Vidtel (http://www.vidtel.com/) allows different types of video conferencing endpoints to connect through an interoperability bridge (they call it their “MeetMe Bridge”). The application does work as advertised as I had a Skype, Google chat, Cisco C20, Polycom V700 and Cisco Jabber Video for TelePresence (formerly Cisco Movi) endpoints connected into one conference. I conducted 3 tests calls and had no issue with platform stability or conference quality. Cost may be a concern to some potential customers. Skype does detect other users in the conference. If you have more than 3 participants in the meeting you will need to purchase the Skype premium membership in addition to the Vidtel plan. The chart below details the Vidtel price matrix. The cost may be a value to customers who do not have a video conferencing infrastructure or where Skype and other non-standards based video conferencing integration is of high importance, but at this point, it doesn’t seem to be something we’ll research any further for Duke.
