD portfolio For over 20 years, Promethean has developed understanding of the edtech that will best meet evolving needs and the support that schools place a high value on.

Promethean enables schools to realise maximum value, and maximum educational impact, over the lifetime of an ActivPanel installation. Give your customers long term value with:

Free orientation training

Now available virtually, on-site as well as on-demand, customers realise value, quickly and easily.

Continued investment

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Customers can now access free training through a new online portal, Learn Promethean.

Over-the-air updates mean schools benefit from the latest ActivPanel software and firmware enhancements, at no additional cost.

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ActivInspire and ClassFlow are supplied free of charge, so no recurring subscription fees.

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A five-year ActivCare on-site warranty gives schools peace of mind. value-add offerings to drive innovation.

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Headline News

Vision bucks supply chain disruption Vision is bucking the trend for long AV product wait times, with order fulfilment performance running currently at an LIFR of 92%, the specialist producer of proAV mounts, audio and installation products has announced. LIFR metric (or Line Item Fulfil Rate) is the metric used in logistics to measure stock availability. Vision’s LIFR of 92% shows that when customers place orders, 92% of the time stock is available for immediate shipment.

“Vision has excellent levels of stock of most SKUs at present,” says Vision Director, Stuart Lockhart. “And because we are transparent on stock levels, we display how many units are available on product pages on the Vision website. Integrators cannot install products they

causing havoc for integrators and their customers,” adds Lockhart. “Long wait times (which at present can be a matter of weeks, months, even years for some AV products) introduce unwelcome delays into projects which can have a negative impact on client relationships and on sales revenue for the supplier and delay access to much-needed new technology for end-users. Having stock levels displayed on our website for everyone to see, helps everyone. Integrators can plan and deliver projects while buyers, whether they be systems integrators or their end-user customers, re able to source suitable products for their installation during project planning or to source alternatives for unavailable products.”

“Vision has excellent levels of stock of most SKUs at present,” says Vision Director, Stuart Lockhart. “And because we are transparent on stock levels, we display how many units are available on product pages on the Vision website. don’t have, so we ensure they have instant access to real time stock levels, both in Vision’s main EU warehouse and in the UK. Stock can easily be moved from the EU facility to the UK as required. Vision customers can also track future incoming stock, by viewing the active estimated time of arrival data, which updates automatically as the batch proceeds through production and shipping.”

“Supply chain disruption is

Unboxing videos are provided for many of Vision products providing a short and puff-free overview of what’s in the box and highlight key features and their applications and benefits. Vision sells its proAV installation solutions including mounts, stands, connectivity devices and audio products exclusively through channel partners and supports user and partners alike with a lifetime warranty on all products.

Continued from page 1

Exterity rebrands as VITEC Icon Tower in the DMCC Free Zone, at the centre of Jumeirah Lake Towers district. VITEC will also be looking to expand the team in the Middle East region, which it sees as a key growth market.

Early 2022, VITEC will launch its first jointly developed product; a next generation transcoder, bringing the best of Exterity and VITEC transcoder technology into the VITEC Prism transcoder product.

Prism is a high-performance IP transcoder that enables IP video content to be easily converted into the right format to suit a wide range of devices and applications.

“When we acquired Exterity, our intention was to accelerate growth and strengthen our leadership position as IPTV, video streaming and digital signage provider for Corporate, Government, Military, Venues, Hospitality, and Broadcast cus-

tomers,” says Philippe Wetzel, CEO, VITEC. “We knew the many natural technology and customer synergies between the two companies would enable us to extend our reach into new geographies, market verticals and partners. We have enjoyed the collaborative process of finding out more and learning from each other over recent months. It is clear that the strategic acquisition will be hugely beneficial, and I’m delighted that we are now all one VITEC, working together to achieve our goals.”

Björk is back After a run of large-scale residencies in the US, Mexico and Europe in 2019, Björk is back, bringing her critically-acclaimed Cornucopia tour to the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium and San Francisco’s Chase Center. As with the previous tour dates, d&b partner Southby Productions deployed a Soundscape system powered by the d&b En-Scene object-based mixing and En-Space room emulation software.

Cornucopia is based on Björk’s 2017 album Utopia, the show is directed by Lucrecia Martel and Björk with co-creative director James Merry. For Cornucopia, the end goal was to utilise sound as a creative tool to increase audience engagement and immersion. The production is that of a theatrical performance with pulsating visuals and spectacular vocals resulting in a full sensory experience for the audience.

Björk designed the show starting off with system trials in a small studio situated in a lighthouse, on a remote Nordic Island before moving to larger rehearsal spaces to experience the scalability of Soundscape.

For the West Coast shows, the team deployed a 180-degree Soundscape system to align with the size of the venues. The team also utilized a new tool, En-Snap, the result of a d&b partnership with Gareth Owen Sound. En-Snap enables a straightforward cue-based control within the d&b Soundscape environment. The software tool connects directly to the d&b

DS100 signal engine and, with a single click, stores the parameter values of all 64 sound objects and any En-Space room emulation setting as an EnSnap cue.

“Soundscape is key to giving the audience the experience they expect from a Björk show,” said Jack Blenkinsopp, System Tech for the tour. “Everything in these shows from the visuals to the stage presence, to the audio experience is quite special and Soundscape heightens the experience. There are a lot of moments in the show where we have positioned the sound objects to match their position on stage for instance the reverb chamber. It really draws the audience in towards the performance, and what is happening on stage whether that be Björk, the flutes or the choir. No other tool captures the audience so authentically like Soundscape.”

For John Gale, FoH engineer on the tour, he was focused on ensuring the smooth transfer of the system between shows.

“My biggest concern was ensuring we could scale the system, the LA venue and San Francisco venue were totally opposite, we were coming from a theatre to an arena in a short period of time, “said Gale. “Yet the system performed exactly the same. I believe no matter where you are sitting there’s really good coverage with the Soundscape experience.”

Over the last couple of years, d&b have made significant new developments to Soundscape,

An audio innovation, driven by AI, has the potential to change the game for football fans forever. The ground-breaking innovation adds spatial audio to stunning 360 video and can improve the game experience whether watching on a device at home, in the pub or out and about with friends.

With strategically placed cameras and microphones, viewers can watch the game from their chosen point of view, whether that be from behind the goal, from the halfway line or even from the corner flag. But to add to this visual experience, the microphones are cleverly mixed using AI to only pick up the sounds that matter. Whilst triangulation is used to pan the sounds to the correct places in the scene.

In addition to capturing the on-pitch sounds, special immersive audio microphones are carefully placed within the stands to provide a dynamic and immersive audio capture that can be rotated viewers change their visual perspective. That means, if someone is viewing it from behind the goal within their team’s half, they will be able to feel like they were actually in the stands at the event.

SalsaSound, the audio specialists behind the project, aim to develop an accessible experience for fans around the

globe, no matter where they are. They are a key partner in the 5G Edge-XR project, funded by the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and led by BT, alongside The Grid Factory, Condense Reality, DanceEast and the University of Bristol. Their audio technology automatically captures, mixes and renders audio using AI to create a spatialised sound that enhances immersion in the augmented and virtual reality experiences.

Rob Oldfield from SalsaSound explains exactly what this addition of spatial audio will do for a fan’s experience. “It’s often the audio that helps people buy-in to immersive experiences and having spatial audio capture from a fan's perspective, which dynamically updates as viewers customise their visual perspective, is a gamechanger. This kind of sound will help viewers and fans better engage with the content and actually feel part of the event as they take on the role of a participant rather than a passive spectator.”

5G Edge-XR looks to demonstrate how 5G and edge-based graphics rendering can be combined to support a range of high-end extended reality (XR) services that support a diverse group of industries. These sectors include dance education and sports broadcasting, alongside construction and re-

After a run of large-scale residencies in the US, Mexico and Europe in 2019, Björk is back, bringing her critically-acclaimed Cornucopia tour to the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium and San Francisco’s Chase Center. particularly within the DS100. system has cemented South“It’s great to come back to a by’s place as one of the globsystem two years later and see al specialists for Soundscape solutions.” Speaking about the they have been continuing to develop the prod- system during the European uct in the background, “said tour in 2019 Björk commentGale. “The remit from Björk ed, “We spent a lot of time was that this needed to be a making sure that there will be theatrical show and less of a synchronicity between the live pop concert and Soundscape music and the live visuals, Cortruly allowed us to achieve this. nucopia is a celebration of the Björk has been extremely hap- execution of that. I personally feel like it’s the most gorgeous py.”

The control system and stage sound that I’ve ever heard in a package for the Cornucopia room.” tour is so bespoke that South- Soundscape is an audio system by, decided to airfreight the el- platform that allows designers ements that were used on the to create high resolution sound previous European Arena run, experiences. Utilising object to California, while the main based mixing, Soundscape speaker system components enables localisation and imwere supplied by Eighth Day aging of sound objects within Sound. “Soundscape is integral the chosen sound design field. to the Cornucopia Tour, the sys- Soundscape can also modify tem is complex in its capabili- or create emulated acoustic ties, yet its flexibility and scal- signatures, both indoors and ability means we can deploy it outdoors. A d&b Soundscape all across the world,” said Chris system comprises: the DS100 Jones, Director at Southby Pro- Signal Engine, and two softductions. “Everyone is blown ware modules, En-Scene, for away by the results of Sound- object-based positioning; and scape and the popularity of the En-Space for room-emulation.

Immersive platform transforms football viewing

tail uses - creating new opportunities for the UK and global businesses and cultural sector organisations. As the spectators see and hear the game in real-time, they also have access to a virtual-reality dashboard that contains stats on the entire match. Maybe they want to check if their team has the majority of possession, or even rewind and rewatch a goal, it’s all at their fingertips. The data

is live and changes as the game progresses, allowing fans to remain in the know of the most crucial statistics.

This is all building towards sport in the metaverse where viewers will be able to watch the action live from any vantage point and do so with fans, friends, family who could be geographically anywhere in the world. It is the start of the next media revolution for live sport.

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Business News

Utelogy partners with IR

Barco announces full year results

Utelogy has announced its partnership with IR, the leading global performance management and analytics provider for critical communication and collaboration, IT infrastructure and payments ecosystems.

Utelogy customers in several ways,” said Kevin Morrison, CEO of Utelogy. “Utelogy’s expertise in remote management and monitoring of AV/UC and IoT devices in the modern workplace complements IR’s

toring and management capabilities that helps organizations deliver seamless experiences for their technology users and adds significant value to a number of different stakeholders. “New hybrid ways of work-

Headquartered in Sydney Australia, IR provides world-class insights, monitoring, and support.

The Utelogy and IR partnership plays a key role in helping organizations deliver a superior communication and collaborative experience by offering innovative solutions for the management and monitoring of video and collaboration systems in the modern workplace (meeting rooms, board rooms, meeting booths). “This strategic partnership benefits IR and

expertise in experience management for UC and collaboration ecosystems. This enables the combined solution to offer improved meeting analytics and provide greater insights into device usage and room uptime as well as increasing the customers’ ROI by providing cost savings with automated room readiness testing and self-healing functionality.”

Remote management and monitoring of these spaces expand IR Collaborate’s existing voice, video and collaboration moni-

ing require flexible, dependable collaboration solutions,” said John Ruthven, CEO of IR “This relationship between Utelogy and IR allows us to extend our expertise and deliver great collaboration experiences in the conference room, board room, and all types of collaboration spaces. Working together, we are able to provide innovative solutions that keep people connected from wherever they are, through a robust, multi-vendor experience management solution.”

Barro has announced results for the six- and twelve-month periods ended 31 December 2021.

Orders were 979 million euro, up 31 % compared to 2020, driven by solid economic recovery across all markets and all regions. Sales for the year increased 4% to 804 million euro, still reflecting ongoing effect of the pandemic on business activities and component shortages (estimated impact in 4Q21 was approximately 15 million euro).

Fourth quarter sales were 29% higher than 4Q20 reflecting increases in each business unit but still 21% below the pre-pandemic fourth quarter of 2019. At the end of 202 the orderbook was at a record level of 487 million euro.

The Entertainment division delivered good growth in both orders and sales in 2021, following a soft 2020. Both business units contributed to the year-over-year growth with Cinema showing order intake growth across all regions and sequential gains in sales. The Immersive Experience business unit recovered well, particularly in the fixed install business reflecting greater demand from museums, projection mapping and theme parks. Enterprise saw a continuation of quar-

ter-over-quarter improvements in orders as of 2Q21 in both segments. Sales rebounded toward the end of the year, fuelled by solid deliveries and deployments in both the Meeting Experience and Large Videowall segments. Orders for Healthcare reached a record high in 2021 reflecting the resumption of healthcare investments in both the diagnostic imaging and surgical market segments, while sales were flat, hampered by component shortages.

Gross profit margin for the year declined 1.1 percentage points to 35.7% due to higher component and logistics costs mainly in the second semester of 2021. As a result, with operating expenses flat with 2020, EBITDA 2021 amounted to 58.5 million euro for 7.3% EBITDA margin versus 53.6 million euro and a 7% EBITDA margin in 2020. Free cash flow for 2021 was 78 million euro compared to 36 million euro negative a year earlier, resulting mainly from better gross operating cash flow and decreased working capital.

CEOs An Steegen & Charles Beaduin commented: “2021 was a challenging year, but we saw undeniable indications of recovery in Barco’s demand across all business units and

regions attesting to the health of Barco’s end markets and strength of our leadership positions. The Barco team turned challenges into opportunities, adjusting to the impacts of the pandemic on business operations. Our new organisational structure has been established and we are already seeing the benefits in customer responsiveness and team engagement.”

“While we are still dealing with uncertainties regarding the shape and pace of market recoveries, we are starting the year with a strong orderbook, a solid balance sheet and a cost structure that gives us the flexibility to navigate the risks and opportunities ahead. As a result, we are in a good position to resume executing toward our long-term financial objectives.”

“For the first half of 2022, and assuming no further deterioration of the supply chain constraints, management expects sales to increase approximately 20% compared to 1H21. EBITDA margin is expected to be higher than the full year 2021 EBITDA margin, reflecting gradually improving gross profit margin and operating leverage on higher sales.”

Barco has further measures towards the integrated format that was kicked off last year.

The 2021 report is available on a digital platform and pro-

and sharpened our content.

