Think the Apple iPad is just for consumers? Not according to Cisco, which is
introducing its Cisco WebEx
Meeting Center
for the iPad, available immediately from the App Store.
The free application allows users to join and participate in online meetings—viewing
and sharing slideshows and other content as well as using WebEx chat—from their
Apple iPad, just as they have from desktop computers and laptops in the past.
iPad users will also have access to Cisco WebEx VOIP audio, directly from the
iPad or by requesting a call back on their phones.
Putting a strictly business application such as WebEx on Apple's iPad points to
the trend of the consumerization
of IT, where more workers are using their personal devices in the course of
their jobs.
"The Apple iPad with the availability of Cisco WebEx online meetings makes
a simple, but very powerful interface," said Zeus Kerravala, distinguished
research fellow at the Yankee Group, in a statement. "The trend of using
personal devices for business purposes is here to stay, moving from tech savvy
users to the mainstream. As a result, business productivity will be able to
reach new levels."
It may ultimately also point to something that Cisco CEO
John Chambers promised a year ago: consumer
TelePresence in a year's time, i.e. now.
Cisco acquired WebEx in 2007. The company was founded in 1995.
Last fall Cisco announced plans
to make its TelePresence HD video conferencing and WebEx online conferencing
interoperable and open. One aspect of the announcement was Cisco TelePresence
WebEx Engage, a scheduling and conferencing initiation tool with video
integration between TelePresence and WebEx. Cisco said it combines TelePresence
with the reach of the WebEx meeting center.
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