The Web Conferencing Blog

Three Biggest Misconceptions About Cisco/WebEx

The web conferencing industry has been around a long time, starting in the late 1990's with the likes of Starlight Networks, Groupware by Lotus Notes and Placeware which was later bought by Microsoft in 2003. Having been in the web conferencing industry since 2004, I've heard a ton of misconceptions about WebEx.

Here are the three most common misconceptions I have heard about WebEx over the past 10 years:

1. All web conferencing solutions are equal.

2. WebEx is the most expensive web conferencing solution.

3. WebEx is the global market leader because it was first to market.

Misconception #1: All Web Conferencing Solutions are Equal:

No other web conferencing solution comes close to Cisco/WebEx:    

• 50% global market share in web conferencing
• 95% of the Fortune 500 are using Cisco Collaboration
• 200,000 Cisco Collaboration customers worldwide
• Over 450,000 WebEx meetings per day across 231 different countries
• Over 2.6 billion meeting minutes per month which equates to almost 5,000 years worth of 24/7/365 meetings collapsed into one month
• 46 million WebEx attendees per month
• Over 5.5 million WebEx mobile app downloads
• World class security and over a $500M cloud infrastructure investment
• Safe Harbor Certification
• SSAE 16 Certification
• ISO 27001/2 Certification
• End-to-End (E2E) encryption with AES, 256-bit key
• 100% enterprise-ready collaboration platform
• Suite of enterprise collaboration solutions: Meeting Center, Training Center, Event Center, Support Center, Cisco Jabber, WebEx Cloud Connected Audio, Collaboration Meeting Rooms
• Integrates with Cisco UC infrastructure: voice, video, IM/presence
• Integrates with 3rd party standards-based video endpoints. Read more about Cisco/WebEx Collaboration Meeting Rooms

Misconception #2: WebEx is the Most Expensive Web Conferencing Solution:

WebEx Meeting Center:

• $24 per month or $19 per month on an annual plan (Supports 8 people per meeting)
• $49 per month or $39 per month on an annual plan (Supports 25 people per meeting)
• $89 per month or $69 per month on an annual plan (Supports 100 people per meeting)
• Meeting Center includes video conferencing, application sharing, VoIP, markup tools, whiteboard, record and playback, mobile meetings, Outlook integration, cross-platform support, world class Cisco security and reliability
• WEAKNESS: WebEx is part of a much larger company, Cisco, which means innovation, strategic vision and execution, and technology priorities could take a back seat to the core business. 

Citrix GoToMeeting:

• Pro: $49 per month or $39 per month on an annual plan (Supports up to 25 attendees)
• Pro Plus: $69 per month or $56 per month on an annual plan (Supports up to 100 attendees)
• GoToMeeting includes video conferencing, desktop and application sharing, integrated phone and VoIP, mobile apps
• WEAKNESS: Limited integration with Unified Communication clients like Microsoft Lync and IBM Sametime. Challenges in penetrating enterprise IT departments that have higher expectations and complex requirements. GoToMeeting is part of a much larger company, Citrix Systems, which means innovation, strategic vision and execution, and technology priorities could take a back seat to the core business. 

Adobe Connect Pro: 

• $45 per month or $35 per month on an annual plan (Supports 25 people per meeting)
• $55 per month, no commitment, cancel anytime
• Adobe Connect Pro includes video conferencing, application sharing, mobility, VoIP
• WEAKNESS: Adobe Connect Pro is part of a much larger company, Adobe, which means innovation, strategic vision and execution, and technology priorities could take a back seat to the core business. Customer support for Adobe Connect Pro is also below average with customer support reps asking "Can you tell me what the product serial number on your CD is?"

As mentioned earlier, WebEx has a full web conferencing solution called Enterprise Edition which includes Meeting Center, Training Center, Event Center and Support Center. WebEx Enterprise Edition is highly differentiated and the most popular WebEx solution deployed across a company at a enterprise-wide level.

Misconception #3: WebEx is the Global Market Leader because it was First to Market:

WebEx was NOT first to market in web conferencing.