The goal was to make the report even more integrated, inclusive and widely accessible than last year. We want it to be informa-

says: “What we have been doing in the past year and intend to continue in future, is to gradually make integrated thinking central in our company. This

vides a compelling and holistic view of our business’s current state, encapsulating both our financial and non-financial outcomes. Last year, Barco replaced the traditional annual financial and sustainability reports with a single integrated report, providing a more unified view of how we create and sustain value in the short, medium and long term.

“The 2020 report received positive feedback, which has motivated us to step up our efforts in 2021,” says Carl Vanden Bussche, VP Investor Relations at Barco. “We finetuned our KPIs, increased transparency,

tive and a pleasure to read, a translation of what Barco is all about today and in future.”

New this year is an integrated data pack, that covers all publicly available ESG metrics in one single document and spans the last 3 years. Next to a full review of the planet, people and communities chapter, including a first EU taxonomy disclosure, the 2021 annual report also brings a first limited assurance on a number of selected (non-financial) planet-related KPIs. Integrated reporting is a journey of continuous improvement. Carl Vanden Bussche

means that we commit to value creation in the long term and welcome all our stakeholders into the discussion. We feel that this way of working fits well with Barco, so we are satisfied with the result.”

The 2021 annual report builds further upon the Value Creation Model, based on the six Value Capitals, that was adopted in the 2020 report. At its basis lie reporting principles recommended by the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC). It also serves as a gateway to further deep dives on our corporate website.

Midwich to distribute SurgeX SurgeX has appointed Midwich Group as its exclusive partner in the UK and Ireland, with immediate effect. Midwich Group, including Midwich, Invision, PSCo and Square One will carry the entire surge elimination and UPS product range whilst its channel partners can also access an experienced product support team with a wealth of technical knowledge to assist with product specification, system infrastructure design and training to optimise performance.

Justin Peyton, Director of Sales EMEA at SurgeX, commented: “This strategic distribution agreement is great news for the SurgeX brand and for Midwich Group channel partners. Midwich sets a high standard for professional supply, service and support across its businesses in the commercial and residential markets and we are looking forward to working with them to build our brand and grow sales for our extensive range of power management solutions.”

Ross Floyd, Division Director, Midwich, commented: “We are delighted that SurgeX has named Midwich Group as their

exclusive distribution partner across UK and Ireland. We pride ourselves on the level of service we provide our channel partners, so for Justin and the SurgeX team to recognise this, is a big pat on the back to my colleagues across UK&I. We look forward to talking to our customers about the full SurgeX offering at our upcoming ‘New Tech Open House’ even.”

Mark Taylor, Commercial Director, Invision, commented: “We are thrilled to be the exclusive distributor of SurgeX to the custom install market. This is a welcome addition to our product portfolio and is the perfect choice for integrators who want

to provide the best surge protection and power management solution to their customers and their homes.”

Barco adopts integrated reporting

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Business News

Legrand signs BEAMA climate commitment As part of its ongoing support for the decarbonisation of the electrical industry, Legrand has signed BEAMA’s Climate Commitment to industrial decarbonisation and sustainable product development across the whole electrical industry.

The commitment has been made to support electrical industry professionals faced with the challenge of implementing energy efficient and sustainable solutions in buildings to meet Government targets for net zero emissions by 2050.

breadth of buildings, it is our responsibility to support professionals with energy efficient products and expertise across all sectors of construction to achieve sustainability targets.

This forms part of our wider mission of improving lives by transforming the spaces where people live, work and meet.

In signing this agreement, we want to show contractors and consultants that we are with them every step of this journey and are a trusted partner when it comes to decarbonising and

lighting control innovations in conjunction with solar panels to reduce the consumption of operations. Pascal adds: “The work at Consett represents just part of our commitment to creating a more sustainable electrical industry. Not only are we demonstrating how our own technologies can help in the energy efficiency challenge, but we are also creating environments that promote wellbeing for our own people.”

“Our mission is to improve lives, not only of clients and

Crucial to helping contractors and consultants deliver more sustainable buildings, signing this commitment is part of Legrand’s wider aim to drive sus-

futureproofing their projects.”

Beyond providing the electrical solutions and experts who can help specify and implement technologies, Legrand is also

their end users, but of our own teams of experts who are key in helping customers integrate solutions in their projects. We want our people and the wid-

tainability across the UK’s electrical installations, as its CEO Pascal Stutz, explains: “As a leading manufacturer of electrical equipment across an entire

transforming its own operations to be more sustainable. For example, the company upgraded its Consett manufacturing facility using its own energy saving

er industry to be proud to work with us, and signing the BEAMA Commitment is just part of us showing how we can drive this progress forward.”

ClickShare survey results With hybrid work – or a flexible corporate environment that enables employees to operate both remotely and in a physical office – now a permanent professional fixture, workers have come to expect new levels of flexibility. However, employees now demand even more from their hybrid work experience – namely greater meeting equity.

Simply defined, meeting equity ensures that remote employees receive the same level of engagement, collaboration and access to a meeting room experience as those who are physically seated around the table. As a new Barco ClickShare survey found, hybrid workers are growing more concerned about perceptions of an inequal and less productive meeting experience while apart from their colleagues, and many are going as far as to consider new opportunities at organizations where they believe they will be more included.

After nearly two years of famil-

dynamics. Featuring input from more than 4,000 global workers across varying occupations and locations, the Survey also captures the technical, functional, and emotional complications that have emerged across the broader hybrid work transition.

The ClickShare Hybrid Meeting Survey notes an urgency

“While our ClickShare Hybrid Meeting Survey clearly indicates that the majority of workers (80 percent) prefer the hybrid model, 71 percent still struggle with the frictions and technical challenges that come with hybrid engagement,” said Lieven Bertier, Segment Marketing Director, Workplace at Barco.

iarity with remote and hybrid work, the Barco ClickShare Hybrid Meeting Survey found that more than one-third (35 percent) of workers still have trouble fully engaging during hybrid meetings. A significant source of this disconnect emanates from a perception of oversight, as 28 percent find it difficult to have their voices heard when joining hybrid meetings from an offsite location. Twice as many remote hybrid participants (56 percent) likewise feel that meeting leaders cater too heavily to those in a physical meeting space when conducting the conversation.

“While our ClickShare Hybrid Meeting Survey clearly indicates that the majority of workers (80 percent) prefer the hybrid model, 71 percent still struggle with the frictions and technical challenges that come with hybrid engagement," said Lieven Bertier, Segment Marketing Director, Workplace at Barco. "Hybrid meetings have become the mainstay of professional collaboration, and this data spotlights an ideal opportunity for businesses to remove access barriers for remote participants and ensure that all employees feel they can perform their best from any location.”

Compiled in late 2021, the ClickShare Hybrid Meeting Survey reflects the attitudes and preferences of modern workers as business leaders adjust operational models, workspaces, and organizational cultures in alignment with evolving professional

for businesses to refine their hybrid work and meeting equity strategies. With businesses feeling the impact of The Great Resignation, Barco found that hybrid technology and flexibility no longer are simply a means of operation, but rather a differentiator in recruiting and retaining top talent. As Barco uncovered, nearly three in four workers (71 percent) say they still struggle with joining and navigating hybrid meetings.

However, these technical frustrations now appear to have a greater impact on their professional satisfaction and are potentially motivating them to explore new opportunities. Nearly one in three (30 percent) workers say they will consider a job offer from another company with a well-defined hybrid policy, which includes clear guidelines and tools for successful and efficient hybrid meeting participation.

“Our Survey reiterates that as employees' appetites for functional hybrid work continue to grow, working conditions now are just as important as salaries in attracting and retaining the best workers,” added Bertier. “For business leaders, successful hybrid work begins with establishing a formal policy – which we were surprised to learn that 60 percent of organizations still do not have – but also includes making investments that drive en-

gagement and give employees the leverage and tools to work wherever and however they like. These conversations and strategies will only grow in importance as businesses develop and execute their return-to-office plans.”

While hybrid workers are vocalizing their challenges, Barco found that the return to on-site conference rooms isn't without its own pains. More specifically, employees are still working to replicate the flexible and convenient meeting experience they've enjoyed while remote.

Though 85 percent of businesses have at least one dedicated video conferencing room in their space, only 39 percent of IT managers feel these rooms are adequately prepared for a ‘Bring Your Own Meeting’ style of work. As a result, nearly two in three (65 percent) workers have trouble mastering the differing connectivity points and laptop compatibility variables of their office's video conferencing rooms.

These frustrations also mirror the sentiments Barco captured in its latest Meeting Barometer, an ongoing, periodically-updated index of workers' satisfactions with their hybrid meeting environments.

P7 AV News March 2022

Business News

Channel support to survive the evolving security landscape Mike Foster, Channel Manager, VIPRE, explains that organisations cannot be expected to stay one step ahead of cybercriminals and adapt to new threats on their own. By partnering with an established Managed Service Provider (MSP) who can act as a trusted advisor to create a solid cyber security strategy, SMBs can benefit from the knowledge, skills and solutions available within the channel.

Security is a growing concern across every industry, particularly now with the growth of dispersed workforces around the world. Cyberattacks continue to increase and become more sophisticated, with businesses of all sizes needing to invest in the right support. This is even more crucial for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), who may lack the adequate internal resources and teams to protect themselves against such threats.

But, by partnering with an established Managed Service Provider (MSP) who can act as a trusted advisor to create a solid cyber security strategy, SMBs can benefit from the knowledge, skills and solutions available within the channel. MSPs, therefore, need to ensure they leverage this opportunity to support their end customers, while businesses crucially make the necessary investment to keep their network, data and people secure, as Mike Foster, Channel Manager, VIPRE, explains.

Mike Foster, Channel Manager, VIPRE, With businesses accelerating their digital transformation during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure business survival and continuity, there has been a knock-on effect on cybersecurity strategies, which now must be prioritised and invested in.

Over the past eighteen months, organisations have had to transition to working securely and efficiently from home, and then splitting their time between the office and remote work, in turn, creating new security challenges. This has demonstrated the crucial need for organisations to become more agile and have the ability to scale both up and down when regional rules change.

The importance of a secure and flexible workforce, one which is protected through layers of security and best practice, is key. This can be executed successfully by identifying existing weaknesses or gaps in infrastructure, which can be easily spotted by channel partners who specialise in cybersecurity. By leaning on an MSP, businesses can benefit from having access to the right support and advice, and MSPs, in turn, can offer the correct solutions to combat the challenges their clients face.

This has led to organisations

questioning issues such as; are the emergency measures put in place during the peak of the pandemic sufficient for long term secure and agile working practices? What tools do customers need to remain secure in the new modern hybrid working environment? It is clear that now is the time for businesses to reassess and build a flexible, future-proof plan.

Smaller and medium-sized businesses often do not have the resources, time or dedicated teams to focus on their AV/IT needs, while ensuring they have the right solutions in place to defend themselves against cyberattacks. They also do not think they are as much

of a target for hackers, as they may not have as much revenue or data compared to larger and more corporate organisations, with 66% believing a cyberattack would be unlikely. However, according to Accenture’s Cost of Cybercrime Study, 43% of cyberattacks are aimed at small businesses, and only 14% are prepared to defend themselves.

Instead, by partnering with an MSP who can act as an external security partner for the SMB to help them achieve cyber resilience, the pressure and responsibility of defending the

P8 AV News March 2022

business against cyber threats will lay with the expert in the channel. This creates a unique opportunity for MSPs to guide customers on their cybersecurity journey and ensure they are receiving relevant education and have the right technology and tools in place to protect the business. It also helps the MSP to differentiate themselves from the ever-growing and competitive channel market, enabling them to become trusted IT security advisors for the businesses they support.

Whether a business is big or small, investing in its cybersecurity foundations is not optional – it’s business-critical, especially in today’s threat

landscape. By identifying the gaps in their cyber needs, or allowing an MSP to make these judgments, a strong infrastructure can be built upon the businesses existing setup. These solutions can be custom-built and tailored to each individual organisation, including email and endpoint protection, ongoing end-user training, as well as access services, such as ZTNA solutions.

With security breaches showing no signs of slowing down, MSPs must be constantly vigilant and develop cyber resilience approaches that go

beyond deploying security solutions. This means having not only the market-leading technology available, but also the technical expertise to support business security plans and growth. MSPs must take a proactive role in understanding the current state of a customer’s ability to protect against, prevent and respond to modern cyber threats when recommending the best approaches to true cyber resilience.

For example, MSPs who roll out Office365 to their client base are not tapping into their customers’ needs for peace of mind when it comes to cybersecurity. Instead, they should add value to the partnership by emphasising good cyber security practices, providing the right tools and technologies and looking at specialist vendors – rather than providing a one-size-fits-all solution. Channel partners can both capitalise and draw on the importance of demonstrating to customers the benefits they bring by continuing their role as trusted advisors – resulting in growing their revenue while ensuring their key partner status.

An MSP’s portfolio should provide the correct tools and solutions businesses need to survive and thrive in the new normal. Businesses of all sizes prioritised their move to digital workspaces during COVID-19, including remote teamwork, learning and critical cloud infrastructure, with Microsoft’s Chief Executive saying that they’ve seen two years’ worth of digital transformation in two months. Innovative technologies can form the backbone of a workforce’s security foundations by adding layers of technology protection alongside employee tools and security awareness. Solutions can be embedded to prompt users to double-check their emails before a mistake is about to be made, for example, mitigating the risk of accidental data loss.

Additionally, security aware-

ness training within businesses has become a security necessity. Without peer review or IT supervision, organisations need their users to be empowered to make good security decisions.

Rather than a once-a-year cyber awareness course – often used to tick a compliance box – today’s businesses must invest in ongoing training, phishing

decisions.

Organisations cannot be expected to stay one step ahead of cybercriminals and adapt to new threats on their own.

Within the evolving cybersecurity landscape, it's essential for businesses, especially SMBs, to find a partner that offers a varied portfolio of security offerings, as well as the knowl-

By addressing pain points and providing assurance around the security of their working environments, channel partners can build and strengthen their existing relationship with their customers.

simulations and solutions to help their employees make the right decisions – wherever they are working.

