Aug 09, 2013

In the beginning there was data. From this humble start, we saw IP networks evolve to be resilient and reliable vehicles for carrier grade voice.  And finally, in the past few years, ‘video’ – and really that’s HD video — has joined the triumvirate.

This “triple play” is driving change —big-time.  With all the latency issues of real-time voice combined with continuous transfer rates that make storage backups look like a cake walk, video forces a “rethink” of current network designs.

Whether it’s remote learning or public surveillance/safety, video is no longer data’s stepson—it’s taking its place at the head of the table. And companies are looking not for networking vendors that can ‘handle’ video but those that can transport and support it seamlessly because they’re built from the ground up with video in mind.

HD Video meets Mobility

At Firetide, the application of video for surveillance, recognition, intelligent transportation systems and remote expert applications are driving rapid growth. For a public railway, metro subway or bus transit system, where cameras can be placed in locations where traditional wired networks is not feasible or not cost effective, video is practically a must-have.  In the US alone, the 55% of the bus fleet with CCTV cameras are transitioning to IP based systems.

Video surveillance is a first for Mumbai Metro

As an example, the rapid transit system under construction in the Indian city of Mumbai, population 20 million, is called Mumbai Metro. It’s a rapid transit system scheduled for completion by 2020 has now incorporated video surveillance system for the first time.  The Mumbai Metro system is built on the Firetide AutoMesh platform which includes our patented FMRP routing protocol for secure, multi-hop, high-bandwidth throughput that’s architected for video. Together with the redundant and self-healing mesh topology of our solution, you have a perfect intersection of high speed video performance meeting high speed mobility.