In 1999, Placeware was the market leader with a 45% market share and approximately $4.2M in revenue. Evoke and WebEx were up and coming companies but were not considered market leaders. Within a year, WebEx surpassed Placeware and became the #1 web conferencing solution. In 2003, Microsoft acquired Placeware and then rebranded the product to Microsoft Live Meeting. Today, Microsoft has about a 10% market share in web conferencing.

1999, was a pivotal year for web conferencing as that's the year when many players entered the market:

ExpertCity entered the market in 1999 and was later acquired by Citrix Systems in Dec 2003. Products included GoToMyPC, GoToAssist and GoToMeeting. Today, Citrix GoToMeeting has about a 20% market share in web conferencing.

Adobe Connect, originally known as Presedia Breeze in 1999 was acquired by Macromedia in 2003. Macromedia Breeze remained in the market until it was acquired by Adobe in 2006. Presedia was founded in 1999 in Sunnyvale, CA. Today, Adobe Connect has about a 5% market share in web conferencing.

Intercall, which resells a variety of different web conferencing solutions, including WebEx, Adobe Connect, and Microsoft, also has about a 5% market share in web conferencing.

2014 Web Conferencing Market Share (Synergy Research):

• Cisco/WebEx: 50%
• Citrix GoToMeeting: 20%
• Microsoft: 10%
• Adobe Connect: 5%
• Intercall: 5%

 

Citrix Releases Their Mobile Enterprise Strategy

Citrix has unveiled its strategy for mobile enterprise workforce and expanded its portfolio of personal cloud solutions. The company’s strategy is based on four pillars: people, data, apps and devices.

To enable mobile workforce, the company introduced GoToMeeting HDFaces for iPad, combining video conferencing, audio conferencing and screen sharing into a single, integrated experience. It also unveiled Citrix Podio, the first solution from its recent acquisition of Podio, for a cloud-based team collaboration platform.

The company’s strategy on data is centred on Citrix ShareFile, a cloud-based file sharing service. To expand this cloud file sharing capability, Citrix unveiled the ShareFile StorageZones technology that enables to choose optimal locations for storing corporate data – either in the public cloud, or on-premise. The company is also plugging ShareFile into its Citrix Receiver software client.

On the applications front, Citrix announced a RemotePC option as part of the FlexCast delivery technology in its Citrix XenDesktop product line. By using the new RemotePC capability, XenDesktop customers will be able to turn existing office PCs into distributed VDI hubs without setting up additional servers and storage in the datacenter. The company also announced Citrix CloudGateway 2, a new update to its unified storefront solution that adds mobile application management capabilities, including full support for native HTML5, iOS and Android apps.

Citrix Receiver, a universal software client, is the centrepiece of Citrix’s strategy on devices. With the acquisition of Virtual Computer, a provider of enterprise-scale management solutions for Xen-based client hypervisors, the company will combine the Virtual Computer technology with XenClient to create the new Citrix XenClient Enterprise edition.

Citrix also unveiled the first wave of devices featuring the new HDX SoC technology.

Skype Teams Up With Citrix To Bring GoToMeeting Web Conferencing To Business Offerings

As the company looks to boost revenue in 2011 in advance of an IPO, Skype is pursuing an aggressive enterprise strategy. Today, Skype’s VP of Enterprise, David Gurle, is announcing a strategic partnership with Citrix Online, in which web conferencing software GoToMeeting will be integrated into Skype’s enterprise offering, Skype For Business.

Skype For Business is a paid desktop product that includes capabilities for multi-party video chat, screen sharing and conference calls. But the drawback of the product is that screen sharing cannot take place with multi-party video chat simultaneously.

With the addition of GoToMeeting, enterprise users will be able to turn on video chat for up to 10 participants as well as conduct screen sharing courtesy of GoToMeeting. In addition, users will also be able to user GoToMeeting to create online audio conferencing meetings that users can join via Skype or through public switched telephone network (PSTN) phone numbers. The functionality will use Skype’s SILK audio codec, which will improve audio quality. We’re told the integration will roll out towards the end of this year or the beginning of 2012.

Currently, Gurle says that 37 percent of all Skype users are using the VoIP product for enterprise or business use. Of course, the challenge for Skype is getting business users to actually pay for the enterprise product. As we learned last August, only 8.1 million of out of a total of 560 million registered users at the time were paying to use Skype’s services. He feels that the addition of GoToMeeting to the business product will increase usage of the product from both big companies and small businesses. “Web and audio conferencing has been among the top requested features by our business users,” he tells us.