This is an important point for channel partners to take on board, as they have the power to ensure their customers’ end users are sufficiently trained in the threat landscape. Have they engaged in phishing penetration testing? Is sending an email to the wrong person an embarrassing mistake or a data breach? These are just some of the key questions MSPs should be asking when they look to fulfil their trusted advisor role. This is an area where partners will see real growth as businesses have woken up to the idea that with the right solutions, they can switch their employees from IT risks to IT assets, and the channel needs to ensure they have the necessary training and tools in place to help their clients make these

edge and support, to keep their business data, workforces and networks secure.

By addressing pain points and providing assurance around the security of their working environments, channel partners can build and strengthen their existing relationship with their customers, while recognising the opportunity of additional revenue streams for their businesses. In turn, businesses can feel confident that they have the right technology, education and tools in place to combat the risk of cyberattacks and a trusted partnership they can rely on to keep them secure and agile.

Technology News

Ikegami 2021 innovations Ikegami has reported a sustained level of innovation throughout 2021, its 75th anniversary year. Founded in 1946, the company initially produced electronic components before progressing into full scale equipment development and production. Ikegami milestones over the years have included one of the first transistorised TV cameras (1960), the TGK-6TC colour flying-spot film scanner (1967), the HL33 electronic newsgathering camera (1972), the HL-55 3-CCD portable broadcast camera (1988), the Editcam tapeless digital camcorder (1995) and the world's first portable 8K camera, model SHK810, co-developed with NHK (2015).

“The transition from HD-SDR to UHD-HDR is now gathering

rolling shutter distortion and flash-banding artifacts. High framerate shooting at up to 2x speed in UHD or up to 8x speed in HD via the base station is possible as an option, for applications such as capturing fast motion in sport or stage events.

Core of the UHK-X700 electronics is an ASIC chip which encapsulates a wide range of high-grade video processing functions into ultra-compact component dimensions. When combined with the Ikegami BSX-100 base station, the camera optionally supports simultaneous output in 4K/ HD video formats. Peripheral options include the OCP-300 control panel and SE-U430 system expander. Ikegami also offers two types of viewfinder for this model: the VFL201D 2-inch LCD and the VFL701D

2021 sales highlights included HDK-73 3-CMOS high dynamic range camera systems plus a Hi-Motion II slow-motion camera for integration with an Oman TV outside broadcast production vehicle. momentum across the EAME markets and globally,” says Michael Lätzsch, manager of the Broadcast & Professional Video Division at Ikegami Electronics (Europe). “Demand for high quality coverage of sport proved a key driver, particularly during the Covid-19 lockdown.

The main push into UHD-HDR is coming from the pay-TV sector which in turn is encouraging established broadcasters to take a serious interest. After an initial flirtation with HD-HDR, production companies around the world are increasingly adopting UHD-HDR to maximise the commercial lifetime of their content. We responded in 2021 by introducing the UHK-X700 4K UHD camera which looks set to become the flagship of our UNICAM series.

Designed for broadcast-quality video production and online streaming applications, the UHK-X700 provides the high signal quality, versatile connectivity and robust build that are essential in today's multi-resolution world.”

Ikegami's UHK-X700 allows full 4K UHD production in hybrid log-gamma HDR or in standard dynamic range, plus the freedom to choose between BT.2020 and BT.709 colour spaces. Image acquisition is via three newly developed 2/3inch CMOS 4K sensors with global shutters to eliminate

7-inch full HD LCD. Complementing the UHK-X700 is Ikegami's BSX100 12G/3G fibre base station.

This offers a stress-free upgrade path for broadcasters and production companies as they progress from SDI to IP, from SDR to HDR and from HD into HD/4K dual-format workflow.

Designed as a multi-platform camera control unit, the BSX100 is available for Ikegami HD and 4K camera systems.

SMPTE ST.2110 media-overIP interfacing is available as an option for use across 10 GbE and 25 GbE networks.

An optional 4K output software key allows use of HD cameras in a variety of configurations including simultaneous HD/4K production. HDR video with very high-quality reproduction from dark to bright areas is supported together with wide colour gamut as standard. Full support is provided for HLG in conformance with ITU-R BT.2100 which is the international standard for HDR. The base station includes HDR to SDR conversion and can be operated in any desired combination of HD or 4K resolution and SDR or HDR simultaneously. Housed in a 3U high halfrack-width low-mass unit, the BSX-100 is easily integrated into mobile production vehicles and other locations where space is limited.

Operating from Oman TV’s headquarters in the capital city, Muscat, the newly enhanced vehicle is designed for live coverage of sports, cultural and news-related events throughout the sultanate. The equipment was supplied by Ikegami Electronics Europe via local integrator Al Nemer Al Aswad, based in Muscat. “This investment forms part of a technology upgrade designed to maximise production quality and operational versatility,” comments the senior engineer of the OB vehicle department at Oman TV. “We have had very good experience with Ikegami equipment over the years, both in terms of product specification and proven reliability, backed by a high level of support from the Ikegami ME team.”

One of Europe's largest public service broadcasters invested in Ikegami UHL-43 compact cameras during 2021 as part of an upgrade to its production facilities. The UHL-43 is designed for applications such as robotic studios, outside broadcasting of live events such as sports, parliamentary television, pointof-view image capture, weather coverage, traffic surveillance and public security monitoring.

With main-unit width/height/ depth dimensions of just 145 x 155 x 169 mm and weighing just 2.6 kg, the camera head can be used on practically any support device such as a shoulder harness, long-reach arm or overhead mount. The UHL-43 employs three 2/3-inch UHD 8-megapixel CMOS sensors in the same workflow and remote control structure as Ikegami's UNICAM XE series UHK-430 and UHK-435 cameras. Unlike cameras using a single chip or pixel-offset technology, the integration of three 3840 x 2160 resolution CMOS sensors and prism optics provides true UHD capture resolution, high quality colour reproduction and complete freedom from colour aliasing.

2021 also saw healthy demand for Ikegami monitors, notably for HLM-960WR and HLM-1760WR models. The HLM-1760WR is a 17-inch video monitor with very narrow front-to-back dimensions, light weight and low power consumption. It incorporates an LED-backlit 1920 x 1080-pixel LCD 450 nit high-brightness display panel with 10 bit processing depth, 1500:1 contrast ratio, wide viewing angle, fast motion response, and high quality colour reproduction. The monitor is equipped with a range of tools for use in broadcast production. The HLM-960WR is a 9-inch version of the HLM-1760WR with a similar feature set. Designed for use where space is at a premium, it occupies just 4U and weighs 1.7 kg. Screen brightness is 400 nits and contrast ratio is 700:1.

Nureva audio now integrates with Crestron Nureva Inc. has announced that Crestron 3-Series and 4-Series control systems now include controls for Nureva au-

dio systems. Created using the Nureva Developer Toolkit, this certified module is available through the Creston Application Market to streamline operation of Nureva audio systems from Crestron’s market-leading room control panels.

Once configured, customers can adjust volume and treble, mute and unmute their devices, set the microphone pickup area, recalibrate their device and update firmware – all from the cloud. This provides a reliable, convenient and integrated experience through a single user interface. The Nureva Developer Toolkit is enabled by Nureva Console, a cloud-based platform that lets customers remotely manage their Nureva audio systems.

IT staff and AV professionals have been requesting integrations like this that easily work with their existing equipment.

They will appreciate the simple

installation and setup of Nureva audio systems, as well as the automation and control that this integration offers. Powered

trating and persistent problem of poor audio performance in meeting and learning spaces from large to small. Nureva’s

Nureva Inc. has announced that Crestron 3-Series and 4-Series control systems now include controls for Nureva audio systems. by patented Microphone Mist technology, Nureva’s product line includes the HDL200 audio system for small rooms, HDL300 audio system for midsize rooms, Dual HDL300 audio system for large rooms and Nureva XT, a tightly integrated audio and video solution for classrooms.

“One of the most frequent requests from our Nureva audio customers has been for integrations with Crestron room control systems, and we are pleased to now have this available,” said Nancy Knowlton, Nureva’s CEO. “This is an excellent example of how the Nureva Developer Toolkit can make it easy to integrate Nureva systems with third-party products and workflows.”

Nureva’s line of audio conferencing systems solve the frus-

patented Microphone Mist technology places thousands of virtual microphones throughout a space to pick up sound from any location, ensuring that everyone is clearly heard regardless of where they are in the room or the direction they are facing. The systems use sophisticated algorithms to simultaneously process sound from all virtual microphones to provide remote participants with a clear, reliable listening experience. Broad deployment of multiple Nureva systems is supported by Nureva Console, a cloud-based platform that makes it easy for organizations to manage their systems across multiple locations from a single, secure dashboard.

For more information, visit the Nureva website.

New improved projectors from Barco Barco is expanding its portfolio with two new G-series projectors to enable improved creativity from simple day-to-day needs to more advanced installations. The G62s are a new choice for consistency enabling a broad Barco portfolio for the ProAV market with solutions for every budget.

With the introduction of the

G60s in 2019, Barco enlarged its offering to a wider range of market segments. The single-chip laser projectors were designed to answer the needs of day-to-day projects without compromising on the quality.

The new G62s complement this existing platform with two brighter and improved projectors for even better results.

Continued on page 10 Barco is expanding its portfolio with two new G-series projectors to enable improved creativity from simple day-to-day needs to more advanced installations. The G62s are a new choice for consistency enabling a broad Barco portfolio for the ProAV market with solutions for every budget.

P9 AV News March 2022

Technology News News Technology Continued from page 9

Nureva XT available to order globally

New improved projectors from Barco Thanks to their higher bandwidth and upgraded input support (HDMI2.0 and 3D SYNC), the new additions to the Barco portfolio are now compatible for 4K input sources and provide HD 3D stereo capabilities.

What’s more, the G62s bring enhanced and OSD embedded warping and blending capabilities, which makes it ideally suited to be used in combination with other projectors in a multi-channel set-up. In addition, an improved interface enables user-friendly operation and efficient workflows.

The G60 and G62 projec-

tors are the perfect match for a compact installation. Next to the compact format of the G-projectors, there’s also the possibility of working with the familiar G-series short-throw lenses. Also: in order to blend in with different environments, the G2 models will also be available in both black and white chassis. Users can always rely on all the proven benefits of Barco’s service program and global support. With the additional EssentialCare service options, customers can access an existing pool of G-series swap units with comparable bright-

ness and lifetime to reduce response and replacement time.

Since its launch in 2019, the G60 projectors have convinced customers with its price-performance ratio resulting in some beautiful references in the museum industry like Infinity des Lumières in Dubai or the new Memory Lane Museum Complex in Russia. Part of Barco’s single-chip projection family, the G62s will offer customers the same trusted recipe of stable performances and Barco expert guidance.

Nureva Inc. has announced the global availability of Nureva XT, a unique and highly integrated combination of audio, video, device management and support services.

Designed for educators who want the flexibility to extend the in-room experience to remote students and other participants, the solution easily combines with existing technology

of view that tightly focuses on the front of the classroom. Instructors can walk anywhere in the front of the classroom and be confident that they will be seen and heard by remote students.

Nureva XT overcomes the limitations associated with webcams and all-in-one systems that were designed for small meeting spaces and have in-

of limited resources, such as having one instructor teach students in multiple locations or to fill substitute teacher shortages. Nureva XT can also support enriched learning opportunities that give students a deeper understanding of subject areas, geographies and cultures – whether that’s through virtual field trips, connecting students with career mentors or building

Nanolumens’ CLRVU Mesh technology Nanolumens has announced a new transparent LED mesh product series called CLRVU during their recent brand refresh. This new building hugging product comes on the heels of the brand’s new identity and promises to be among many new products on their roadmap. The first use case of CLRVU can be seen at the recently unveiled TK Elevators headquarters and test facility, located at The Battery Atlanta.

“Along with our new brand identity comes a robust product roadmap for 2022 and beyond.

We announced the addition of our CLRVU series on our recent branding webinar,” says Brice McPheeters, Vice President of Product and Planning for Nanolumens. “Our CLRVU meshbased technology can be used indoors or outdoors to seamlessly blend into the architecture of your building. One main differentiator for CLRVU is that it allows for the customization of the display’s resolution, power consumption, and transparency, unlike others. Making a brilliant statement effortlessly is easy with this durable and long-lasting LED display. It’s designed and assembled in the US and built totally to specification in pixel pitches ranging from 10mm-25mm.”

Nanolumens collaborates with their integrator and ecosystem partners, as well as the AEC and AV design communities, to make unsurpassed first and lasting experiences. CLRVU is

The HDL300 system is designed for standard-size classrooms, and the Dual HDL300 is ideal for large classrooms. Both systems feature Nureva’s patented Microphone Mist technology.

Nanolumens has announced a new transparent LED mesh product series called CLRVU during their recent brand refresh. available now with Nanolumens in pixel pitches offering clear Nixel to Pixel warranty and US- viewing angles that make a vibased support. CLRVU comes sual impact with minimal effect with customizable transparen- on the view from the inside. cy built to your specifications

products (such as projectors and displays), to support hybrid teaching and learning, remote professional development sessions, enriched learning opportunities and more. All this is delivered via a single USB connection to the instructor’s computer.

There are Nureva XT solutions for standard-size and large classrooms. Each combines a Nureva audio system (HDL300 for standard, Dual HDL300 for large) with the new Nureva CV30 classroom camera kit and a three- or five-year subscription to Nureva Pro, which includes an extended warranty, exclusive device management features in Nureva Console, expanded technical support and advance hardware replacement.

Nureva XT provides a unique combination of full-room microphone pickup using patented Microphone Mist technology, in-room voice amplification, integrated 20-watt speakers and a high definition classroom camera with an 84 degree field

sufficient microphone pickup range for classroom environments. Unlike complex, one-off solutions that require time-consuming installation and maintenance, Nureva XT brings together all this capability in an affordable package that is easy to install, set up, manage and scale.

Built for today’s flexible classrooms and future-proofed for whatever comes next, Nureva XT keeps students and instructors connected during a variety of in-room and remote classroom scenarios and use cases.

This includes virtual professional development sessions, where Nureva XT makes it easy for schools to tap into a wider range of trainers and programs, saving travel time and expense.

Teachers can hold virtual admin meetings that accommodate everyone’s schedule and allow for immediate feedback when urgent issues require it.

For school districts and universities that struggle to offer a wide range of courses, Nureva XT can help make better use

connections with students in other schools.

