WebEx

2021. Cisco acquired video conferencing service Socio Labs



Cisco has acquired Socio Labs - video conferencing software developer. The company also offers tools for creating web pages for event registration and ticketing menus. The platform allows companies to customize conference registration pages in various ways, for example, by incorporating their corporate branding or offering early registration discounts. The American tech giant intends to incorporate Socio Labs' developments into its Webex video conferencing platform. It is also expected that Socio Labs' technology will complement the developments of Slido, a startup acquired by Cisco in December 2020. Slido developed a platform for incorporating interactive content, such as quizzes and polls, into virtual events.


2020. Cisco Webex gets virtual assistant, real-time translation and speech-to-text


This year, online video conferencing systems (Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet) have seen such a surge in popularity that market veteran Cisco Webex needs to come up with something to compete with their (free) offerings. In the new version of the system, Cisco is focusing on intelligent features. Now, the Webex Assistant virtual assistant acts as a full-fledged meeting participant. You can contact it at any time and give it a task: adjust the volume, add a note, start recording, and more. Webex also now features intelligent noise reduction, speech-to-text conversion, auto-captioning, and real-time translation into 10 languages, including Russian, will be available in the next two months. Cisco also introduced the Webex Desk Camera, an intelligent camera with facial recognition and gesture control.


2018. Gartner Names Webex the Best Online Meeting Service



In the new Gartner Magic Quadrant for Meeting Solutions report, Cisco Webex was named the leader. The report examined several meeting solutions from various vendors. Cisco's products were found to be the most relevant to the requirements of such services due to their wide range of features and accessibility. Currently, the number of Webex Meetings users exceeds that of other similar services: Cisco Webex hosts more than 6 billion online meeting minutes annually. In 2018, Cisco Webex added more than 1,000 features. Gartner highlighted two such features related to both the product itself and devices: intelligent speaker tracking and voice commands (the world's first voice assistant for online meetings, which helps start meetings, add new participants, etc.).


2015. WebEx improved its interface and security



A new version of the web and video conferencing service Cisco Webex has been released. Changes have been made to the meeting interface, Personal Room, Administration Tools, CMR Cloud 3.0, CCA, and Cisco Spark. Video features have also been improved, including video previews that allow users to decide whether to play a video, the ability to start or stop automatic video playback, and left-to-right scrolling of video images. Notification options and controls have been significantly improved: toolbar windows have received additional indicators, and some icons have been repositioned. The new version of the service boasts enhanced CMR security: users will now be required to enter a password on the video endpoint to log in.


2015. Cisco Collaboration Meeting Rooms is available on any device


Cisco has expanded its WebEx videoconferencing service line with Collaboration Meeting Rooms. This service allows users to connect to Cisco WebEx web conferences from PCs, mobile devices, deskphones, video endpoints, and software clients (including those from other vendors). From the very first moment of connection, users can create meetings, launch applications, and join all discussions. The service reduces user involvement in routine processes, as it offers tools for recording meetings and sharing co-edited files. CMR combines WebEx MC conferencing (now with CCA hybrid telephony) with the ability to connect video endpoints.


2013. WebEx for Android adds multipoint video calling



Cisco has released a new version of the WebEx Meetings 3.0 for Android app. The app offers new functionality along with a completely redesigned user interface for smartphones. WebEx Meetings version 3.0 for Android supports full-duplex multipoint video calling on Android smartphones running OS 4.0 and higher. Now Android smartphone users can participate in meetings on a whole new level, including sending and receiving video. Functionality is optimized for both portrait and landscape formats. The user interface dynamically updates during the meeting, from the video introduction at the beginning of the meeting to subsequent content sharing and discussion. Additionally, audio and video controls are provided, allowing you to easily share video and mute or unmute your microphone.


2012. WebEx Meetings is lowering its free limits again



Cisco Webex, the web conferencing service, initially delighted its users with free Webex Meetings offer, but then disappointed them twice. Today, the service exited beta and, to celebrate, lowered its free limits again. The number of online meeting participants in the free version (now called Basic) has been reduced from 25 to 3. And disk space for files has been reduced from 1 GB to 250 MB. Remote computer control in screen-sharing sessions has also been removed from the free version.


2012. Webex for Android lets you host online meetings



Cisco has released a new version of its Webex for Android mobile app, Webex for Android. It allows users to not only attend online meetings and webinars from their smartphones and tablets but also organize them: schedule, send invitations, upload materials, initiate web and video conferences, and moderate online meetings. Video conferencing support is currently only available for Android tablets running OS version 3.0 and higher. The app is available free on Google Play for all WebEx Meetings users.


2012. Free WebEx is now available.



Web conferencing service WebEx has unveiled free version. However, the number of conference hosts (i.e. users who can create and administer online meetings) has been reduced from 3 to 1. However, the free disk space limit has been increased to 1 GB. Up to 25 people can participate in an online meeting simultaneously and use a variety of tools: screen sharing, whiteboard, remote computer control, file sharing, presentations, VoIP, HD video, and conference recording. You might be surprised to learn that the service is currently in Beta status (after all, WebEx has been the market leader in web conferencing for many years). The fact is, this is not just a free version. This is a new version of WebEx, which, in addition to web conferencing, also includes a collaboration space (before and after the online meeting). There, you can not only schedule web conferences and invite participants, but also share materials before the online meeting and discuss them with colleagues. And after the virtual meeting, you can share conference recordings and files created during it and continue the discussion.


