posted 21 January 2004 12:37 PM               

The technical side gets worse incidentally with something like 23 video clips to be downloaded and watched prior to certification on one product.

posted 26 January 2004 02:04 PM            

End users are looking for solutions to business problems not a monkey who knows the difference between a T1 and a J1, that is a technical issue that the clients IT guy looks after.

PictureTel certainly had its faults but one thing they did a great job of was tell the potential market about the benefits of VC, not just say hey look over here we're cheaper !!!

From what I see polycom lost there way back in 1999 filling channel who didn't need it with kit at stupid prices to hit a ridiculous target. By totally over stocking the market they have made a rod for their own backs. They should cut the number of distribution channels not force uninterested channels into training courses that wont help those channels sell any more.

The new sales director seems reasonably and seems to want to push the Polycom Office solution sale, seems like a good idea but now look who you've got as a competitor !!! Only Cisco, well that's ok then, Polycom arebound to win that fight !!! NOT

posted 28 January 2004 08:41 AM            

I'd wager that over the next couple of months proof of that closeness continue to emerge.

posted 30 January 2004 04:03 AM            

As for Aethra, I just confirmed that the distribution agreement based on their recent press release is only effective in UK market.

posted 02 February 2004 09:41 AM            

Review have indded signed with Aethra for UK, addtiionally, I understand that Review UK have recently launched, via video, their Sony release to what I believe is a "select" group of resellers.

Whilst Polycom appear ambivalent to Review US & UK's activities, I agree with CaptainV in his earlier post. They only need to keep poking the wasps nest that bit to long and they will get stung. I can't bekieve that they honestly think they can back fill the loss of the Polycom line with Aethra and Sony

posted 02 February 2004 09:37 PM            

Another aspect of this issue, Sony recently put out the press release on its lower priced version of PCS-1, which is PCS-11.
The press release came out in the US but not in Japan or Sony's homebase.

It will come out in Japan sooner or later but we do not know when. They do not disclose the date.

As for PCS-1, the press release came out first in Japan market and so as its version 2.0.

However, as for PCS-11, things happened was the other way around.

I was thinking about this if there is any possible linkage between this timing of this press release came out in the US earlier than in Japan,and the signing of the agreement between ReView Video US and Sony.

My assumption is that

Sony is trying to break into and get a share in the market dominated by Polycom and TANDBERG.Especially the US market or the world largest market.

They want to really leverage the power of ReView Video US in the sales of Sony's video set-tops in the US market.

In order to do that, Sony needed to show that their commitment in the US market in the form of an implicit message to distributors and resellers in the US by putting the PCS-11 new product press release first in the US not in its homeland Japan.

Certainly there is a timing that has to be put into consideration when to put out the new product in the Japanese market since we are approaching the fiscal year end in March.(FY end for most companies in Japan is March )

They need to sell out products in the inventory as things left piled up mean cost in terms of business operation perspective for any companies. This is something that has to be avoided.

However, if you look at this issue from the US side, recent PCS-11 press release came out earlier in the US than in Japan could mean Sony's implicit signaling of message to distributors and resellers in the US to show that US market is important for Sony.

My two Japanese Yen,

posted 06 February 2004 04:29 AM            

It would appear that Aethra are using Review as a Springboard to try and buy market share in UK. A little mole tells me a Hospital in the west country has been "GIVEN" a number of units free of charge via Review Video!!

Clearly Review and Aethra feel that they can not go head to head with their competition and have to resort to "giving" products to end users. How does the saying go? "You only get what you pay for!!"

posted 06 February 2004 04:57 AM               

Are you Review's PR agent, with all your so called knowledge of what they are doing or just a frustrated Polycom employee?

posted 06 February 2004 07:11 AM               

If as 'you' say Review are giving product to hospitals, surely the represents a generous and thoughtful gesture.

posted 02 March 2004 01:54 PM            

120 systems I believe.

I'm sure that the old Polycom European MD then joined them to do some "consultancy" is purely just a lucky twist of fate.

At least Aethrea / Review appears to be giving some hospitals some much needed kit rather than simply helping out the retirement fund for some some mates in the industry.

At least VMC did something useful with them, oh no, sorry, now I remember they simply gutted the price sold them off cheap and now appear to be going out of business.

posted 02 March 2004 02:01 PM            

Must comment on ReView being careful. I think they've probably just about had enough of Polycom mucking them about both sides of the Atlantic.
It is after all their business and any business that is more than 50% any supplier is very exposed. I think more people should be careful of Polycom and Tandberg its just so unhealthy to have 80% of a market shared between two companies.

Everytime I look at the conferencing market I can here the sound of flushing.

posted 02 March 2004 09:04 PM            

This year, we see moves by Sony, Aethra, and VCON that show their intention of changing the landscape. So this year may be an interesting one.

However, Polycom and TANDBERG look that they are trying to have everything in their respective product portofolios to strengthen their positions so in a way, it may be getting tough for the time being for other "market followers or challenger(whatever you call it)" to cope with the situation.