Latest headlines: Scott Tiner on remote support, Steph Beckett on hybrid working, plus news from ClearOne, Shure, Matrox, NEC and more
August 17, 2020 | Volume: 6 | Issue: 15
Hey, everyone! It’s been a minute. While I know it comes to no surprise to you that there is, in fact, news in this newsletter, I feel the need to remind you. We have SOME NEWS in this newsletter. And by some, I mean A TON. I want to take this time really quickly to point out a few highlights:
We have four awesome columns for you today, so you can pick your poison. Scott Tiner talks about how remote support seems like a much better idea than it used to, now that schools are back in session.
Peep my column on hybrid working: I read Poly’s recent study and gave you all my thoughts. It’s a great time to be thinking about hybrid working, as companies are planning what the rest of the year will look like. I’m actually hosting the SYNNEX COLLABSolv Home-to-Office Technology Day on Thursday, and we are talking about this! Please join us — it will be fun and informative.
ClearOne and Shure have released the latest on the great patent saga of 2020. Click or scroll down to industry news for the full story: Both companies seem somewhat happy with the result of the latest legal update?
I will not try to summarize the product news. There is so much. Plenty of products to strike every fancy. Enjoy!
Back in the late fall of 2019, I first heard of Teleportivity. It was in a demo video that Gary Kayye posted right here on rAVe [PUBS]. My initial thought was that the idea was great, but I wondered about the product’s efficacy at smaller institutions like mine, or even mid-size colleges and universities. We are now in August 2020, and in the middle of a pandemic, that is — literally — raging across the country. We are all thinking of serving our faculty and staff in the short term and long. In a few weeks, many of us will welcome some or all of our students and faculty back.
Obviously, companies are seeing that this type of work-from-home, Zoom-calls-to-check-in-and-make-sure-nobody-is-watching-“Friends”-on-HBO-Max-all-day method can work! So, are your CEOs going to rush you back to the office post-COVID when they can save money by keeping you at the house without risking productivity? Probably not, folks!
There is no doubt that COVID-19 is having a sustained impact on a wide range of markets, from videoconferencing and video content production, to installation verticals, touring and rental. Additionally, as the world starts to ease lockdown restrictions, and return to a “new normal,” discussions turn to the effects felt by the various industry sectors and focuses in on what the AV industry might look like once the pandemic moves into the rear-view mirror.
School districts nationwide are being advised to space out desks, close cafeteria lunches and ban recess time to protect our children, teachers and communities. Some schools have already announced the continuation of remote schooling or even a hybrid model for the upcoming year. This is where the term “Distance Learning” really resonates with us all.
