WebRTC Won’t Fix Telepresence Network Experience

It isn't all about software. Video calling is notoriously tricky. Experience can be great when it works, but it can crumble really fast. Oftentimes, the reason for a bad experience is the network - be it ongoing congestion or packet loss. When you can't get the media to the other end, media gets degraded. This is the case for VoIP, video conferencing in the enterprise and telepresence. It is also the case for WebRTC. The following Avengers clip got me thinking exactly about this topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PjW6c6o3i4

The takeaway?

• We are moving from managed networks towards the cloud
• It has been true forever to most services, but it is also becoming true for video services
• WebRTC accelerates this trend
• WebRTC services will win by designing and running world-class backend infrastructure that will reduce these problems, and it can be done
• The user experience needs to take into account such service glitches

Enjoy the clip.