“The process for developing Nureva XT started with reaching out to our customers and learning about the challenges they faced in deploying hybrid learning products in their classrooms,” said Nancy Knowlton, Nureva’s CEO. “We quickly translated that input into a full-featured classroom solution that offers the simplicity, flexibility and reliability that has become so critical in today’s education environments.”

The Nureva XT classroom solution is available to order through a global network of value-added dealers and resellers and is expected to ship in March 2022. The MSRP in the United States for higher education ranges from $4,499 to $7,699 depending on the classroom size and Nureva Pro subscription term. Prices in other countries will vary. Pricing is also available for K–12 institutions through a network of dedicated K–12 dealers and resellers.

PlayBox Neo announces New Playout Manager PlayBox Neo has announced major enhancements to its Multi Playout Manager (MPM) broadcast playout monitoring and control system, including a totally new user interface and integrated playout preview.

“The enhanced MPM builds on two decades of experience which we have gained in IPbased system control”, says PlayBox Neo CTO Stanislav Petkov. “Newly optimized performance combined with fully integrated playout preview makes remote control and monitoring more efficient and easier than ever. At MPM's front end is a new web-based user

interface with an eye-friendly dark background, designed to match the GUIs used across the entire PlayBox Neo series.”

“MPM is a trusted and proven network workflow solution which enables multiple operators to function remotely or locally as a coordinated team,” adds CEO Pavlin Rahnev.

“These latest refinements will ensure it remains the preferred choice for the global PlayBox Neo system customer base.”

PlayBox Neo MPM allows multiple AirBox Neo-20 channels to be operated via IP remotely from any place in the world, home, distant office or any net-

P10 AV News March 2022

work-connected location. Control features accessible within MPM include on-the-fly playlist changes, manual triggering of events, user-configurable presets for pushbutton access to logos, IP router control and subsidiary tools such as graphics/text control.

Continued on page 11

Technology News Continued from page 10

PlayBox Neo announces New Playout Manager User/operator management permissions can be assigned at various levels from viewer to administrator. A built-in webbased playlist editor enables users to create future playlists.

MPM also provides support for custom metadata from AirBox Neo-20 and includes a library module for fast access to MAM. Media files can be dragand-drop moved from library to playlist or processed into multiple folders with customized metadata settings such as category and folder colour.

A supervisor can also custom brand the MPM user interface with an organization’s or channel's logo.

The new PlayBox Neo Multi Playout Manager is available

Digital signage solutions from Bluefin Bluefin International has announced a new product category based on the Rock chip platform. The R Series is a cutting-edge digital signage platform that offers users a host of operating systems including Android 10, Debian 10, Linux, and more. “The R Series suite of all-in-one displays creates new possibilities within Bluefin’s core line-up. Integration into multiple screen sizes, form factors, and the ability to cus-

tomize sets us apart. We see these displays going into retail and hospitality venues, or into point-of-purchase fixtures,” says Randy Guy, Owner of Bluefin International. “The dual CPU delivers powerful performance and offers crisp graphics to enhance the customer experience. The comprehensive open-source platform offers developers the flexibility and the freedom to design in their preferred CMS or OS.”

The R Series comes in a variety of sizes ranging from 10.1’’ to 43.0’’. Options include interactive touch, Wi-Fi, and PoE (power over Ethernet). The R Series also comes with standard inputs/outputs that include Micro-SD, USB, Phoenix GPIO, RJ45, and analogue/digital out. As with all of Bluefin’s products, there are a multitude of customizable features.

The new PlayBox Neo Multi Playout Manager is available now.

Sennheiser announcers TeamConnect intelligent speaker With the TeamConnect Intelligent Speaker, Sennheiser is delivering a solution to support smart, focused and inclusive meetings for up to 10 people, whether participants join remotely or are in the room.

It features an omnidirectional speaker that covers a 3.5m radius and seven integrated beamforming microphones to achieve impeccable sound quality.

Through this Intelligent speaker, Microsoft Teams provides and automatic meeting tran-

at a price point that some might not expect from Sennheiser.”

With the TeamConnect Intelligent Speaker, Sennheiser is delivering a solution to support smart, focused and inclusive meetings for up to 10 people.

Intelligent solutions, such as the integrated Cortana voice recognition software and automatic meeting notes, make an inclusive meeting experience possible for remote and hardof-hearing participants. With multiple mounting options, long cables and a variety of

meeting room audio, but also unlocks the best speech technology. Only Intelligent Speakers offer the best speech transcripts.”

Microsoft Teams Rooms combines the virtual workspace of Microsoft Teams with real-world meeting rooms that feature AV equipment from Microsoft-certified hardware partners.

Bluefin International has announced a new product category based on the Rock chip platform. The R Series is a cutting-edge digital signage platform that offers users a host of operating systems including Android 10, Debian 10, Linux, and more.

New Panasoic EQ2 4K displays

script in real-time, identifying the individual people speaking by name, in case they have enrolled their voices. This provides an inclusive meeting experience for remote and hardof-hearing participants.

“Sennheiser is known for the industry-leading TeamConnect Ceiling 2 microphone with TruVoicelift,” said Anne Guhn, Product Manager at Sennheiser. “This addition to our TeamConnect family offers an opportunity for us to expand into a different sized meeting room,

country-specific power plug adapters, the TeamConnect Intelligent Speaker offers an easy and flexible installation experience.

“Video conferencing tools like Microsoft Teams have become the communication backbone for many businesses and education institutions,” Albert Kooiman, Senior Director of Microsoft Teams Devices Partner Engineering and Certification, said. “The Sennheiser TeamConnect Intelligent Speaker does not only provide excellent

With the TeamConnect Intelligent Speaker, Sennheiser is delivering a solution to support smart, focused and inclusive meetings for up to 10 people, whether participants join remotely or are in the room.

Panasonic has announced its new EQ2 Series of professional 4K LCD displays to meet the widening range of needs in corporate buildings and classrooms. The Series offers high visibility, durability and a host of useful connectivity features in six screen sizes (86/75/65/55/50/43-inch).

With 500 cd/m² brightness and high haze value panels to suppress the reflected glare of bright light, the EQ2 Series is ideal for conference rooms, classrooms and open spaces such as receptions and shopping malls. The ability to position the display in portrait or landscape mode, with up to a 20-degree tilt angle and 18 hours continuous operation also makes the Series perfect for information display.

The EQ2 Series supports the Intel SDM (Smart Display Module) specification slot, which can be used with the receiver board version of Panasonic’s wireless presentation system PressIT, or optional terminal boards such as 12G-SDI and DIGITAL LINK. There is also built-in whiteboard functionality to annotate on screen and

zoom in and out using a mouse.

USB devices can be connected to the display via a USB Type-A cable and controlled using a PC connected to the EQ2 via the USB Type-C port. This functionality, for example, is ideal for a simple and quick start to video conferences. If a camera or speakerphone is permanently connected to the display, a user can just plug in their PC and immediately control all devices to start the meeting.

For ultimate flexibility, the dis-

plays are equipped with HDMI (x 3), PC and USB Type-C video input terminals. LAN or serial control is possible, and simultaneous control and batch management can be performed via the network. The displays support LAN control with AMX or Crestron Connected™. The Series also supports Screen Transfer, which enables a PC to stream content to up to 64 displays connected with a wired LAN. The displays will be available sequentially from June.

Panasonic has announced its new EQ2 Series of professional 4K LCD displays to meet the widening range of needs in corporate buildings and classrooms.

P11 AV News March 2021

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Feature

Workplace requirements, now? opportunities. Higher quality customer interaction and better support for partners and employees were further benefits.

the risk of infection. Ventilation is crucial too.

It’s important to choose video conferencing systems that have a wide-angle lens, good audio pick up and even the option of expansion microphones or daisy-chaining devices together to increase the room range. Auto framing can help too, ensuring everyone is included wherever they are positioned.

2. Increased productivity

The state-of-the-art?

With the growing understanding of the latest coronavirus variants and the resulting relaxation of social measures to limit the spread of the virus. what now is the advice for those responsible for the workplace.

Jeff May, UK Sales Director at Konftel, assesses why video conferencing is set to play an even more important role in the evolution of the workplace.

In office environments, what are the employer’s obligations in the light of new variants of coronavirus? Obviously, employers have a duty of care to their staff. They want to keep them healthy, happy and productive. If employees are off ill then it’s bad for individuals and bad for business too.

There are many effective ways to minimise the risk. Obviously social distancing and mask wearing are two options.

Creating more space in rooms and limiting numbers will further help. But I think many organisations are undergoing a cultural change. The pandemic has proved that for many people they can work in more flexible ways not just from their desk in an office. A combination of home and office work will become the norm. This requires investment and a radical rethink for many employers and their workforces.

So which solutions make the best options for hybrid working (integrating home and office)?

For many companies hybrid working is already becoming the norm but some are achieving much better results than others. So what are their secrets to success?

Lots of lessons can be learned by delving deeper into the effective ways home working is being combined with traditional office life. New research from analysts Metrigy encompassed 400 global organisations. Of those a ‘success group’ of 68 companies was filtered out based on above average performance in three criteria.

1. Revenue gains

Increased project capacity through more effective team collaboration was achieved with faster responses to sales

The success group enjoyed more efficient meetings with easier collaboration and less time spent travelling.

3. Cost savings

Reduced travel and real estate costs were typical areas where companies achieved savings.

The most successful companies...

•provide employees with a choice of work location •provision more video and audio devices for work from home •are more likely to be deploying video to all or most meeting rooms •are more likely to use video for most meetings and see it as critical business technology •consider the ability of meeting rooms to support multiple meeting apps of high importance •refresh meeting rooms every three years.

In conclusion, there are many combined factors that provide a competitive commercial advantage from managing the hybrid workplace right.

Learnings On average 10% more of the successful companies use video for most meetings, see video as business-critical technology and equip employees with high quality endpoints. It might not seem like huge differences, but the pattern is convincing – the success group‘s behaviour makes a big impact.

We also recognise it’s completely natural for people to

Creating more space between people in meeting rooms is one of several important factors to minimise the risk of infection.

It’s vital that all devices are fully protected with users at home or in the office working on the same systems with restricted access where necessary. want to use their own laptop for the apps and collaborative tools they prefer or have been provided by their IT department. Over 80% of the success group find multi-app access of moderate or high importance.

Konftel also understands that it can be a bit of a jungle out there to find the right equipment for the right rooms. One size doesn’t fit all so we’ve created an interactive Room Type Guide to optimize the decision-making process. Furthermore all our products are Climate Neutral Certified which offsets the impact on the planet of growing demand. Users can conference with a clear climate conscience from the very first meeting.

In conclusion, many successful companies from around the world are already embracing hybrid working based on greater use of video meetings, to reap long-term rewards. The time to act is now!

The pandemic has proved that for many people they can work in more flexible ways not just from their desk in an office. This requires investment and a radical rethink for many employers and their workforces.

P14 AV News March 2022

Which collaboration solutions?

Which collaboration solutions offer the best integration with IOT facilities? Efficient collaboration is crucial for business success. It’s important to choose technologies that are easy to use and that seamlessly integrate together. That could be presentations or video calls via many different platforms.

IOT offers a world of almost limitless interaction, collaboration and communication.

Konftel technology works across any meeting platform, and we have pioneered a Bring Your Own Meeting concept where users bring their own laptop to a meeting room, plug in one cable and use the app of their choice to start a conference call.

It’s important to be as vendor agnostic as possible to provide customers with the widest choice and convenience.

heating etc but there can still be issues with conferencing equipment going missing into another room for example or cables disappearing. Our One Cable Connection hub is extremely popular as it means people can turn up for a meeting, simply plug in one cable from their laptop and they are off and running.

The less equipment people need to touch and get involved with the better. Wireless connectivity solutions (through third parties) is another way

How would we assess the state of the workplace market at present – what percentage of customers have the necessary technology installed to support hybrid working? It’s a mixed picture out there with some organisations much further down the hybrid road than others.

Before the pandemic flexible working was not very common but the various lockdowns have been a game changer – proving that people can be just as productive wherever they are working. Flexible working is here to stay.

As more people return to offices more remote meetings will be required as not everyone will be present as before. This means more room investment is needed on-site.

Home working exploded during the pandemic and the next challenge is making sure offices are fit for purpose so that conference calls can take place wherever people are based. We feel it’s important to ensure that everything done at home can be replicated just on a

Security But how can businesses achieve the best level of security in a hybrid working environment? Security is a very important aspect of hybrid working and shouldn’t be overlooked.

It’s vital that all devices are fully protected with users at home or in the office working on the same systems with restricted access where necessary.

But what is the best way of managing desks, meeting rooms and AV resources? I think there are two elements here; one is around remote room management systems and the other is around human behaviour and making sure rooms are always ‘good to go’ in terms of physical equipment when meetings are scheduled.

It’s important to minimize and restrict the opportunity of problems. Room control systems manage the lighting and

We’re still at the early stages with all the latest research indicating that only 10-15% of companies around the world have all the infrastructure in place. forward, such as scanning a barcode on a user’s laptop to provide access to meeting equipment.

Social distancing Even so, what is the best way of managing space and workers to ensure compliance with social distancing rules? Creating more space between people in meeting rooms is one of several important factors to minimise

bigger scale in the office with more people sat together.

We have seen a massive increase in conferencing and collaboration during the pandemic because of remote working but this is expected to be dwarfed by the explosion in office installations as all business plan their meeting requirements with confidence and much greater awareness than they had previously.

Application News Feature

Current UK government regulations for offices You should talk to your workers to agree arrangements to return to the office, consulting with workers and trade unions where appropriate. You should remain responsive to workers’ needs and consult with them on any health and safety measures you have put in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading. You should give extra consideration to people at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19, and to workers facing mental and physical health difficulties.

You should give extra consideration to people who may consider themselves to be at higher risk and to workers facing mental and physical health difficulties. You might also have other workers who are at higher risk and for whom additional precautions, advised by their doctors, should be considered.

People who have COVID-19 are no longer legally required to self-isolate. Workers who have the main symptoms of COVID-19, or a positive test result, should follow the public health advice to stay at

windows and doors fully, where possible, will provide the most amount of fresh air into the space.

If you use mechanical ventilation, ensure that your systems are set to maximise fresh air and minimise air recirculation.

