Video Conferencing Takes Wing as Travel Option

By Eric Benderoff and Mike Hughlett
Chicago Tribune Staff Reporters.

London's recent terrorist scare rattled thousands of business travelers, but unlike after the 9/11 attacks, video conferencing technology is so common that it has emerged as a viable alternative for many road warriors.

Several factors have spurred conferencing's growth in the past five years. Prices for audio and video gear have dropped in half, access to a conference is as close as a mobile phone, and the use of high-speed Internet connections is escalating.

U.S. Workers Waste $3.9 Billion Annually By Not Telecommuting

National Survey Finds Most of the 25 Percent With an Option to Telecommute Prefer to Drive

Americans' love affair with the automobile is costing the U.S. economy $3.9 billion a year in fuel and time equal to 470,000 jobs, according to the 2005/2006 National Technology Readiness Survey (NTRS) released today. The annual survey—sponsored by the Robert H. Smith School of Business' Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland and technology research firm Rockbridge Associates Inc.—found that despite 25 percent of respondents citing supportive employer telecommuting policies or jobs that would allow work from home, only 11 percent are doing so.

"With national gas prices hovering near $3 a gallon, American workers could suffer less pain at the pump if they took advantage of workplace telecommuting policies," said Roland Rust, executive director of the Center for Excellence in Service. "In addition to saving billions of dollars to the economy, the time and money saved on a long commute—even just two days a week—could significantly increase productivity and employee satisfaction."

M U L T I M E D I A

TANDBERG Personal Video Conferencing Systems

It's wherever you need to be. It's all business and completely reliable. It's innovative and easy to use. It will change the way you work and even the way you live.

Click here for the video >>