Skype isn’t commenting on the financial terms of the deal, but says that this is a strategic partnership that “has many dimensions.” It’s unclear what those dimensions are, but we can assume that Skype must be paying to license Citrix’s technology.

It’s important to note that the fact that Citrix and Skype are teaming up is in direct competition to Cisco, whose WebEx product competes with GoToMeeting. Last year, Skype brought on Tony Bates, who ran the enterprise group at Cisco, as CEO, following reports that Cisco was actually making a run for Skype. While Skype is pursuing a public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported recently that Skype’s owners could be open to a sale at $5 billion to $6 billion.

by Leena Rao

Citrix Acquires Collaboration Software Maker Netviewer

Citrix Online, a division of Citrix Systems, this morning announced that it is to acquire Netviewer, a privately-held SaaS vendor in collaboration and IT services based in Germany. Netviewer will become an integral part of Citrix’ online services division, but the terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

The transaction is expected to close in early 2011, subject to the satisfaction of closing conditions.

With the acquisition of the web conferencing and other collaboration software maker, Citrix Online aims to further its global expansion. Netviewer says it has more than 18,000 customers customers in countries throughout Europe, including the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Benelux, the Nordics, Italy and Spain.

Upon the closing of the acquisition, Netviewer CFO Robert Gratzl will be appointed as the VP and General Manager for Citrix Online in EMEA.

Founded in Karlsruhe, Germany, in 2001, the company currently employs more than 220 people according to its about page. The company has raised $24 million in venture funding in total.

Its investor roster includes T-Venture and the European Founders Fund (the investment vehicle of the Facebook-backing Samwer brothers).

by Robin Wauters

Citrix HD Video / Citrix HDFaces

Citrix had announced earlier this year that they would be releasing a new video capability across GoToMeeting, GoToTraining and GoToWebinar that would support HD quality video. Will this be true HD video quality or simply standard video just streaming across an HD-enabled webcam? The anticipated launch date is March 2011...still waiting.

Like Cisco/WebEx Multi-Point Video (MPV) which has been in the market for over 4 years now, Citrix's new video capability plans to support up to 6 simultaneous video streams. (Citrix aims to support 1920px960p, though I have a feeling that their MPV capability will only support 640px480p. If it turns out it's 1920px960p one has to ask if their infrastructure will be able to handle the data intensive lead of true HD video. We'll see.) Citrix says the only required hardware will be a HD-capable video conferencing viewer. I do wonder if Citrix HDFaces will integrate with other true video-conferencing/telepresence solutions like Tandberg, the market leader, or Polycom and any other standard-based endpoints. Again, we'll see.

Though they are years late to the video collaboration market and had said that there was never a need for video collaboration in the SMB market, at least they now realize the importance of video collaboration. Better late than never.

It will be interesting to see how HDFaces does in the market only because their track record for spotting and capitalizing on market transitions has never been that great. They acquired VAPPS at the end of 2008 with the hopes of expanding their VoIP capabilities and following many of their competitors that had VoIP-enabled communications but ended up with an integration nightmare that I'm not sure they ever resolved. Today, I hear that their VoIP customers still contend with VoIP reliability issues and voice echoing.

As far as HDFaces is concerned, I think I read it best in a recent "Forrester Wave Report" by Forrester Research, re-summarized as, "Citrix has a pretty good products but lags on strategy."

As far as their customers are concerned, they are still waiting for video from Citrix...

 

 

Cisco and Citrix Deliver Comprehensive Desktop Virtualization Solution

Cisco and Citrix Systems announced they are working together to deliver a new combined desktop virtualization solution that will make it easier and more cost effective for businesses to deploy high-definition virtual desktops and applications to all users across the enterprise. The new Cisco® Desktop Virtualization Solution with Citrix XenDesktop combines Cisco unified computing and Citrix desktop virtualization technologies including FlexCast^TM and HDX^TM, to deliver the most cost-effective, scalable and high-performance solution for hosting, securing and optimizing the delivery of virtual desktops and applications. Cisco Desktop Virtualization Solution with Citrix XenDesktop is available now through joint channel partners.

