“This initiative enables Skype to be part of the room-based enterprise video conferencing market. LifeSize is known for its HD telepresence-quality solutions in the enterprise. Now, LifeSize Passport users can easily connect using face-to-face video conferencing with other Skype users worldwide,” said David Gurle, vice president and general manager of Skype Enterprise. “With the ‘consumerization of IT’ whereby people are bringing Skype into the workplace, more enterprises are looking for synergistic solutions like this that include Skype. We’re delighted that LifeSize is helping them address customer demand by delivering enterprise-class video conferencing with Skype.”

LifeSize Passport began breaking down the boundaries of video collaboration when first introduced in 2009 and continues to lead the industry in price performance. At an extraordinary value compared to other systems in its class, LifeSize Passport is a telepresence-quality solution that enables any organization to deploy HD video conferencing as a mainstream business tool. At under $2,500, LifeSize Passport is the ideal solution for small meeting rooms, individual offices, teleworkers and small to medium-sized businesses to easily and cost-effectively implement video wherever they need to stay connected.

“The qualification of LifeSize Passport to enable Skype video calling is an incredibly significant milestone in the video communications industry,” said Craig Malloy, chief executive officer of LifeSize and Logitech senior vice president. “We’ve been working closely with Skype over the last two years, helping us deliver on our shared vision to make video communication truly accessible to anyone, anywhere.”

To enable Skype video calling from LifeSize Passport, a customer must first be a registered Skype user. Upon logging into LifeSize Passport using their Skype log in credentials, their Skype contacts are automatically populated into the LifeSize directory. To make a call, users simply click on a contact name in the directory.

In addition to Skype video calling, the LifeSize Passport user is able to make calls to landlines and mobile phones through Skype.

In addition to LifeSize Passport, Logitech also features the Skype Certified Logitech® B910 HD Webcam, which offers up to 720p HD video conferencing and lifelike stereo audio for business users on their PC. As with LifeSize’s offering, Skype Certification ensures this camera is optimized for use with Skype. The Logitech® B910 HD Webcam is available in the U.S. and Europe for $99.99 (U.S.)


The software to enable LifeSize Passport and Skype video calling - software version 4.8 - will be globally available for download in April 2011.
Additional Resources

About LifeSize Communications
LifeSize is a pioneer and world leader in high-definition video collaboration. Designed to make video conferencing truly universal, our full range of open standards-based systems offer enterprise-class, IT-friendly technologies that enable genuine human interaction over any distance. Founded in 2003 and acquired by Logitech in 2009, LifeSize, with its commitment to relentless innovation, continues to extend the highest-quality video conferencing capabilities to anyone, anywhere.

Tags: LifeSize, Telepresence, Conference Systems, Sype