2011. Webex Launches Free Version, Adds Virtual Office



Cisco has updated its web conferencing platform Webex and announced the launch of a free version for up to 3 people and 250 MB of storage. In addition to the core features (screen sharing, whiteboarding, online presentations and document collaboration, VoIP, and chat), the free version also includes video conferencing, though not in HD. While there are several free web conferencing services on the market, Webex has always been known for its high quality and extensive functionality. The updated Webex also features a new Meeting Space interface, designed for collaboration before and after online meetings. It includes a microblog, file storage, chat, and a meeting scheduler. For example, in this workspace, you can schedule a meeting, send invitations to participants, upload necessary files in advance, and discuss the upcoming meeting in the comments and chat. After the meeting, you can upload a video recording and the resulting documents, and discuss the meeting results in the comments.


2009. Cisco WebEx Collaboration Cloud - platform for web conferencing



Cisco has introduced the new Cisco WebEx Collaboration Cloud platform, designed for secure, high-quality web conferencing. The platform is built on eight data centers located around the world, providing greater than 99.99% reliability. It uses intelligent routing functions that take into account location, communication channel bandwidth, and subscriber state, which enables global load balancing and provides transparent global redundancy of voice, video, and data channels for collaboration applications (conferences, instant messaging, group workspaces, etc.). The Cisco WebEx Collaboration Cloud network supports more than 200,000 WebEx meetings daily, including Cisco WebEx Connect collaboration sessions. Cisco also introduced new versions of the Cisco WebEx SaaS conferencing applications.


2009. WebEx comes to smartphones



Cisco's web conferencing service WebEx Meeting Center will soon support mobile participation using smartphones from leading manufacturers: BlackBerry, Nokia, and Samsung Blackjack. By launching Cisco WebEx Meeting Center in a smartphone browser, employees can access audio and web conferences over 3G or GSM+Wi-Fi. Users will also be able to view presentations and shared screens in real time. Participation in virtual meetings is free of charge, but the organizer of such meetings will need to have a Cisco WebEx Meeting Center account. Furthermore, the meeting organizer will be able to invite any mobile employee to participate via SMS. To join the meeting, the employee will need to reply with the number "1" via SMS, after which they will automatically be connected to the audio conference via Cisco WebEx Meeting Center, Training Center, or Event Center. As a reminder, Webex recently became available to iPhone users.


2009. Webex is now available on iPhone



The new Cisco WebEx app for iPhone allows users to connect to WebEx web conferencing sessions. With the Cisco WebEx Meeting Center app for iPhone, users can view shared documents and session participant lists, see and hear the presenter, and chat with other participants. Online meeting features allow users to simultaneously participate in web conferences and Cisco audio conferencing, which are supported over 3G mobile networks and 802.11 wireless (Wi-Fi) networks. This solution supports a variety of telephony configurations, including SaaS telephony (powered by Cisco WebEx Meeting Center), room telephony (powered by Cisco Unified Meeting Place), and telephony services from Cisco carrier partners. To conduct conference calls, users must have a valid WebEx subscription.


2008. Cisco Webex is the market leader in web conferencing, followed by Microsoft and IBM



According to the latest Gartner report, Webex is the sole leader in the web conferencing market, accounting for 36%. Its main rival is Microsoft Live Meeting with 10%. However, other players are not sitting idle. IBM is particularly active. Yesterday, a new version of its SaaS web conferencing service, Lotus Sametime Unyte 8.2, was released. It already fully replicates Webex in functionality and is slightly less expensive ($48/month for 15 users, compared to Webex's $49). Another (smaller, but no less aggressive) competitor to Webex, Yugma, announced the release of a Linux version of its system. Yugma has already earned a reputation as one of the best solutions for communication between PC and Mac users. The Linux version (which, according to the developers, is even more advanced than the two aforementioned) will fit perfectly with Yugma's strategy and, undoubtedly, increase its market share.


2008. Cisco WebEx Expands Support for Apple Mac Users

WebEx, a recent addition to Cisco's portfolio, now supports Mac OS X Leopard and the Safari 3 browser. Previously, limited support for Mac technologies was due to their low popularity among corporate users. However, due to the rapid adoption of Mac OS in the corporate environment, Cisco WebEx recently decided to support Mac across all its products. Over the past three years, Cisco WebEx has added a number of new features and capabilities to its products aimed at broader support for Mac OS users. Recently, Cisco WebEx announced that its remote access solution, WebEx PCNow, supports PC-to-Mac, Mac-to-PC, and Mac-to-Mac connections, as well as Apple iPhone sessions.


2006. WebEx is testing corporate AIM client



WebEx in collaboration with AOL have released AIM Pro Business Edition - messaging app, designed for use in small and medium-sized businesses. The new service from WebEx allows you to create and manage an IM infrastructure based on the Triton platform across your entire company. AIM Pro Business Edition contains the standard features of AIM Pro, supplemented by the ability to organize online negotiations and real-time demonstrations using WebEx technology. For maximum convenience, the program is compatible with AOL AIM, ICQ, and Apple iChat, and can also be integrated with Outlook. According to a WebEx representative, this product combines the best security and centralized control, creating a cost-effective EIM solution that requires no maintenance costs. WebEx has already begun open beta testing of AIM Pro Business Edition.