Desktop virtualization is rapidly growing in popularity as a more secure, flexible way to deliver Windows desktops and applications to business users in any location, using any device. As customers of all sizes move to desktop virtualization, they need simpler, more scalable solutions that integrate software, hardware and support. The new desktop virtualization solution from Cisco and Citrix is the first combined solution on the market to address this need, giving information technology (IT) organizations an easy way to accelerate the deployment of desktop virtualization with the best performance, user experience and cost savings.

Key Facts and Highlights:

The Cisco and Citrix desktop virtualization solution combines the Cisco Unified Computing System^TM (UCS) with Citrix XenDesktop technologies to provide the following benefits to customers:

Accelerates Mainstream Adoption of Desktop Virtualization

• Service Profiles to Speed Set-Up Time – Preconfigured service profiles for hosted shared desktops and hosted VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure) based desktops drastically simplify adoption by cutting down the time required to install and configure XenDesktop with the Cisco UCS.
• Preconfigured Kits to Ease Deployment – Customized kits for Citrix XenDesktop user scenarios substantially ease operations by accelerating deployment times. The Starter Kit allows customers to easily get started with the first 300 virtual desktops. An Expansion Kit allows customers to scale to thousands of additional desktops and users in a plug-and-play modular fashion.
• Cisco Validated Design to Help Ensure Pretested Interoperability – To further simplify and accelerate customer implementations, a reference design architecture is now available based on extensive testing at scale conducted jointly by Cisco, Citrix and NetApp. The reference design architecture also features NetApp as the validated storage platform. This design architecture is a continuation of the open ecosystem strategy for supporting customer choice shared by both Cisco and Citrix.
• Combined Support Services – Combined support services are offered to customers for this solution via a single support number. Additionally, Cisco and Citrix service teams are collaborating and cross-training to provide an unparalleled customer experience.
• Open Architecture for Easy Integration – The solution is also designed to be open, making it easy for customers to take advantage of existing storage and hypervisor investments. It is validated with Citrix XenServer and VMware vSphere^TM today, with support for Microsoft Hyper-V planned in the near future.

Reduces Costs Through Industry-leading Scalability of Cisco Unified Computing System

• Greater Density and Performance – With traditional server platforms, memory can become a bottleneck as virtual desktops are scaled to meet the growing demands of the business. The Cisco UCS offers memory-extension technology that can deliver up to 60 percent greater virtual desktop density per server with no degradation in application performance when compared with other server platforms with standard memory configurations.
• 20 Percent Lower Data Center Infrastructure Cost per User – The combination of higher user density per system and the tight integration of networking computing and virtualization provided by the Cisco UCS leads to 20 percent lower cost of infrastructure per virtual desktop.

Supports Any Device in Any Location

• The combined solution makes it easy for end users to access their corporate desktops and applications from any combination of PCs, Macs, laptops, thin clients, smartphones and tablets using the universal Citrix Receiver^TM software client.
• Wide-area network services from Cisco and Citrix extend an organization's reach while providing an on-ramp for users to access their virtual desktops and applications more securely from the office, home or any on-the-road location.

Delivers Uncompromised User Experience with Citrix HDX Technology

• The combined solution delivers an uncompromised high-definition user experience driven by Citrix HDX technology and can be customized on a per-user basis.
• User experience is further enhanced through Cisco's technology leadership in enterprise networking and computing.

Supports All Enterprise Users with Citrix FlexCast Technology

• Different types of workers across the enterprise need different types of virtual desktops and applications. The Citrix FlexCast technology in XenDesktop makes it easy for customers to choose the best virtual desktop and application technologies to meet the exact performance, security, mobility and personalization requirements of each individual user.
• The combined solution includes all the capabilities of Citrix XenApp, including integration with Microsoft App-V, making it easy for customers to deliver Windows apps as an on-demand service to any device, across any type of physical or virtual desktop.

Increases Security and Simplifies Compliance

• Organizations can improve security and access control through the centralization of desktop infrastructure. Additionally, technologies like Cisco VN-Link increase network and virtual desktop visibility and control.
• Integrated Citrix SmartAuditor^TM technology enhances data integrity and compliance requirements for all virtual sessions delivered by the combined solution.

