Yesterday in Orlando at VoiceCon, which has been very well covered by my colleagues on the avaya.com blog here, here and here, our CEO Kevin Kennedy gave a keynote address to the conference. As a point of background, VoiceCon is focused on IP Telephony and how to leverage that technology to improve the business operation. You can check out the talk and others at this here.
During his speech, Kennedy "presented a demo of Avaya's Web.Alive immersive environment, which includes a 3D auditory experience unlike anything I've ever experienced- eliciting a "way cool" reaction from some analysts in the twittersphere"
I am glad this presentation got some buzz from analyst, and as someone who has used the technology on and off for the last couple of years, I am not surprised.
What is web.alive?
For those that don't know about web.alive, here is the summary from the website devoted to this offer, which has lots more information about web.alive. Web.alive is a software service that provides an enterprise ready, network secured platform for assisting ecommerce, learning/training applications, and collaboration. Using stunning 3D graphics borrowed from the entertainment industry and revolution 3D audio, web.alive engages your audience while allowing fluid and natural communication. With a feature set designed specifically for the enterprise, web.alive integrates with your existing network, security and business software tools in order to enhance your communication, collaboration, and employee / consumer engagement.
So, now that you have a good background understanding of web.alive, you should go check out the platform for yourself with the free demo. At the link above, you can download the software and play around in the virtual work environment that is online. You can do this from your office, or your house, or a coffee shop. While playing around with your avatar and checking out the various conference rooms in this environment, imagine meeting colleagues from around the world on web.alive, talking to them over your internet connection, wherever that may be. While there, you should also check out the energy efficiency section of the demo environment, where there are a number of multimedia tools on the topic.
My own experience using web.alive
I started using an earlier version of web.alive for in the early fall of 2008, while at Nortel. This earlier version was not nearly as seamless an interface as the current version, but even these initial versions led to much richer, more collaborative and engaged 'calls' with my colleagues. People enjoyed hearing people via the spatial audio that is a cool feature in web.alive, and seeing colleagues on-screen even if they are represented by an avatar. I really enjoyed the experience and am impressed with the advances that have been made in the platform.
Green alive
So what makes web.alive green? The first aspect of the green credentials in the migration to the digital realm comes from savings that can be realized by reducing office space. Office space energy consumption really adds up, especially considering that folks ostensibly work between 8-10 hours a day, 5 days a week. If you are meeting in a virtual conference rooms and not an actual conference room, there is no longer a need to maintain (heat, cool, light) that space. We have done some rough calculations that you can end up reducing cost between 20 to 30 times via the digital environment versus the traditional office environment.
My own experience gets to another green feature, that of avoiding business travel. My colleagues such as the Green Core Team I lead up work in locations across the world; Tel Aviv, outside of London, Denver, New Jersey, San Fran, etc. The cost and carbon footprint of getting us all in one space would be huge. Now, a face to face meeting is obviously not necessary for our normal business operations, but web.alive software can also replace meetings that might require face to face. Having used it myself, I am very comfortable making that statement.
I am convinced that web.alive is part of the solution for a more resource efficient and less costly way of doing business. Check it out and let us know what you think. Do you think this has applications in your office/company? How would you use web.alive?
Posted 24 Mar 2010 at 08:42 PM
Comments
Hi Wilson,
Thanks for the great post about web.alive. I am very interested in this technology with a specific purpose in mind. But I have been unable to find any information on when it is scheduled to be released, if at all. Are you aware of what Avaya has in store for those of us eager to get out hands on a commercial version of this platform?
Thanks,
Posted 5 Apr 2010 at 04:49 AMAjita
Ajita,
All I can share is the link to the web.alive website, specifically the contact page-http://avayalive.com/WaStore/Contact.aspx. That is an area that is beyond my direct scope and I would encourage you to reach out to that team for an answer to the schedule question.
Hope they can help you out and get the info you need (and please come back to post their answer for others that are interested in this new product)
Posted 27 Apr 2010 at 07:33 PMAlso, you can, and really should, go to the web.alive demo site and ask the experts that way- http://avayalive.com/WaStore/Default.aspx. That way you are going right to the source and get to play around in the immersive environment.
Posted 27 Apr 2010 at 07:54 PM