SANTA CLARA, Calif. — ScreenBeam Inc., a global leader in wireless display and collaboration solutions, announced the beta release of ScreenBeam Conference to add support for major video conferencing services to ScreenBeam’s contactless wireless presentation platform. With ScreenBeam Conference users can host a hybrid meeting using their personal laptop* and conferencing client tool of choice while taking full advantage of the room meeting equipment. ScreenBeam Conference is now available at no charge with every ScreenBeam 1100 Plus wireless display receiver and without additional hardware or license fees.
Bring Your Own Meeting (BYOM) to Drive a Smart Hybrid Work Environment
According to the 2021 PwC US Remote Work survey, US executives are planning new investment to support hybrid working. The report cites 72% of executives surveyed plan increased investment for virtual collaboration tools and 57% report expanded budget for conference rooms with enhanced virtual connectivity. This aligns with 87% of employees who say a return to the office is a top-rated need for team collaboration and building relationships.
While traditional UC conference solutions are highly effective for remote meeting participants, new challenges arise within a hybrid model blending remote and in-person meeting participants. A solution needs to enable an engaging experience for both groups, support the host’s personal choice of video conferencing tool, and work easily in any environment from a traditional UC room to a non-UC space equipped only with a room display, all while meeting company safety protocols.
ScreenBeam Conference Provides Meeting Control and Customization
ScreenBeam Conference is a software-delivered solution now available with every ScreenBeam 1100 Plus wireless display receiver. It allows content on the room display to be shared with remote meeting participants to provide a better collaborative experience between in-room and remote participants. Host devices are automatically connected wirelessly to room cameras, microphones, and soundbars providing flexibility beyond that of traditional UC room systems without the technical limitations. With ScreenBeam Conference, hosts gain complete control of how they want to run their meeting. Users can override the meeting room system to use their personal choice of video conferencing tool, as well as launch and drive the UC meeting from their personal device. By building agnostic support for video conferencing solutions on top of ScreenBeam contactless wireless display, users never touch shared room dongles, cables or tablets to ensure a safer user experience.
ScreenBeam deployment is easy and flexible with HDMI output for wireless connections to room displays, multiple USB ports to connect to room peripherals, and with HDMI ingest with auto-switching, the possibilities become endless. Alternatively, ScreenBeam 1100 Plus can easily connect into a traditional UC room system to provide a contactless wireless presentation experience on any Windows, Apple or Chrome device.
ScreenBeam Conference Key Advantages
There are many advantages and benefits to deploying ScreenBeam 1100 Plus with ScreenBeam Conference into your company’s meeting spaces including:
- Avoids issues when room is locked into a designated conferencing tool
- Enables automatic wirelessly connectivity to room AV equipment
- Allows remote meeting participants to view content shared on room display
- Removes contact with shared dongles and cables with app-free wireless sharing
- Reduces cost by eliminating licensing fees and dedicated hardware
“How to replicate true, spontaneous collaboration safely and securely in a natural way within the new hybrid work environment is top of mind for our customers and partners. Based on numerous conversations we have shared these past few months,” cites Mike Ehlenberger, VP and GM ScreenBeam Inc. “The key is to ensure the technology does not get in the way of the user and does not break the bank as many of our customers not only have multiple rooms but multiple buildings to retrofit in the not-too-distant future. ScreenBeam was already so simple to use we chose to deliver web conferencing functionality on our existing hardware and apply the same approach to ease of use. This not only streamlined our solution, but we also made the important decision to not charge extra for this much needed capability.”
Pricing and availability
All current and new 1100 Plus customers can download the beta version of the software update for free here. Unit cost of the receiver featuring ScreenBeam Conference software will remain at $999 USD. Please contact your ScreenBeam sales rep or Authorized ScreenBeam Elite Partner for more details. Additional information and the product datasheet are available here and a quick “how to video” can be seen here.
*Currently available for Windows 10 laptops with macOS support coming soon.
