ClearOne cited for effectively leveraging the synergy effect of audio and video convergence to position itself as a holistic provider with end-to-end offerings.
ClearOne (NASDAQ: CLRO), the leading global provider of audio and visual communication solutions, today announced that it is being recognized with the 2017 Frost & Sullivan Award for Converged Audio and Video Conferencing Competitive Strategy Innovation and Leadership. The recognition stems from Frost & Sullivan’s ongoing analysis of the unified communications and collaboration (UC&C) market, which cites ClearOne’s diverse video collaboration product and services portfolio for its ability to cater to businesses of varying sizes, industries, and technology requirements with a high degree of customization.
According to the Frost & Sullivan award citation, while many vendors now acknowledge the opportunities arising from growing demand for video collaboration and cloud video services, there are few that offer a tight integration between audio and video endpoints and cloud video services. ClearOne’s ability to deliver this tight audio and video integration gives it an edge over many competing conferencing vendors and the value customers demand.
“We are honored to be recognized by Frost & Sullivan for the investment we make each and every day in bringing meaningful collaboration solutions to systems integrators and end-users around the world,” said ClearOne President & CEO Zee Hakimoglu. “I accept this honor on behalf of our employees and partners who make possible our continued success.”
A pioneer in the audio conferencing endpoint space, ClearOne has a versatile portfolio across tabletop and installed audio conferencing endpoint markets. More specifically, ClearOne’s flagship products, including the CONVERGE® Pro series and Beamforming Microphone Arrays, have deeply penetrated large boardrooms and conference rooms worldwide. ClearOne announced and started shipping its 2nd generation of its flagship products – CONVERGE Pro 2 DSP mixers and Beamforming Microphone Array 2. Based on Frost’s analysis, ClearOne has been recognized as global market leader in installed audio conferencing market.
“ClearOne is leveraging its long track record and experience in the industry to hone its audio portfolio and build up advanced features and functionalities in order to more effectively accommodate evolving customer needs in video solutions,” says Frost & Sullivan Analyst Vaishno Devi Srinivasan.
As ClearOne continues to innovate in the professional audio space, the provider recognizes that businesses today are increasingly demanding video collaboration solutions. As such, ClearOne is anchoring on its strong foundation in audio to increasingly focus on developing a sound video strategy to complement its audio endpoints. The company has successfully expanded its solution set to execute audio and video convergence through both internal development and acquisition. Its video catalog is comprised of:
- The COLLABORATE® Pro is a complete series of media collaboration solutions that enable cloud and traditional video conferencing, Skype for Business meetings and in-room meetings, as well as other visual collaboration capabilities such as wired and wireless presentation sharing, live streaming, and recording.
- Spontania® is a stand-alone feature-rich Web and video conferencing service that can be deployed on-premises or in the cloud, and it can be used with ClearOne or third-party audio and video peripherals.
- COLLABORATE Versa 150 is for “bring your own” video and Web conferencing and includes a USB PTZ camera, speakerphone, and central hub for connecting laptops to conference rooms where popular third-party video and Web conferencing applications are utilized.
- The UNITE® 200/150 is a professional pan/tilt/zoom camera series with multiple connection interfaces including USB, HDMI, IP, 1080p HD resolution, and 12X optical zoom to support a wide range of meeting spaces.
Today, ClearOne’s portfolio consists of a robust breadth and depth of audio conferencing solutions, visual collaboration systems, and feature-rich cloud unified communications and collaboration services. With an emphasis on high quality, ease of use, and powerful functionality, ClearOne is able offer end-user organizations the flexibility to implement next-generation capabilities as they wish—on-premises, as cloud services, or a hybrid mix of the two. These characteristics enable customers to move at their own pace in an increasingly competitive digital world.
“A comprehensive portfolio, compelling features, affordable prices, and unified solution capabilities are key criteria for vendors to gain share in the future,” explains Frost & Sullivan Analyst Srinivasan. “With a comprehensive audio and video conferencing endpoints and peripheral portfolio, ClearOne is well positioned to grow further and achieve larger customer mindshare.”
Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that has developed a comprehensive product line that caters to the breadth of the market it serves. The award recognizes the extent to which the product line meets customer base demands, the overall impact it has in terms of customer value, as well as increased market share.
Frost & Sullivan Best Practices awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.
Click here to read the full Frost & Sullivan Award Write Up.