Organisers of the first Green Travel Summit estimated travel is the second largest variable expense for most organisations, and contributes to a big chunk of their carbon footprint. What may be holding back greater adoption of web conferencing is its reliance on paired systems - the same application or equipment needs to be present at both ends of the call, whether it be Skype or expensive telepresence equipment.
"Customers were telling us traditional web conferencing solutions were inflexible, expensive and hard to use. We decided to take a more open standards approach like email or phone - you do it and it gets through," Christensen says.
"Everyone has a browser, so we designed a system to bring people together in the browser, as well as to give them work collaboration tools like sharing documents, PowerPoint slides or videos."
He says the app is designed for New Zealand broadband conditions "which aren't that favourable," so it should travel well internationally.
"The ADSL upload is the real issue. FaceMe users only have to upload their own stream, and they can take multiple download streams."
The next release will include even more capacity to connect with existing meeting room hardware, which firms may have invested heavily in, and to connect with mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.?With firms around the world trying to service the market, FaceMe needs to move fast.
Christensen says winning the $100,000 BNZ-Virgin Business Challenge, which included time with Sir Richard Branson and mentoring from BNZ and Virgin executives, was a great boost to the company's credibility.
FaceMe has opened five offices across the Tasman and plans to use major telecommunications expos this year as a springboard for further expansion.
Support from its banker and shareholders, as well as revenue from initial sales means Hi-Tech Solutions has been able to carry the cost of development so far. "We are trying to last as long as we can until we do sell down. The product can be can be provisioned and supported from New Zealand, so why not build a multinational from New Zealand?" he asks.
"We already have more than 40 New Zealand customers, from small business to large enterprise, government, health and education. New Zealand is a great testing place for this sort of product.
"As a company, we have massive market potential and a culture of challenge - we are taking on the big boys like Google, Microsoft and Cisco. We have a world class product that is ready to scale."
Talk it up
Takapuna Grammar principal Simon Lamb says the school bought a FaceMe server a year ago, and it has revolutionised its teaching.
"We have students talk to students in other countries, whether for language learning or culture or social studies. That has been extremely powerful.
"We are bringing in experts from round the word, adults or teenagers, to talk to rooms and groups of students.
"We are using it in many ways, sometimes one to one, maybe one teacher and groups of students, sometimes groups in up to 16 locations," Lamb says.
He says Takapuna Grammar shopped around for video conferencing technology, and picked FaceMe because of visual and voice quality as well as supporting tools like the ability to share whiteboards, pdf files and other rich content.