It’s not advised to recirculate air from one space to another, which increases the risk of transmission. However, recirculation units that do not draw in a supply of fresh air can remain in operation as long as there is an alternative supply of outdoor air.

Identifying any poorly ventilated spaces that are usually occupied as part of your risk assessment, and taking steps to improve fresh air flow in these areas (see below for further details) You can also encourage the use of outside space where practical, in particular for higher risk activity such as exercise or when people are singing or raising their voices.

There are no legal limits on contact between people from different households including in the workplace. There is no

You should consider the need for these mitigations in the context of other COVID-19 workplace mitigations (such as ventilation, regular cleaning of surfaces and the use of face coverings) you have put in place. They should only be applied where practical. For example, without imposing restrictions on business operations or reducing workplace capacity.

You should take account of those with protected characteristics and discuss with disabled workers what reasonable adjustments can be made to the workplace so they can work safely.

If you’re going to someone else’s home to work, for example to provide professional services, you should communicate with households before any visits to discuss how the work will be carried out to reduce risk for all parties.

You should avoid carrying out work in households where one or more family members have the main symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19, unless essential. For example,

Konftel streamlines conferencing The ultimate achievement for any technology or manufacturing process today is to improve performance and efficiency while reducing environmental impact. At Controlled Thermal Resources, a pioneering Southern California company that produces lithium battery products in a near-zero-emissions facility, sustainability is central to everything they do.

When the company recently opened a new office and decided to upgrade its meeting room video conferencing equipment, the drive to improve efficiency, quality and sustainability led them to Konftel. The Swedish technology company manufactures high-performance, easyto-use cameras and conference phones for video conferencing, and has also made sustainability core to its company mission – as a Climate Neutral Certified organization.

Ongoing success According to Controlled Thermal Resources’ Real Estate Manager Paul Magana, the company required an afford-

products that can run on Power over Ethernet provided significant benefits for our space while being one of the most affordable options,” Magan continued. “What’s more, the fact that Konftel is one of the industry’s strongest proponents of developing carbon-neutral processes and products made it a perfect fit that exceeded all of our expectations.”

Fantastic quality Magana said that some other solutions they considered would have required tearing up concrete floors to lay new wiring, with some even using proprietary cables. The Konftel 800 conference phone, on the

and ensure everything was running smoothly before each meeting, which reduced efficiency and often required IT support.

“The new system we designed is easier and more reliable, and the quality has been fantastic,” Magana said. “The first time we had a meeting with 20 executives from all different locations, there were no glitches, no dropouts, every word and image was crystal clear, and attendees shared their screens with no issues. The vast difference between the old solution and Konftel’s professional-grade equipment has been a game-changer for our daily meetings.”

Controlled Thermal Resources

Konftel conferencing is proving a big success at Controlled Thermal Resources

home and avoid contact with other people. They should not attend work.

Unvaccinated close contacts of those who have COVID-19 are no longer legally required to self-isolate, and vaccinated close contacts are no longer advised to test for 7 days.

Good ventilation brings fresh air into indoor spaces. The more fresh air that is brought inside, the more diluted any airborne virus will become. In poorly ventilated spaces, residual virus can remain in the air after an infected person has left and increase the risk of COVID-19 spreading.

You should ensure there is an adequate supply of fresh air in your premises. You can do this through: Opening windows, air vents and doors to improve natural ventilation. Opening doors and windows even for a brief period (for example, between meetings) can help refresh the air and reduce COVID-19 particles in it. Opening the

government requirement or recommendation for employers to limit capacity in the workplace.

If, based on setting-specific risk assessments, you decide to reduce contact in particular circumstances, you may want to consider the following mitigations: designating seating (for example in offices) for specific teams, or using ‘cohorting’, ‘fixed teams’ or ‘partnering’, so each person works with the same consistent group where space and capacity allow, giving preference to backto-back or side-to-side working between cohorts or fixed teams who don’t normally mix using screens or barriers to separate people who don’t normally mix (for example between workers and customers), noting that screens are only likely to be beneficial if placed between people who come into close face-to-face proximity with each other, and may not be practicable between desks in a side-to-side office setting

if you’re remedying a direct risk to the safety of the household or the public.

When you’re working in a household where somebody may consider themselves to be at higher risk, you should consider making prior arrangements to avoid face-to-face contact if possible.

You should be particularly strict about handwashing, coughing and sneezing hygiene, such as covering your nose and mouth and disposing of single-use tissues.

There are further regulations in respect of office cleaning and dealing with contractors and other visitors to office premises. For a sull list see: https://www.gov. uk/guidance/working-safelyduring-covid-19/offices-factories-and-labs

able, platform-agnostic video conferencing solution that would allow them to collaborate with Zoom, Teams, WebEx and any other service a client or partner might utilize.

“Over the last two to three years, virtual collaboration and video conferences have become part of our daily work process, and the consumer-grade equipment we were using simply wasn’t up to the task,” Magana explained. “Being able to clearly see and hear remote partners is vital to our ongoing success, and between the finicky setup process, frequent issues with connections and screen sharing, and sub-par audio and video quality, we knew we could do better.”

After research and conversations with colleagues, Magana and the company’s decision makers chose the robust Konftel 800 conference phone and easy-to-use Cam50 1080P video camera with pan, tilt and 12x zoom capability. The first conference room to be upgraded now has two of each, providing full-room coverage at a fraction of the cost of competitor’s solutions.

“We looked at various solutions, and Konftel’s wireless

other hand, is powered by PoE (power over ethernet) and uses Bluetooth to provide simple, fast connection no matter who is running the meeting.

In addition to the cameras and conference phones, Controlled Thermal Resources’ new conference room includes an 85inch wall-mounted digital display with an Apple Mac Mini mounted behind it. Through this combination of technologies, users are able to easily, and quickly, launch meetings without all the fuss of the former setup. Previously, meeting hosts had to connect their laptop to the room’s equipment

was founded in 2013 and is growing rapidly, with their innovative sustainable processes attracting interest from companies around the world that rely on professional-quality virtual collaboration tools.

With both Controlled Thermal Resources and Konftel stating their commitments to sustainability and emissions reductions, supporting each other’s businesses is a no brainer.

While the lithium company creates new ways to safely power the future.

Sustainability is crucial for both Konftel and Controlled Thermal Resources

P15News AV News March2021 2022 P17 AV November

Barcelona is the New Home of Pro AV. ISE is the world’s leading show for professional audiovisual integration.

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P18 AV News March 2022

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Advertorial Feature

Talking heads: this month: Andrew Stone Channel Team Manager at Promethean.

AV News meets Andrew Stone, Channel Team Manager at Promethean, to learn more about his newly created role and how the global education technology company has aligned its operations with evolving channel needs.

Andrew is somewhat of an industry veteran. Coming from an IT reseller background with a focus on the education market, he transitioned to Promethean about five years ago as an External Account Manager with the company’s dedicated channel team. Last year he stepped up as Channel Team Manager, a newly created role which is designed to bolster the support Promethean provides its partners. So, as we say goodbye to what is hopefully the last of the COVID restrictions, we talk to Andrew about his 2022 channel plans and find out the latest on what Promethean has to offer reseller partners.

AVN: “I suppose the best place to start our talking heads conversation, is to ask about the channel team changes at Promethean.

What was the driver behind those last year?”

AS: “It’s quite simple, really. Our channel network continues to grow at the same time as partner needs evolve. We appraised what was needed and identified that our team structure would better align with channel operations if we had dedicated responsibilities for channel and distribution. This led to my appointment as Channel Team Manager, a brand-new position as you know, and my colleague Liz Barnes, moving into a UKI Distribution Account

ing team has been established. This centralised marketing function focuses exclusively on supporting the channel. In the past few months alone we have already seen some exciting and impactful initiatives launched not just for the UKI, but globally as well.”

“We’re also launching a new Partner Portal. This is much easier to navigate than our previous platform and will enable partners to run their own marketing campaigns autonomously through the system.

The Partner Portal is the backbone of our Partner Accreditation Programme, so continuous innovation and investment in its development is key for progress.”

AVN: “You mention the Partner Accreditation Programme, can you tell us a bit more about this please?”

AVN: “I can imagine that’s very popular with partners. Do you provide any additional sales support though?”

AS: “Demonstration support is extremely popular. Our after-sales support is possibly more popular, though! In the same way we provide demonstrations virtually or onsite, we have an orientation programme that equips new customers with the fundamentals of using the ActivPanel. This has long been available face-to-face and virtually, but more recently, we’ve also launched it ‘on demand’, to make it even easier for partners to share access with their customers.”

AS: “Yes, absolutely. Partnership is at the heart of all our operations, and the accreditation programme sets out exactly what it means to be a Promethean partner. More specifically, what our partners can expect from us as a manufacturer, and what we, in turn, expect from our partners. It’s all about honesty, transparency and, ultimately, making it easier to do business with us.”

Manager role. In doing so, we’ve strengthened our ability to deliver reliable and quality support exactly where it’s needed.

AVN: “How did the transition go from team member to team leader?”

AS: “Very smoothly! Our team has a shared vision and a shared goal to support partners in every way we can. When I came into the new post, we were still a bit restricted due to COVID, but we’ve since managed some face-to-face meetings and are all looking forward to hitting the road properly and attending partner meetings and live events again.”

AVN: “What other changes have Promethean brought in to better support its channel partners?”

AS: “The biggest change is obviously the new channel team structure, which has given us greater bandwidth to support partners.

Alongside this, a new dedicated channel market-

AVN: “That all sounds well and good, but what does that look like in practice? How can you ensure transparency, for example?”

AS: “That’s a fair point. It’s easy to make promises when it comes to partnerships. We’ve worked hard over the past few years to establish a programme that our partners can trust. We’ve achieved this by introducing processes and initiatives to reward partners that share our values and display behaviours that align with our approach. The best example of this is demonstration registration, more commonly known as ‘demo reg’ by our partners. Regardless of the business size or how much they spend with us a year, demo reg is a vehicle for partners to protect their opportunities with us.”

AVN: “But what if a partner doesn’t have the capability or capacity to deliver demonstrations? Surely that’s unfair?”

AS: “Not at all. While we obviously encourage partners to invest in their own ActivPanel demonstration kit, we’ve always offered demonstration support.

We’re here to provide ActivPanel demonstrations on behalf of our partners, and they will still benefit from demo reg, providing they secure and log the opportunity.”

“In fact, we’ve expanded our demonstration support significantly over the past 18 months.

There’s now the flexibility for partners to tap into virtual and on-site demonstrations, as well as a ‘remote’ offering where we deliver an online session followed by a two-week ActivPanel loan to the customer.”

“From a technical perspective, we’ve obviously got a standard support desk that partners can access via telephone or online when troubleshooting product issues. However, we also have dedicated technical support for pre-sales. We’re lucky to have Peter Millar, Pre-sales Technical Support, who can help partners navigate more technical challenges during the specification and installation process, particularly with networking.”

“In fact, there’s a whole host of value-add support available for Promethean partners. From tender writing and bid responses to data analysis and account mapping, all the way down to seed units, our main objective is to equip partners with everything they need to succeed.”

AVN: “It was clearly a busy start to the new role for you, what are your hopes for 2022?”

AS: “Getting out to see partners again is absolutely top of my agenda. It’s been a hard slog working remotely for so long, so I’m looking forward to returning to events like Bett and meeting people in person. It’s obviously a strange one having Bett in March as opposed to its usual slot in January, but it is a great opportunity to catch up with old faces and hopefully meet some new people.

Promethean will be on Stand SE51 with free coffee on offer, so I’d encourage everyone to drop by and say hello to the team!”

“Aside from that, building the team. We’re always looking for ambitious and committed AV/IT professionals to expand our channel operations.”

Thank you for taking the time out to get involved with this Talking Heads feature, Andrew, I really appreciate it. For anyone interested in learning more about becoming a Promethean partner and tapping into all the great support that Andrew has outlined, please visit: https://www.prometheanworld.com/gb/partners/

P18 AV News December P17 AV2021 News March 2022

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P18 AV News March 2022

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Advertorial Feature

The Genee Ecosystem At Genee we don’t just offer one product, we supply a range of solutions to help corporate and educational enterprises with technology that can transform their business. From our Visitor Management Systems, Touch Tables, Interactive Displays , to Document Cameras and Interactive Software.

Genee Registrar – Visitor & Staff Sign in system

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The Genee Registrar provides a simple to use sign-in solution with Photo Capture, Barcode Scanning and Visitor Label Printing. This allows visitors and staff to easily sign in and out of premises. Genee Registrar significantly reduces data entry and administration tasks, typical of receptions with multiple signing in

When partners adopt the Genee Ecosystem it allows them to give support to end users like no other. Genee has an internal support team that you can contact with one phone number, for all the products we offer. They can also support remotely onto any G-Touch Screen including our Touch Tables and Registrar system.

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books. Stored data, reporting and fire evacuation procedures are supported by the Registrars features with cloud data available for signing in / out and fire evacuation.

Product Profile

HYPERVSN SmartV

Novelty attracts a premium in digital signage, with leading brands frequently among those willing to explore the potential of innovative new technologies. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the comparatively short history of HYPERVSN. Formed in 2011, HYPERVSN claims to be the developer of the world’s first integrated 3D holographic display system and recently invited AV News to visit its new showroom, in central London to experience its range of products.

HYPERVSN technology is based on a four-ray rotor that can display 3D content at up to 670 RPM, producing visuals and videos that appear to be floating in mid-air and are perceived by viewers as hi-resolution holograms, without the need for wearables. The result is a highly disruptive, scalable and cost-effective solution that drives brand and customer engagement with multiple applications ranging from events and conferences, bars and restaurants, to corporate offices and retail stores, to name a few.

HYPERVSN has developed its base technology into a number of different products that serve a number of applications.

Amongst these, perhaps one of the most easily deployed is the HYPERVSN Holographic Human – a welcoming 3D hologram that can act as a reception ‘greeter’ or receptionist in place of a human counterpart.

For example, American University of Kuwait set out to generate leads for new admissions

for their upcoming academic year without any human intervention in a public space, bearing in mind the restrictions imposed during the pandemic.

