Table of Contents
- Summary
- Key Criteria Comparison
- GigaOm Radar
- Vendor Insights
- Analyst’s Take
- Methodology
- About Andrew Brust
- About GigaOm
- Copyright
1. Summary
The world has changed. Almost overnight, the COVID-19 pandemic forced millions of workers worldwide out of their offices and into their dining rooms, bedrooms, and home offices to do their jobs. To say that the migration has been unprecedented is an understatement.
This global restructuring of work has produced a stratospheric rise in the deployment and use of video conferencing and collaboration platforms at organizations of every type and size. But that transition has been anything but orderly, as IT organizations moving to adopt enterprise-focused video conferencing platforms ran afoul of end users already fiercely loyal to easy-to-use, consumer-friendly video conferencing services–most notably, Zoom. The result has been a struggle that has pitted enterprises focused on priorities like security, privacy, and integrations against workers focused on familiarity and ease of use.
It is no surprise that the instant ubiquity of video conferencing has kicked off intense activity in the sector. We have seen significant investment in previously moribund platforms even as new offerings have sprung up. At the same time, the distinction between enterprise and consumer video conferencing platforms is blurring, as vendors in each camp adopt features that appeal to the other.
Video conferencing platforms have already assumed a position alongside email as a core channel for communication and collaboration. Their widespread use and increasing integration into both personal and professional life means we can expect video conferencing platforms to evolve and extend, adding capabilities ranging from team collaboration features to immersive, virtual environments that place video of participants into a shared digital space.
In this report, we explore the fast-changing arena of video conferencing platforms and gauge their capabilities. We assess the most important features of these platforms, breaking them into base-level table stakes, differentiating key criteria, and forthcoming emerging technologies. We further identify and explore a series of top-line characteristics for these products, in order to help IT decision makers better judge which platforms are best suited to their needs.
How to Read this Report
This GigaOm report is one of a series of documents that helps IT organizations assess competing solutions in the context of well-defined features and criteria. For a fuller understanding consider reviewing the following reports:
Key Criteria report: A detailed market sector analysis that assesses the impact that key product features and criteria have on top-line solution characteristics—such as scalability, performance, and TCO—that drive purchase decisions.
GigaOm Radar report: A forward-looking analysis that plots the relative value and progression of vendor solutions along multiple axes based on strategy and execution. The Radar report includes a breakdown of each vendor’s offering in the sector.
Vendor Profile: An in-depth vendor analysis that builds on the framework developed in the Key Criteria and Radar reports to assess a company’s engagement within a technology sector. This analysis includes forward-looking guidance around both strategy and product.