Supporting Quotes:

 

• Prem Jain, senior vice president of Server, Access and Virtualization Technology Group at Cisco

  "By combining our innovations in unified computing with industry-leading desktop virtualization, from Citrix, we are delivering an integrated solution that drives down the cost and complexity of virtual desktop environments, while improving security and operational control."

• Gordon Payne, senior vice president and general manager, Desktop Division at Citrix

  "The combined solution we're announcing today represents a significant milestone in delivering on our vision to simplify desktop computing for enterprises around the world. The combination of industry leading technology from Citrix and Cisco will help further drive down the costs of desktop virtualization and speed deployments through a high-performance and scalable architecture."

• John Ryan, vice president and global portfolio executive for CSC's Managed Services Sector (MSS)

  "The combined Cisco and Citrix solution brings together industry-leading technology in a very powerful way to help drive mainstream adoption of desktop virtualization. We find this solution compelling for its ability to support large-scale implementations with lower cost and ability to scale. CSC plans to leverage and utilize Cisco Desktop Virtualization Solution with Citrix XenDesktop as a core element of our CSC Dynamic Desktop solution to implement large-scale desktop virtualization deployments for our customers."

• Patrick Rogers, vice president of Alliances and Solutions at NetApp

  "NetApp worked together with Cisco and Citrix to define and test the Cisco Validated Design Architecture, which addresses our customers' growing needs for desktop virtualization that is highly secure, flexible and drives down costs without impacting performance or scalability."

By Cisco Newsroom

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Cisco and Citrix Deliver a Fresh Take On Desktop Virtualization

In talking to our customers, one of the things that I hear consistently is that customers appreciate our open solution stack.  What does that mean?  Well, a couple of things—first of all, it means that our innovations are individually available—you can connect a UCS to any upstream Ethernet and Fibre Channel switch, you can connect the server of your choice to a Nexus switch and still take advantage of OTV, FabricPath or unified fabric and you can run the Nexus 1000V in pretty much any hardware environment supported by vSphere.

 

The other thing this means is that we build solutions stacks with insertion points for our partners so our customers can take advantage our our solutions while still working with their favorite data center vendors.  Both Vblocks (Cisco, EMC, VMware) and SMT (Cisco, NetApp, VMWare) were initial examples of this approach.

 

Today, we are adding to the list with a newly announced desktop virtualization solution developed in partnership with Citrix.   Desktop virtualization is taking off with our customer for a number of reasons from reducing costs, to faster app deployment, to improving regulatory compliance and we have been listening to what our customers have been asking for.

 

The new solution with Citrix XenDesktop combines Cisco UCS and Citrix desktop virtualization technologies including FlexCast™ and HDX™, to deliver a cost-effective, scalable and high-performance solution for hosting, securing and optimizing the delivery of virtual desktops and applications.  

Of course, we are not going to roll out a me-too solution….  

 

Our initial testing shows that our Citrix VDI solution can save at least 20% over competing solutions.  Much of this cost advantage can be linked to the fact that we can deliver 60% greater virtual desktop density with our extended memory technology without a loss of performance.  Beyond the infrastructure costs noted below, other Cisco advantages like UCS Manager service profiles also simplify and accelerate deployment and management and contribute to reduction of overall TCO.

1,500 Seats	Cisco	Vendor A	Vendor B
Server Networking and Infrastructure	$48,129	$64,437	$93,128
Compute - Management Nodes	$13,621	$19,883	$20,157
Compute - Desktop Nodes	$247,708	$289,325	$264,102
TOTAL	$309,458	$373,645	$377,386
Cost per Seat for 1,500 Seats	$206	$249	$252
Cisco Savings		21%	22%
5,000 Seats	Cisco	Vendor A	Vendor B
Server Networking and Infrastructure	$102,425	$128,873	$186,256
Compute - Management Nodes	$27,242	$39,766	$40,313
Compute - Desktop Nodes	$825,692	$964,417	$880,339
TOTAL	$955,359	$1,133,056	$1,106,908
Cost per Seat for 5,000 Seats	$191	$227	$221
Cisco Savings		19%	16%

This analysis is based on a comparison of like-to-like configurations with other compute manufacturers and assumes equivalent configurations result in the same number of seats.