HYPERVSN Holographic Human was the perfect solution, with a life-size human displayed in 3D. The 3D content created covered key topics and exceeded expectations, from the University’s mascot to credentials and admission information. A prime location was selected within the Avenues Mall, Kuwait’s largest mall with an average footfall of over 600,000 per week (post pandemic estimates). A QR code-enabled installation was able to provide real time analytics and wow the audience as the first Human Hologram in Kuwait. The campaign exceeded expectations with 3% CTR per day and engagement recorded at over 40%.

Powered by a proprietary CMS software, users can control the device remotely and create, upload and manage content.

This also includes HYPERVSN 3D Studio, which allows users

4 P20 AV News March 2022

HYPERVSN Solo units can be installed individually, or multiple units can be synchronized to create one larger image for an even more powerful HYPERVSN Wall installation.

to easily convert 2D images into eye-catching 3D visuals – and requires no design skills.

Kiryl Chykeyuk, HYPERVSN Co-Founder, comments: “The HYPERVSN system presents new disruptive opportunities to capture and convert audiences by engaging in meaningful conversation with all customer demographics. It is definitely a unique solution for brands wishing to reach high brand exposure and effectively set themselves apart from competitors”

Product range In addition to the HYPERVSN Holographic Human customers can choose to rent or buy the HYPERVSN Solo or the HYPERVSN Wall. HYPERVSN Solo units can be installed individually, or multiple units can be synchronized to create one larger image for an even more powerful HYPERVSN Wall installation.

Popular at tradeshows, exhibitions and product launches, anywhere.in fact, where cus-

tomers are seeking out new ways to capture and convert audiences with unique digital signage solutions. Stuart Holmes, Director at PSCo, commented: “We see huge potential for HYPERVSN products, especially from our corporate, retail and

rental customers, who are keen to re-engage their audiences now that lockdown restrictions have been lifted. The investment by HYPERVSN in its UK team, new office and product line-up gives us great confidence and we can’t wait to see

what’s in store for this highly innovative display solution”.

“The HYPERVSN Holographic Human provided by All ‘n All was one of our most successful projects this year. Not only did this innovative tool attract many new students, but we

Product Profile

Scaling up to larger formats. HYPERVSN offers its Smart V Wall range. again in two models – the Smart V Wall M and the Smart V Wall L.

were also able to use the analytic features to measure conversion.”

Floating images Where the objective is to display detailed 2D or 3D images as if they are floating in mid-air, HYPERVSN offers two solutions – Smart V Solo M and Smart V Solo L together with a range of accessories. The difference between the two models is one if the size of the displays: the Solo M offers a 22” diagonal, whereas the Solo L is 30” diagonal, Both are managed by the HYPERVSN Content Management System. Accessories include: a tripod. ceiling mounts, domes and cubes.

Scaling up to larger formats.

HYPERVSN offers its Smart V Wall range. again in two models – the Smart V Wall M and the Smart V Wall L. Both can display 2D and 3D images and have a range o accessories available. Both are supplied with 3D Studio and DesignLab software.

For customers seeking totally immersive engagement with a brand, HYPERVSN also offers Smart V Slots – said to be the world’s first holographic slot machine. The solution is recommended for those who want to be generate excitement and draw crowds toa brand promotion. Accessories include tripods and domes.

The HYPERVSN mission HYPERVSN has made extraordinary progress is the little more than 10 years of its existence.

Backed by the likes of Sir Richard Branson, the company as produced a fully integrated system of control, support & 3D creation – producing unparalleled digital excellence. HYPERVSN is all about emotion.

People are mesmerized when they experience it. Founder Kiryl Chykeyu said “We strive to deliver extraordinary experiences through stunning and innovative visual technologies.

In our lives everything we do is based on our visual perception.

We make decisions based on how we see things. We live and experience life with our eyes.

Despite the fact that we live in a truly 3D world, until now we have been viewing digital information and visuals in just 2D. At HYPERVSN we have created a fundamentally new system, a better system, to see 3D in-theair visuals without the need for any wearable equipment.”

Co-founder Art Stavenka explains: “HYPERVSN was born by minds that wanted to create something big. Some revolutionized online shopping, some – turned the traditional hotel industry upside down, and we wanted to change the way people see things. And in 2012, backing it up with a scientific and business research, and

HYPERVSN Holographic Human – a welcoming 3D hologram that can act as a reception ‘greeter’ or receptionist in place of a human counterpart

later on with support from Sir Richard Branson, we’ve started the company that brought a new holographic technology to the mass market. We came a long way of technology enhancement and research from an idea to the first integrated holographic system we offer now. Today it is safe to say HYPERVSN is the only product there offering users full control of creating, displaying and analysing 3D images perceived as holographic visuals.”

Case study HYPERVSN at the American University of Kuwait Challenge American University of Kuwait is a renowned institution and are leaders in liberal arts education. In summer 2021, they wanted to create new admissions for their upcoming academic year without any human intervention at a public space, considering the pandemic.

Solution HYPERVSN Holographic Human was installed at Avenues Mall, largest mall with an av-

erage footfall of over 600,000 per week (post-pandemic estimates). The 3D content created was able to cover key topics beyond expectations, from their mascot to credentials and admission information.

Results

cussing further projects. The QR enabled installation was able to provide real time analytics and wow the audience with the first Holographic Human in Kuwait. The campaign exceeded expectations with 3% CTR per day and engagement at over 40%.

American University of Kuwait was satisfied with the campaign results and they are already dis-

4

P21 AV News March 2022

UPDATES New Solutions

Zoom and RingCentral settle RingCentral, Inc. and Zoom Video Communications, Inc. have announced that the companies have agreed to mutually withdraw from various legal proceedings and will continue to work together while RingCentral transitions existing customers from the legacy RingCentral Meetings (RCM) service to the new RingCentral Video. This agreement resolves all of the parties’ claims in the litigation, and the parties have dismissed their complaints with prejudice. “We are pleased to have resolved this matter in a way that allows the parties to continue the wind down of their partnership,” said Jeff True, General Counsel at Zoom.

“Today’s agreement with Zoom removes any uncertainty in the ability of RingCentral’s existing customers to migrate to RingCentral Video in an orderly manner, and in a time frame that is customer driven,” said John Marlow, Chief Administrative Officer, and General Counsel at RingCentral. “During the transition period RingCentral Meetings customers will be fully supported, including receiving new core features and updates.”

Additional details regarding the settlement agreement were not disclosed.

Microsoft announces new research and technology January 12, 2022

Work Trend Index: Special Report

Technology Can Help Unlock a New Future for Frontline Workers IIllustration by Bernardo Henning

Zoom Contact Center sets new standards Zoom Video Communications, Inc. has announced Zoom Contact Center, an omnichannel contact centre solution that is optimized for video and integrated right into the same Zoom experience. Now available, Zoom Contact Center, previously Zoom Video Engagement Center, combines unified communications and contact centre capabilities with the useability of the Zoom platform. Zoom Contact Center supports customer service use cases and workflows using channels like video and voice, with SMS and webchat currently in beta.

The Zoom platform is powering the future of communications beyond meetings with unified communications, the Zoom Developer Platform, Zoom Events, and now Zoom Contact Center.

These innovations – and there are many more – were created with the same level of scalability and simplicity that has made Zoom the trusted platform for more than a half-million businesses worldwide.

Zoom Contact Center will have over 100 agent, supervisor, and contact centre administrator features at launch. Future investments will include additional channels, CRM and workforce management integrations, and AI/ML to optimize agent productivity. At launch, Zoom Contact Center will extend traditional capabilities typically optimized for voice to provide a unique end customer experience through channels like video.

“Zoom understands the importance of bringing together UC and multichannel contact centre into the same experience,” said Blair Pleasant of BCStrategies. “Zoom is known for great video, which is important for high-touch customer scenarios and internal use cases like IT help desk, employee helpline, and revenue-generating activities. But the fact that Zoom Contact Center supports routing, additional channels, and the agent functionality organizations need, means that Zoom Contact Center could become the modern contact centre solution of choice.”

Contact centre agents are frequently tied to physical contact centre locations, and if able to work remotely, often still need to navigate multiple communications tools. Zoom Contact Center streamlines inefficiencies by bringing communications into one central hub. In addition to helping end customers with a rich agent experience, agents can collaborate with peers, supervisors, or other employees right in Zoom Unified communications and contact centre together empowers agents to be more productive from any location while feeling connected

Continued from page 25

P24 AV News March 2022

Microsoft Corp. has released a Work Trend Index Special Report, “Technology Can Help Unlock a New Future for Frontline Workers,” and announced new features in Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Viva designed to serve millions of frontline workers.

The 2 billion frontline workers worldwide represent 80% of the global workforce, with 88% of organizations employing people in frontline roles. Increasingly, companies are investing in digital tools for frontline workers to modernize workflows, enhance job performance, and improve workplace culture and communication. Microsoft has seen 400% growth in monthly active usage of its Teams collaboration platform among frontline workers since March 2020.

A culture of caring is the new currency on the frontline: 76% of workers feel bonded to each other, yet over 60% say their company should better prioritize culture and communication from the top. In addition, 51% of those in nonmanagement positions on the frontline don’t feel valued as employees.

Frontline workers are at an inflection point: Amid the Great Reshuffle, frontline workers cite better pay and benefits, worklife balance, and flexibility as reasons for considering a job change.Optimism for tech is high: 63% of frontline workers are excited about the job opportunities tech creates and tech ranks third on the list of factors workers say could help reduce workplace stress.

There’s an opportunity to bridge the tech and training gap: 46% of frontline workers feel pressure to adapt to new tech or fear losing their jobs — but 55% say they’ve had to learn new tech on the fly, with no formal training or practice. Today, the company is introducing new joint offerings with industry partners as well as capabilities specifically designed to support frontline workers in Teams and Viva, Microsoft’s employee experience platform introduced in early 2021.

New data shows that now is the time to empower the frontline with the right digital tools

1

On Feb. 1, became generally available. Microsoft Cloud for Retail accelerates business growth by providing trusted retail industry solutions that integrate with retailers’ existing systems

Microsoft is deepening its strategic relationship with Zebra Technologies Corp., a world leader in innovative digital solutions, including software and hardware such as rugged Android mobile computers for the frontline workforce. The two companies are delivering the Teams Walkie Talkie app on a wide range of Zebra mobile computers, including a dedicated push-to-talk (PTT) button to access Teams Walkie Talkie functionality on Zebra devices. In addition, Teams Walkie Talkie digital PTT is now available on all iOS mobile devices in addition to Android.

Microsoft is enhancing Teams’ integration with Zebra Reflexis, which connects the Reflexis Workforce Management solutions with the Shifts application in Teams. This new integration streamlines shift scheduling and time off requests in Teams, making them easy for managers to approve. Scheduled queuing for virtual appointments are now available in Teams, providing one location for real-time updates on wait times, missed appointments and staffing delays to create a transparent and stress-free experience for customers and patients.

The Viva Connections app in Microsoft Teams links frontline workers to company culture, resources and tools, news and employee resource groups in the flow of work. Integrations with strategic partners such as Espressive and Workday will make it easier for users to access important HR resources and tasks, such as payroll, time off and expense reporting, all in one location. The Viva Learning app enables frontline employees to discover, share and track learning content right from Microsoft Teams — making it easier for a company’s entire workforce to stay up to date on required and recommended training. New Continued from page 25

NEW SOLUTIONS updates make it easier to assign learning from partner solutions like SAP SuccessFactors, Cornerstone OnDemand and Saba Cloud. And partnerships with learning providers like EdCast and OpenSesame enable an extensive content library to help frontline workers upskill and train with relevant learning content in the flow of work.

For IT, improved device management helps ensure that misplaced shared devices can be easily secured and located. “It’s no secret that the pandemic is reshaping work for all workers, and at a faster pace than we have ever seen,” said Emma Williams, corporate vice president, Microsoft. “Empowering frontline workers remains essential for digital transformation.

Together with our partners, we’re equipping frontline workers with tools that allow them to stay connected with their team and company leadership while concentrating on the customer or job at hand. If done well, we believe technology can modernize workflows and enhance job performance while also improving workplace culture and communication.”

Microsoft Cloud for Retail

Qualcomm announces AR collaboration with Microsoft Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. has announced a collaboration with Microsoft to expand and accelerate the adoption of augmented reality (AR) in both the consumer and enterprise sector.

Both companies are believers in the metaverse, and Qualcomm Technologies is working with Microsoft across several initiatives to drive the ecosystem, including developing custom AR chips to enable a new wave of power efficient, lightweight AR glasses to deliver rich and immersive experiences, and plans to integrate software like Microsoft Mesh and Snapdragon Spaces XR Developer Platform.

This collaboration recognizes Qualcomm Technologies’ proven spatial computing expertise, technology leadership and the desire to create transformative experiences for the next generation of head worn AR devices as we head into the metaverse.

“This collaboration reflects the next step in both companies’ shared commitment to XR and the metaverse,” said Hugo Swart, vice president and general manager of XR, Qualcomm

Technologies, Inc. “Qualcomm Technologies’ core XR strategy has always been delivering the most cutting-edge technology, purpose-built XR chipsets and enabling the ecosystem with our software platforms and hardware reference designs. We are thrilled to work with Microsoft to help expand and scale the adoption of AR hardware and software across the entire industry.”

“Our goal is to inspire and empower others to collectively work to develop the metaverse future – a future that is grounded in trust and innovation,” said Rubén Caballero, corporate vice president Mixed Reality, Microsoft. “With services like Microsoft Mesh, we are committed to delivering the safest and most comprehensive set of capabilities to power metaverses that blend the physical and digital worlds, ultimately delivering a shared sense of presence across devices. We look forward to working with Qualcomm Technologies to help the entire ecosystem unlock the promise of the metaverse.”

In addition, on Feb. 1, Microsoft Cloud for Retail became generally available. Microsoft Cloud for Retail accelerates business growth by providing trusted retail industry solutions that integrate with retailers’ existing systems. It starts by unifying disparate data sources across the end-to-end shopper journey, allowing retailers to maximize the value of their data, resulting in one holistic view of the consumer.

Once connected, data and AI help retailers better understand and elevate the consumer shopping experience. In providing more relevant and streamlined experiences throughout the retail value chain, retailers can build a real-time sustainable supply chain. The solution also includes the Teams and Viva capabilities announced today, all working toward empowering store associates.

