subject: What Is Telepresence? [print this page] Telepresence is a term that has gradually crept into everyday usage in recent years. As with many new additions to the English language, it is a word that we hear very often, but some of us still find ourselves asking: "What does it actually mean?"
Essentially, telepresence means using technology to allow a person to feel as it they are in a particular location, even though they are actually in an entirely different place - sometimes on the other side of the globe.
The ultimate aim of telepresence is to make the individual feel completely immersed in the distant location, and to allow them to feel as though they are physically 'there'.
Perhaps the most obvious example of telepresence is the humble telephone. The technology is fairly basic by modern standards, but the telephone nonetheless allows two or more people in different locations to communicate. The distance barrier is eliminated, allowing callers to feel as if they were having a one-to-one conversation in the same room.
Nowadays, telepresence technology is extremely advanced and is used in a vast range of different contexts. Businesses in particular are increasingly turning towards video communication technology, as they recognise the considerable advantages the tool can bring to operations.
Most major businesses today work in a global marketplace, with clients and employees alike dotted all around the world. Whereas in the past it was relatively uncommon to travel overseas for business meetings, now it is a fundamental part of business. It is also an extremely expensive practice, and many companies are looking at how they can reduce the costs.
Telepresence technology is emerging as the best solution to this problem. It allows companies with international operations to bring their customers and clients together for meetings, without even having to leave the office. Participants feel as if they are present in a real, face-to-face meeting, even though at times they can be thousands of miles away.
Important decisions can be made quickly and easily, as they would in a conventional meeting. The advantage is that no travel costs are involved - the only expense involved is the cost of purchasing and installing the telepresence equipment.
Just a few years ago, this type of equipment would have been prohibitively expensive for many firms. Now, though, the technology has advanced to the point where it is relatively cheap to produce, which in turn makes it cheaper to buy the equipment.
Telepresence is used in a wide range of scenarios, and with the price of equipment becoming increasingly affordable, many more industries are sure to start embracing the technology in the near future.