The analysis is based upon ASPs as of 8/30/2010. Server Networking and Infrastructure includes chassis and server networking infrastructure necessary for a working system.

Management nodes are comprised of 48GB servers, X5670 CPUs and converged network adapters. Desktop nodes are comprise of 192GB servers, X5670 CPUs and converged network adapters. 

 

The solution is validated with Citrix XenServer and VMware vSphere™ today—you can expect support for Microsoft Hyper-V soon. For more details on the solution, including a validated design guide, check out this link where you will find a whole host of information. You should also check out this post by Raj Dhingra of Citrix.

 

To close, expect to see more of these kinds of solution stacks from Cisco and our ecosystem partners—for example, you can expect to see similar solutions in the near future with other members of our ecosystem.  From a broader perspective, you can also expect to see more in from us in terms of more tightly aligning IT innovation and investments with specific business results. 

 

By Omar Sultan

Twitter: http://twitter.com/omarsultan

 

GoToMeeting and GoToWebinar Service Disruption

GoToMeeting, GoToWebinar Service Disruption

Posted on August 11, 2010 by glenndcitrix

On 8/11/2010 10:50AM – 8/11/2010 11:24:00AM Pacific Time we experienced a service disruption with our GoToWebinar, GoToMeeting, GoToTraining, and International services. During this time customers were unable to log in or start sessions. In flight sessions were not affected. This was the result of a server failing in one of our databases. The server was restarted and service was restored. We’re currently investigating our server start up requirements to avoid this type of disruption in the future. We apologize for the inconvenience this disruption may have caused.

http://glenndcitrix.wordpress.com/2010/08/11/gotomeeting-gotowebinar-service-disruption/

You can follow GoToMeeting on Twitter and also check out all the customer Tweets on the service disruption here: http://twitter.com/GoToMeeting

GoToManage

GoToManage. GoToManage. GoToManage.

On the heels of releasing new GoToWebinar pricing in late February, Citrix also launched GoToManage, via the acquisition of Paglo, an IT management SaaS company focused on remote monitoring, administration and support of IT assets. Some of the featured capabilities of GoToManage include inventory tracking, log search, network management, server monitoring,  virtualization monitoring, patch management, asset discovery, and remote monitoring.

Main Components:

• Crawler: application searches network and catalogues in real-time all hardware specs, installed software, and system performance data for devices attached to the network.
• Search: search engine that allows users to search data collected by Crawler (event logs, system health, status information.)
• UI: main interface for users allows users to view customize their accounts.
• Packetyzer: windows-based program that allows users to analyze network packet content and traffic.
• RogueScanner: application that identifies and removes unwanted devices that are connected to a customer's network.

GoToManage Pricing:

• Crawler and network management tools are free.
• Charges customers for access to collected data which resides in Paglo cloud.
• Pre-Citrix acquisition, Paglo has tiered (100, 200, 300) pricing based on number of devices connected to the network. (EX: 50 devices = 100 device tier. 205 devices = 300 tier.)
• Average cost for each device per month = $1.

Other Providers:

• Computer Associates
• HP
• IBM
• Microsoft SMS
• Symantec: Altiris
• LanDesk
• BMC Software
• Cisco/WebEx Systems Management
• Nimsoft
• Kaseya
• Packet Trap
• InteQ
• Tivoli
• Spiceworks

New GoToWebinar Pricing

New GoToWebinar Pricing. New GoToWebinar Pricing. New GoToWebinar Pricing.

It appears my screenshot from the Citrix corporate website has created some confusion with the new Citrix pricing. The yellow highlighted section for GoToMeeting was not highlighted by me but simply part of the Citrix screenshot found here: http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/gotomeeting_pricing (Many thanks to Ken Molay's Webinar Blog for adding points of clarification.)

The new price changes effect GoToWebinar and not GoToMeeting, which remains the same at $49 per month. Citrix created three new GoToWebinar price tiers, based on capacity: 100, 500, and 1,000. In the past, Citrix only offered a 1,000 person capacity option for $99 per month. Citrix has since increased the price from $99 to $499 per month for the 1,000 person option. Citrix still offers a $99 option but for 1/10 the original capacity.

Citrix also released pricing for their new product, GoToTraining, as seen below. (Updated screenshot is below.)

 

 

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