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. has announced a collaboration with Microsoft to expand and accelerate the adoption of augmented reality (AR) in both the consumer and enterprise sector.

Continued from from page 24

Zoom Contact Center sets new standards “Our members trust us with their most privileged information, so when they need support, it is our responsibility to provide them with the expertise First Federal Credit Union is known for,” said Chris Neal, Senior Vice President Operations of First Federal Credit Union. “With Zoom Contact Center, our contact centre supervisors have the ability to organize service representatives based on skills, so when a member reaches out, we can now route their inquiries directly to experts that are equipped to handle their unique needs. A process that would previously require multiple service representatives can now be accelerated and streamlined into a single conversation. We’ve seen our overall call time and pick-up time improve significantly as we provide more efficient resolution and a better experience for our members.”

Photo by Jasmin Sessler on Unsplash Zoom Video Communications, Inc. has announced Zoom Contact Center, an omnichannel contact centre solution that is optimized for video and integrated right into the same Zoom experience.

to the larger organizations: “Previously, contact centre infrastructure was complex to deploy, expensive to operate, and time-intensive to upgrade. Zoom Contact Center was carefully designed to meet the needs of the modern agent and end customer, both of which expect a personalized, digital, and effective contact centre experience,” said Oded Gal, Chief Product Officer of Zoom. “I am pleased to announce the general availability of Zoom Contact Center, building upon the reliable Zoom platform model and bringing the experiences our customers know and love to yet another industry.”

Zoom Contact Center is simple for administrators to configure and deploy, including a graphical drag-and-drop IVR designer.

Contact centre administrators can easily create menus, greetings, and prompts right in the same Zoom Admin portal. Zoom Contact Center can also integrate chat and video into an existing digital presence, like a website, helping organizations have conversations with customers in the right context and at the right time.

Industry News Four in five UK tradespeople could recycle more More than four in five (83%) UK tradespeople say they could recycle more of their work waste, but don’t because they aren’t confident on the rules and regulations, new research has found. The study by IronmongeryDirect, the UK’s largest supplier of specialist ironmongery, found that almost nine in ten (87%) tradespeople feel uncertain about waste management laws. In fact, the vast majority (80%) of workers don’t know where their local recycling facilities are located.

However, there is a strong appetite to address the issue. Almost a quarter (24%) of tradespeople say they are actively trying to reduce the amount of excess they send to landfill, and a similar number (28%) would like more support from local authorities to be able to recycle more. Furthermore, a fifth (20%) try to reuse any materials leftover from jobs and almost one in six (16%) donate spare parts to good causes.

Perhaps due to the nature of their work, some trades are more likely to recycle their waste than others. Plumbers recycle the

most often, with almost three-quarters (73%) saying they do so either always or most of the time. This could be because they are the most knowledgeable about waste management regulations (23%), suggesting education is key. Interestingly, young tradespeople are far more likely to send waste to landfill than their older counterparts. Almost a third (31%) of millennials (25-34s) say their excess materials go straight to the tip, which is more than double the figure for 45-55-year-olds and over 55s (both 12%).

However, millennials are also the most vocal about wanting support to recycle more (36%), showing an eagerness to be more environmentally friendly. Dominick Sandford, Managing Director at IronmongeryDirect, said: “Tradespeople are naturally going to produce waste in their line of work, and while more could be recycled, it’s clear that there’s a real willingness to be as green as possible.

"The figures around young workers in particular point to a clear opportunity to educate and train the next generation of tradespeople in more sustainable practices. That’s why we’ve partnered with waste management experts to explain the rules tradespeople need to follow and give advice on how to dispose of each material.”

Notes [1] Survey of 500 UK tradespeople conducted by The Leadership Factor on behalf of IronmongeryDirect in January 2022.

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P25 AV News March 2022

Peoplewatch

PEOPLEWATCH Having successfully navigated the challenges of the past two years and now riding strong sales and business development momentum, Renkus-Heinz is organizing for the next wave of growth with the appointment of Monika Smetona to the role of President. Currently serving as CFO of the privately held loudspeaker manufacturer and a member of the founding Heinz family, Monika will rely on Ralph Heinz, CTO, to lead the company into the future. Together, they are optimally positioned to further realize the potential of Renkus-Heinz.

Commenting on the appointment, Harro Heinz stated: “At Renkus-Heinz, Monika has worked her way up from handling Finances and HR to now maintaining the smooth running of the factory.

She has become central to our organization, our culture and our continued success, and I am confident that together with Ralph, she will keep us on the same positive trajectory for the next phase of our development.”

Echoing this sentiment, Ralph Heinz noted: “Monika Smetona is the ideal candidate for President. She has the fiscal conservatism and discipline along with strengths in Operations and Human Resources. To complement Monika’s duties, I will continue as CTO to provide future-looking vision and to ensure continued innovation.”

Monika Smetona stated: “As I step into this role, I walk in the footsteps of one of the industry’s most accomplished executives.

I welcome the challenge and I look forward to collaborating with our strong team to forge a new period of sustained innovation and growth at Renkus-Heinz!”

Harro Heinz added: “Looking back at more than 40 years with Renkus-Heinz, there are many current and former employees whose help was critical to get us to where we are. From the bottom of my heart, I am very thankful for their contribution, and I am blessed that both my son and my daughter are interested in the business and are well equipped to accelerate the growth, while keeping it a private enterprise dedicated to creating a better sound solution. I am fortunate that I will continue my involvement with Renkus-Heinz through my Board of Director position.”

Renkus-Heinz is organizing for the next wave of growth with the appointment of Monika Smetona to the role of President.

Jetbuilt has announced the opening of a new business hub in the UK, designed to serve the wider EMEA community. Jetbuilt has also announced the appointment of Dave Gledhill as Head of EMEA Sales. Gledhill is exceptionally well known in the EMEA AV Industry having held senior positions at both manufacturer level, system integrators and having owned his own highly successful AV business for a number of years.

Jetbuilt launched their AV specific quoting platform at InfoComm in 2015 and since then the platform has enjoyed phenomenal growth. Over the past 2 years Jetbuilt has made significant investments to help drive International Sales. Paul Dexter CEO & Founder of Jetbuilt commented “Over the past 6-9 months we have been working with Gordon Dutch and Re-Sauce developing a plan for outside the US. That plan involved translating not just the Jetbuilt website into German, French and Spanish, but also the quoting tool itself. This coupled with the ability to quote, buy and sell in £UK and €Euro means that the platform is now truly ready for further expansion into Europe” Gledhill confirmed “As someone who has worked in this industry for nearly 30 years, I have never seen a platform that encompasses everything the modern AV Integrator needs. From the ability to create super-fast, high-quality quotes, right through to managing the installation, the commissioning and servicing of projects, Jetbuilt really does it all. I am really looking forward to telling people all about this amazing platform”

P26 AV News March 2022

Jetbuilt will be exhibiting at ISE May 10th-13th 2022 Hall 2, stand 2-K400.

Pro AV manufacturer, Hall Technologies has secured its financial future with the addition of Matt Kingsley as the new CFO.

Jetbuilt has announced the appointment of Dave Gledhill as Head of EMEA Sales.

CONTACTCENTER4ALL has announced the appointment of Cees de Jong as its new CEO. Cees succeeds Marcel Reuvers, former CEO and CC4ALL co-founder, who moves on to the main board after overseeing a period of continued expansion and market success for the company. Cees de Jong’s remit is to oversee the next phase of CC4ALL’s major growth as it expands internationally and introduces a range of next-generation solutions.

Cees de Jong brings 20 years of successful leadership experience in the telecoms and wider IT market. He has held various international management positions at Detron, Vancis and Atos, among others. He was previously a Senior Vice President of leading Dutch telco, KPN. “Strengthening and further expanding CC4ALL’s market position is a wonderful opportunity for me, and I am pleased to be part of such a dynamic and fast-growing company,” says Cees de Jong,

Pro AV manufacturer, Hall Technologies has secured its financial future with the addition of Matt Kingsley as the new CFO. Kingsley hails from the Dallas area and has held financial leadership positions over the past 20 years at companies such as AMX, and most recently for RSR. His vast experience ranges from startups to large Fortune 500 companies and is sure to make a big impact at Hall next.

“Matt is a proven global CFO with a superior track record of delivering results and creating value. After a rigorous search process, I’m excited to welcome Matt to Hall Technologies. He is a high-impact executive who brings a compelling blend of strategic discipline, well-honed operating skills, and transformational leadership abilities. He will be a strong partner as we execute our short, and long-term strategies and improve our operating results to position Hall for sustainable, long-term value creation,” says CEO, Jason Schwartz, for Hall Technologies.

“I’ve spent a lot of time in the AV industry, and I’m happy to be working with Hall Technologies to enhance their financial success.

Hall’s reputation and company culture was what was most attractive about this opportunity. Hall’s customer-focused values and innovations are all positive factors as well. I believe that success depends on the strength of the team, and I’m glad to be a big part of this team’s roadmap to success,” says Matt Kingsley, CFO for Hall Technologies.

DTEN is pleased to announce a whole host of new appointments for 2022, including those of Jan Mettner and Jaap Swaminathan.

Jan Mettner joins DTEN as Sales Solution Engineer EMEA. Jan provides years of experience in the AV, UC and IT business and has sold and serviced solutions from Zoom, Cisco, StarLeaf, and Microsoft. In addition, Jan has significant experience in the creation of large video infrastructure installations for major brands in the automotive and home-appliance-industry.

Jaap Swaminathan joins DTEN as Sales Executive - DACH & Benelux. Jaap has over ten years of channel sales experience in IT/ Telecommunications and Video Conferencing through his network of AV, IT & UC Distributors and Vendors.

These additional hires come hot on the heels of other recent DTEN EMEA roles announced with Romain Vital as Country Manager for France and Southern Europe and Lydie Cassabois as Sales & Operations support for DTEN distribution partners across the EMEA region.

CONTACTCENTER4ALL has announced the appointment of Cees de Jong as its new CEO. new CEO. “With the latest state-of-the-art software from CC4Teams, which is set to receive a major new release in H1 2022, the company has a strong portfolio for the future.”

CONTACTCENTER4ALL is a Dutch software company that develops native contact centre software for, and is certified by, Microsoft. The company expanded into the global contact centre and enterprise technology market with CC4Skype and today has a strong position in the market, especially with its flagship solution

Peoplewatch

PEOPLEWATCH

DTEN is pleased to announce a whole host of new appointments for 2022, including those of Jan Mettner and Jaap Swaminathan.

Doug Remington General Manager for DTEN EMEA confirmed: “We are very excited to announce these recent additions to the DTEN team. Our growth in 2021 across EMEA and globally has been phenomenal, and our expectations for 2022 are also significant. It was therefore essential that we are able to provide all our customers and the channel with the correct level of support to match our sales growth. I believe that these hires demonstrate our commitment to these expectations and keeping that high level of service.”

Exertis has announced the appointment of Jawad Bhatti as IT Director, Data & Analytics. Bhatti will take on responsibility for overseeing the integrity of Exertis’ master data through maintaining business intelligence capabilities for the wider business.

Bhatti has specialised in data and insights for twenty years, covering the full data life cycle and specialising in delivering data solutions for all kinds of businesses, regardless of size or industry.

Reporting into Liz Greenwood, UK IT Director, Bhatti will oversee a team of three.

Liz Greenwood, UK IT Director, said, “I’m pleased to announce the appointment of Jawad Bhatti as IT Director, Data & Analytics.

Jawad will be instrumental in driving the data and analytics agenda across the business to enable more accurate reporting.”

Jawad Bhatti, IT Director, Data & Analytics, said, “I am looking forward to taking on the challenge and servicing the wider business to make data accessible in a clean, insight-driven fashion.

I’m delighted to have been given the opportunity to lead a talented team in such a fast-paced, growing business.”

Exertis has announced the appointment of Jawad Bhatti as IT Director, Data & Analytics.

BrightSign LLC has announced it has appointed a new DACH Sales Manager to strengthen its support to customers in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Marc Schiedl, the former Head of the Digital Signage and Signal Management Business Units at Exertis Pro AV (formerly COMM-TEC), stepped into the newly created post

in January. He is already known to BrightSign’s many customers in the region and will spearhead the development of relationships with distribution partners, resellers, CMS vendors and large end-customers across the DACH region.

“This is a very exciting time to be joining BrightSign,” said Schiedl. “The DACH market is growing bigger and bigger thanks to digitalization and the trend towards cloud-driven technologies.

This has been sped up by the Coronavirus, but we see lots more growth in the coming years. BrightSign is responding by really investing in this territory and in new products and technologies, so it’s the right place to be, at the right time. I’m particularly looking forward to developing collaborations with all the other CMS vendors in the channel, to combine the best hardware with the best software for specific projects.”

Pierre Gillet, Vice President, International Sales at BrightSign, commented, “We’ve worked with Marc at Exertis Pro AV for many years, and he knows our products and our team really well. He is a well-known and respected figure in the DACH pro AV market.

We’re delighted to have him on board to help drive our long-term success in the region.”

Schiedl, who holds a degree in IT and business, began his career at Exertis Pro AV in 2007 following an apprenticeship with the leading European communications technology distributor. While there he held positions including Product & Sales Manager for Digital Signage and Software and Product Manager for Recording and Streaming Systems.

“We sold a lot of BrightSign systems at Exertis Pro AV,” Schiedl concluded. “BrightSign is the best in the market, so this is an exciting move for me personally.”

Marc Schiedl, Sales Manager DACH, BrightSign The Barcelona-based digital signage technology start-up Nsign.tv recently announced the appointment of Albert Baranera as its new managing director, reporting to Toni Viñals, the company CEO. From his new post, Baranera will shape Nsign.tv’s sales channel and marketing strategy going forward.

Baranera holds a Law degree from Universidad Pompeu Fabra and completed the General Management Programme at IESE Business School, University of Navarra, as well as the Programme for Management Development at Esade.

The new managing director is taking up his new responsibilities with more than twenty years’ experience to his credit in a number of top management posts in Spain and USA with various international suppliers of solutions-based digital identification, such as Plasco ID, Matica Technologies, BlueStar, Datopack ID and Impuls ID Distribution.

