Analysts might still be projecting healthy growth for the overall unified communications business, but there seems to be little doubt that the global recession of 2008 and 2009 has proven to be a setback of sorts for UC hardware, software and services sales, with one possible exception.

 

Insight Research, for example, forecasts that the market for enterprise UC solutions, services and carrier revenues will grow five-fold between 2009 through 2014 at a compound average growth rate of 38.7 percent.

 

What that means is a bit difficult to discern, given that UC spans a range of products, services and industry segments, including software suppliers, hardware and service providers, delivered to global geographies containing user verticals with distinct preferences.

 

"UC spending in 2009 did not live up to my--or other analysts'--earlier predictions due to the economic downturn," said Blair Pleasant (News - Alert), COMMfusion/UCStrategies principal, in a statement. "In talking with customers about their UC usage, it became clear that conferencing and collaboration has become the key to UC return on investment."

 

That is not hard to understand, given the new focus on quantifying benefit. And though it is hard to measure benefit precisely, it is relatively easy to measure travel savings.

 

"The good news is that there is one bright spot and one area that will see significant increases--ironically in part due to the economic downturn," Pleasant said. "That bright spot is conferencing and collaboration."

 

In an effort to reduce travel costs, many companies are turning to web collaboration and video conferencing to interact with colleagues and partners, Pleasant said.

 

With travel budgets cut dramatically in an effort to reduce expenses, companies are using video conferencing solutions – whether sophisticated telepresence or simpler desktop video solutions--rather than traveling and having face-to-face meetings.

 

The high cost of travel isn’t the only thing causing many companies to cut their travel budgets. Some firms are citing other reasons, such as the global spread of swine flu and the threat of civil unrest, which is playing out in certain regions of the world, such as Mexico, as reasons for keeping more employees in the office.

 

For these reason and more, companies are turning to audio, Web and video conferencing service providers, such as The Conference Group. The company has reported an uptake of its solutions as a result of these travel cuts.

 

Companies are increasingly using conferencing services to give employees the chance to hold live, “face-to-face” meetings with partners, customers, prospects and investors from afar. In addition, the technology also facilitated collaboration between internal employees, teams, departments and division heads spread across geographically-dispersed locations.