SMART Technologies Announces Support for Microsoft Skype for Business

SMART Room Systems for Microsoft Lync to interoperate with Skype for Business

ORLANDO, FL, March 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ - SMART Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SMT) (TSX: SMA) today announced that the SMART Room System^™ for Microsoft^® Lync^® 2013 will support Microsoft Skype for Business. As a leading provider of collaboration solutions, SMART is well positioned to deliver current and future support for this next generation of the Microsoft Unified Communications (UC) platform.

The SMART Room System will be upgradable to the Skype for Business experience. Customers should see no interruption to their SMART Room System capabilities and will enjoy the system's ease of use, familiar interface, high-definition video and content sharing, while benefiting from the incorporation of new features in Skype for Business.

Skype Room Systems devices will be built on a platform based on Windows 10, and will be available for customers in the Windows 10 timeframe. Since Skype Room Systems devices are the next evolution of Lync Room Systems, all Lync Rooms Systems devices will also be upgradable to Skype Room Systems and the Skype for Business experience.

"Today Microsoft announced Skype Room Systems, which will deliver the Skype for Business experience to the more than 50 million meeting spaces of all shapes and sizes that are in use by organizations worldwide.", said Giovanni Mezgec, General Manager, Skype for Business. "Together with SMART we are delighted to bring the world's meeting spaces into the next era of communications experiences with a range of easy-to-use devices optimized for Skype for Business."

"With this exciting announcement, the thousands of systems that our customers currently enjoy can be upgraded to support Skype for Business," said Scott Brown, president, Enterprise, SMART Technologies. "This means our customers can protect their existing investments and have confidence in the flexibility and capabilities of our leading technology."

The SMART Room System for Microsoft Lync has been adopted by Fortune 500 companies around the globe, across industries ranging from retail, financial services and pharmacutical to oil and gas, automotive and entertainment. Hundreds of customers have demonstrated rapid return on investment with their SMART Room Systems. 

With a heritage in truly collaborative, interactive touch technologies, SMART delivers the most feature rich 4K interactive display panels in the industry. The SMART Room System for Microsoft Lync is an integrated, single-vendor hardware solution. It combines industry-leading touch-enabled displays with an HD video camera, microphones, speakers and administrative console to enable rich audio, video and data collaboration. SMART offers the broadest range of sizes (six) and the unique added capability of integration with SMART Meeting Pro software, enabling participants to ink over content regardless of device, location or the application being shared within Lync. The newest generation also features a titanium bezel, making it a sleek upgrade for any conference room.

Attendees at this week's Enterprise Connect Orlando can see SMART Room System support for Skype of Business in action in the SMART Technologies booth (no. 1035) as well as the Microsoft booth (no. 1221). Additionally, Jeff Lowe, SMART vice president of Marketing, will be participating in a panel discussion Wednesday, March 18 that focuses on "Lync for Conference Room Video."

About SMART Solutions for Business
SMART Technologies offer the SMART Visual Collaboration Solution for organizations around the globe. SMART meetings are intuitive, productive and collaborative, whether participants are onsite or remote. The combination of SMART's interactive flat panels and SMART Meeting Pro® software enables meetings that start with the touch of a finger. SMART also offers SMART Room System™ for Microsoft® Lync® and the SMART kapp™ - a new solution that revolutionizes the traditional dry-erase board. To learn more, visit smarttech.com/business.

About SMART
SMART Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SMT, TSX: SMA) is a world leader in collaboration solutions that are redefining the way the world works and learns. We are an innovator in interactive touch technologies and software that inspire collaboration in both education and businesses around the globe. To learn more, visit smarttech.com.
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Reader's advisory
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SOURCE SMART Technologies Inc.

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