Speaking about his recent appointment, Albert Baranera said: “I am joining Nsign.tv at a really exciting moment. On one hand, the market is seeing a boom in the digitization of physical spaces, where brands and businesses are looking for a better connection and interaction with their audiences (customers, visitors, employees, clients). And, on the other, our digital signage platform is at an optimum moment with the right product, team and the capability and strength to expand nationally and internationally.”

On his new role in the company, Baranera explained: “As managing director of Nsign.tv I will be focusing my energies on organizing the company resources to ensure our expansion and ongoing investment in innovation. On the other hand, I will be looking to set in place the sales channels necessary for our technology to reach potential end users, offering a product that creates a positive impact thanks to its interoperability with multiple sources of

information, its scalability in implementation (able to evolve from publishing contents to customizing them for specific audiences), obtaining all kinds of metrics to evaluate its impact and, above all else, offering the platform with the best user experience in the market.”

Toni Viñals, CEO of Nsign.tv added: “We are delighted to welcome Albert on board. His professional track record is grounded in three areas which are absolutely key for us, namely technology, internationality and creating channels. He has the expertise required to organize the company’s various departments and focus them not only on having the best digital signage platform, but also on being an attractive company for the different technological partners needed to guarantee the best solution for the end customer.”

Albert Baranera’s immediate challenges include Nsign.tv’s upcoming participation at ISE 2022, the world’s biggest AV fair, scheduled for 10 through 13 May in Barcelona. The new managing director concluded, “we are really excited about exhibiting at ISE again. Visitors will be able to see how our platform has evolved technologically and how digital signage is much more than just showing audiovisual contents. Now we are talking about full interaction with audiences using touch screens, IoT devices and AI analytical functions.”

Silver Spoon continues to augment its real-time animation and virtual production capabilities with the hiring of new Head of Production, Angela Cardetti. The recent enlistment follows the studio’s expansion of operations to Los Angeles in addition to their New York base. Silver Spoon continues to lead the virtual production industry, supporting broadcast projects like the Super Bowl, CBS’s March Madness, Fox’s real-time avatar singing competition ‘Alter Ego’ as well as numerous commercials, television shows, films and live events.

Angela Cardetti joins Silver Spoon as Head of Production with over 15 years of experience in technical production across multiple disciplines of audio, video and lighting in both the broadcast and live event industries. In her previous role as Director of Video Services for Brainhub Powering ETP, she led the crew responsible for designing and executing complex video systems for large scale corporate events and entertainment touring projects. Included on the distinguished list of Fortune 50 companies, she has worked with Cisco, IBM, Meta, Amazon, and Dell as well as touring artists J. Cole, Lindsey Stirling and Usher. At the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, she helped pivot live events toward remote and virtual production, which over the last two years has honed her expertise in AR and XR workflows.

Excited about her new position, Angela states, “I am thrilled to be at the intersection of creativity and technology with Silver Spoon, a clear leader in the world of virtual production. With the rapid growth we are experiencing, I am delighted to develop and lead teams of brilliant individuals to create and deliver sensational experiences that bring ideas to life.”

Laura Herzing, Executive Producer at Silver Spoon, shares in the excitement: “Silver Spoon has experienced such tremendous growth over the last two years, and Angela brings a wealth of production and technical knowledge to our growing team. We are absolutely thrilled to have her here, and she will be a vital part of helping us continue to grow and expand in new directions.

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P27 AV News March 2022

Diary and Events

InfoComm 2022 Registration Open

AVIXA 2022 Digital Signage Programming

InfoComm 2022, produced by AVIXA, will return to Las Vegas June 4-10, 2022, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Registration is officially open at www.infocommshow.org.

“We are ecstatic to bring InfoComm back to the always exciting city of Las Vegas,” said David Labuskes, CTS, CAE, RCDD, CEO of AVIXA. “InfoComm is the home for commerce and connections for the pro AV industry – one week, one place where you can accomplish so much to push your business and career forward.”

InfoComm will take place in the North Hall and newly constructed West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC). The West Hall is a $1 billion expansion to the LVCC providing an additional 1.4 million square feet of new space and featuring the largest digital display experience in a convention centre in the U.S. The Las Vegas Convention Center Loop system is also new for InfoComm 2022.

The three-station underground transportation system developed by Elon Musk's The Boring Company shuttles convention attendees throughout the 200-acre campus in all-electric Tesla vehicles.

InfoComm 2022 will explore the largest, fastest growing, and most critical pro AV solutions that drive this $257.7 billion industry. The trade show floor and education program will spotlight conferencing and collaboration; content, production, and streaming; digital signage, learning technologies, live events, audio, and much more. The education program kicks off with technical training three-day courses and CTS,

Digital signage is poised for strong revenue growth, with a forecast of $35 billion in 2022, increasing to $44.7 billion in 2026 – making it one of the largest solution areas in the pro AV industry, according to AVIXA’s Industry Outlook and Trends Analysis (IOTA).

To keep AV and digital signage professionals informed on the latest trends and best practices in digital signage, AVIXA has renewed its partnership with the Digital Signage Federation (DSF). Together, they will present a rich digital signage education program in 2022. “As an association, AVIXA brings together the AV community to examine the critical solutions that make up the pro AV ecosystem,” said David Labuskes, CTS, CAE, RCDD, CEO of AVIXA. “This exploration goes beyond our shows – it’s in our education, market research, and standards. With this extensive suite of tools serving our global audience every day, AV professionals can better capitalize on the opportunities digital signage presents.”

In 2022, AVIXA and the Digital Signage Federation is collaborating to present monthly D=SIGN Power Hour webinar series covering topics like scoping and pricing digital signage projects, designing spaces with LED, and much more. AVIXA and the DSF will also host the D=SIGN digital signage con-

ference at InfoComm 2022 in June to examine the solutions, innovations, and big ideas around digital signage.

“The DSF is pleased to extend its partnership with AVIXA in the development of high quality, relevant, and accessible education for integrators, resellers, and other professionals represented in our shared constituency,” said Len Dudis, Chair of DSF. “We had great success with the D=SIGN programs in 2020 and 2021, and we look forward to reaching even more people in 2022 who are seeking education and the latest industry insights on digital signage and digital out of home. The DSF is made up of people who work in digital signage each and every day, and our member-developed education delivers on the promise of authentic insight from true experts in the field.”

AVIXA offers a 20% discount to DSF members for InfoComm 2022 education sessions, council events, and show floor passes. In addition, DSF members securing an AVIXA membership (bronze, silver, or gold) will receive the AVIXA member discount rate for exhibit space at InfoComm 2022. Also at InfoComm 2022, the trade show floor will feature a Digital Signage Pavilion where attendees can discover the latest digital signage solutions, including content creation software,

Manchester is set to host the inaugural Manchester Tech Week - the North’s largest ever digital transformation event which will assemble the best of the northern tech community for a special week of innovation, showcase and collaborations. The event is brought to Manchester by Clarion Events, the organisers of IP EXPO (now re-branded Digital Transformation EXPO (DTX)) and Unified Communications EXPO (UCX).

It puts tech firmly at the forefront of economic recovery post-pandemic for the North and is hosted in Manchester - the city which continues to lead the way in networks, cloud transformation, cyber security, data, AI, broadcasting and collaboration technologies. On the opening day, Gary Neville - the footballer turned TV pundit, hotelier, property developer and university founder - will deliver a keynote speech to talk about the role of mental resilience, team strategy and data driven decision making.

James McGough, MD of Manchester Tech Week, said the purpose of the event was to showcase how tech is transforming both business and society in Europe’s fastest growing digital city. He commented “We’re thrilled to be launching Manchester Tech Week. This will be the North’s biggest digital transformation event focussed on how to improve connectivity and implement cutting edge enterprise technologies. We’ll be featuring a collective of some of the region’s most loved institutions,

community groups, and associations as we bring together the northern tech community for something truly special. With the 150+ of the world’s leading technology brands, Manchester Central is set to host the biggest tech exhibition that the region has ever seen.”

The week will be anchored by three major shows - Digital Transformation EXPO (DTX) which returns for its sixth outing in the city (previously IP EXPO) as well as the launch of Unified Communications EXPO (UCX) and Connected North. Together these events will address the major challenges faced by public and private sector organisations of all sizes and provide a roadmap for future strategy. There will be a further 10 fringe events from supporting partners including big-hitting support from major institutions including the Department of International Trade, MIDAS, H.O.S.T, GM Combined Authority, GM Chamber of Commerce, Pro-Manchester, Manchester Digital, and the leading community meet-up groups from Cyber Security, DevOps and AI. It will also feature some of the world’s most influential tech brands including CISCO, Okta, AWS, 8X8, Zoom, Splunk, Threatlocker, DarkTrace, RingCentral and GAMMA, delivering more NOW and WOW factor for visitors looking to accelerate digital transformation in their businesses. CISCO Chief Executive, UK & Ireland, David Meads commented: “With a heritage in innovation, Man-

InfoComm 2022, produced by AVIXA, will return to Las Vegas June 4-10, 2022, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Registration is officially open CTS-I and CTS-D Prep on June 4-6. The show’s 12 education tracks and manufacturer’s training will take place on June 7-10.

In addition, on June 7 and 8, AVIXA and the Digital Signage Federation will host the D=SIGN digital signage conference to examine the solutions, innovations, and big ideas around digital signage. InfoComm attendees can also find valuable insights at the Technology Innovation Stage on the show floor June 8-10. These free sessions will feature New Technology Lightning Rounds highlighting new products, industry trend forecasts, and more.

During the week of the show, Integrated Experience Tours will be hosted around Las Vegas spots where attendees can see stunning AV deployments in the real world and hear from the creators behind them. The tour of the University of Las Vegas will take attendees through the renovation of the Flora Dungan Humanities building which features a Dolby Atmos theatre. At the Illuminarium, attendees will be treated to an immersive experience powered by 4K interactive projection, 360° audio, in-floor vibrations and scent systems. Another

tour will take place at the new West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, which features a 10,000-square foot video wall, overhead directional digital signage, and interactive 3D wayfinders.

InfoComm 2022 will host many AVIXA council events including the Women’s Council Breakfast, Technology Managers Forum, Live Events Forum, and All-Council Luncheon. In addition, the Young AV Professionals Council and Diversity Council will host sessions on the Technology Innovation Stage. “It’s been four years since we’ve hosted InfoComm in Las Vegas and we look forward to returning this June,” said Rochelle Richardson, CEM, Senior Vice President of Expositions and Events, AVIXA. “The AV community is going to be treated to new sights – from the brand-new West Hall at the convention centre to exciting new AV tours around the city.

Las Vegas offers state-of-theart venues, exceptional culinary and hospitality experiences, and is an electric place for business professionals to gather, network, and collaborate – an ideal meeting place for the AV industry with health and safety as a priority.”

at Shure. “And after such a challenging period for the entire industry, we are looking forward to bringing the AV community back together with a fantastic line-up of live conferences.” “ISE and Shure have upheld a long-standing relationship, spanning decades,” commented Mike Blackman, Managing Director, Integrated Systems Events. “With nearly 100 years of history shaping audio, having Shure as our sole audio provider for all conferences will ensure ISE 2022 is a show to remember!”

The ISE 2022 conference schedule will include a host of keynote speakers, presenters, and demonstrations, all of which will use the best and latest innovative Shure technology and products. Shure will also be working closely with audio specialist Iventions for all on-site audio activities and to ensure a smooth-running conference programme.

ISE 2022 conference programme:

Shure is Conference Audio Partner for ISE Integrated Systems Europe has announced global audio manufacturer Shure as the Conference Audio Partner for ISE 2022. Taking place at the Fira de Barcelona Gran Via, ISE 2022 will host four days of unrivalled conference content across a broad range of vertical markets including Live Events, Education and Digital Signage.

Conferencing expert Shure will be supporting the leading event for the AV industry with a full range of audio equipment, including its Axient Digital Wireless System. Trusted by top audio professionals from live performance to theatre and broadcast, Axient Digital is the most widely used highend wireless system, providing signal stability and clear audio even in the most congested RF environments. The complexity of an event like ISE, with several stages all with significant wireless channel requirements, demands highest standards for the sound setup. Relying on Shure’s solutions is the ideal choice to help ensure impeccable audio quality throughout all spaces at the Fira de Barcelona.

“We are honoured to be the Conference Audio Partner for ISE this year,” said Chris Schyvinck, President and CEO

P28 AV News March 2022

Monday 9 May 2022 • Smart Building Conference • Superyacht Technology Summit Tuesday 10 May 2022 • Control Rooms Summit • Smart Workplace Summit Wednesday 11 May 2022 • Digital Signage Summit • Digital Learning Summit Thursday 12 May 2022 • Live Events Summit To experience Shure’s innovative technology and fully immerse yourself in the knowledge of industry experts first-hand, book your ticket to ISE 2022 now and visit Shure at booth 3N250 or go to: https://www. shure.com/en-US/conferencing-meetings/ise. Registration is open at https://iseurope.org/ register.php Integrated Systems Europe, ISE 2022, will take place at the Fira de Barcelona Gran Vía on 10-13 May 2022. The ISE Conference programme runs from Monday 9 May through to Thursday 12 May. For more information, please visit www. iseurope.org

direct-view LED displays, touchscreens and interactive displays, and much more. In addition, attendees interested in digital signage can register for a curated tour of the trade show floor.

AVIXA’s market intelligence provides valuable global data and analysis about the digital signage market and pro AV industry overall in its annual Industry Outlook and Trends Analysis (IOTA). The 2022 report will be released in late Spring. In addition, AVIXA has a library of published AV standards approved by the American National Standards Institute created to help AV systems perform at their highest level.

Pertinent AV standards for digital signage projects include display image size, image system contrast ratio, and more. .

Manchester Tech Week 2022 launches

chester has a rare kind of technology-fuelled ambition, which deserves a spotlight. We are delighted to be partnering with Manchester Tech Week to help create just that.” He added: “From AI to quantum computing, technology has the potential to not only connect us in ways that we haven’t yet imagined, but to solve challenges at every level; for regions, industries, or for small businesses looking to take on the world.

We’ve only just scratched the surface.”

Keynotes at the event include Physicist Professor Jim Al-Khalili who will look at how the science of tomorrow is set to guide the world of work today and the award-winning security blogger Graham Cluley, who will discuss the role of cyber security, hacking and how to make the right decisions under pressure.