The Road to 2020 is all About Standards - Axis Communications Working with Competitors and Partners to Lead the Way
By Ron Worman, The Sage Group
I have had the opportunity to listen to representatives from AXIS several times over the last few weeks. As always, you come away believing they have an impressive track record of technology leadership. Known as the ‘IT company offering network video solutions' AXIS National Sales Manager, Karl Radke, in a recent IP Video Surveillance Seminar hosted by Pro-Tec Design in Minnesota, claimed they had a 2.5 year technology edge on their nearest competitor. As well, an IMS Research report was quoted as saying AXIS held a 31.2% market share for IP Network Cameras, with the nearest competitor in single digits.
Another first was announced on January 18. According to the press release, AXIS is the first company on the market to offer customers full featured thermal network cameras for surveillance. Thermal cameras create images based on the heat that always radiates from any object, vehicle or person. By leveraging this, thermal cameras deliver intelligent video even in complete darkness.
I had the opportunity to speak with Justin Smith the Western Regional Manager for AXIS who pointed out that AXIS was leveraging its technology leadership to advance the industry. In 2008, AXIS along with SONY and BOSCH, founded the Open Network Video Interface Forum or ONVIF. It is designed to be an open forum for the development of no less than a global standard for the interface of network video products. Fourteen months later it has over 100 industry members.
The cornerstones of ONVIF are: standardization of communication between network video devices, interoperability between video products regardless of manufacturer, and to encourage the forum to be open to all companies and organizations.
According to Justin, ONVIF is an example of the openness AXIS has to advancing industry standards. "If the Summit attendees get familiar with our roadmap", said Justin, "and become familiar with today's products and their value to their security plan, then we feel confident they will make an AXIS decision."
That roadmap appears to revolve around driving more processing power and intelligence to the camera. This is a company that believes and whose internal development conforms to the legend of Moore's Law: that Processing Power will double every 18 months while cost remains the same. AXIS claims to have a 50x performance track over the last 10 years.
By doing this, the total cost of ownership invariably becomes the focus because this has cost saving ramifications to the network, the server and the storage of security's and IT's infrastructure. As well, any AXIS demo will emphasize the superiority of the HD-quality image in delivering the ‘intelligent image' that can make or break an investigation or conviction.
AXIS is featured on the Virtual Exhibit Hall where you can download their White Paper on this and other security solutions.