Washington, DC -- Mary Davie, assistant commissioner for the Federal Acquisition Service's Office of Integrated Technology Services (ITS), and Michael DeChiara, executive director in AT&T's Advanced Enterprise Solutions organization, will discuss the General Services Administration's (GSA) rollout of its new telepresence network at the NAB Show's Telepresence Conference on April 12 in Las Vegas.
Entitled "A Case Study: Telepresence in Government - Behind the GSA Telepresence Roll-out," the presentation will center on GSA's build out of a 15-site telepresence network including 11 regional headquarters and 4 GSA locations in the Washington, DC area.
Telepresence encompasses a set of technologies, such as high definition audio, video, and other interactive elements, that enable people to feel or appear as if they are all present in the same location even though they may be in different locations across the country. Employed mainly as a collaboration tool, telepresence is used by companies and organizations, to help create an "in person" meeting experience over a converged network that is based on an immersive, visual communications platform. Benefits to companies that deploy telepresence solutions include reduced travel costs, increased productivity, contributions to corporate sustainability objectives through carbon emission reduction, and an enhanced work/life balance for employees.
Davie will highlight how the GSA Telepresence network will enable government agencies to save money and communicate and collaborate more effectively while reducing carbon emissions and meeting sustainability goals through reduction of travel when appropriate. The government will benefit from quicker decision-making, more effective program/project management, and improved communication with industry partners. Davie will also examine the role of telepresence in facilitating regional meetings, crisis management, access to subject matter experts, and distance learning.
As the ITS assistant commissioner Davie is responsible for the largest fee-for-service information technology (IT) procurement and services operation in the U.S. government. She heads a team that manages more than 7,000 contracts, which provide access to relevant and timely IT and telecommunications products, services, and solutions to defense and civilian agencies, as well as to state, local, and tribal governments.
DeChiara's presentation will focus on AT&T's role in designing the GSA Telepresence solution, implementing the initiative nationwide, and providing on-going support and maintenance. He will also describe how the use of the AT&T Telepresence Solution includes design, planning, deployment, concierge, maintenance and on-going support; network connectivity and transport; room-system hardware; and network-based inter-company bridging.
DeChiara leads a team focused on the expansion and growth of AT&T's collaboration suite of services across commercial, wholesale, and government market segments. These programs include the AT&T Telepresence Solution, a flexible, scalable service that offers a full range of management and scheduling options, access to AT&T's Business Exchange with over 2000 endpoints for Business to Business meetings provided by AT&T's advanced Global AVPN network.
The NAB Show's Telepresence Conference explores the products, solutions and how next generation visual communications platforms can impact business. Sessions will present telepresence applications in various enterprise and government sectors as well as for broadcast production and engineering. An innovation showcase will also give participants the opportunity to experience telepresence.
About the 2011 NAB Show
The NAB Show, held annually in Las Vegas, is the world's largest electronic media show covering filmed entertainment and the development, management and delivery of content across all mediums. With nearly 90,000 attendees from 151 countries and more than 1,500 exhibitors, the NAB Show is the ultimate marketplace for digital media and entertainment. From creation to consumption, across multiple platforms and countless nationalities, the NAB Show is home to the solutions that transcend traditional broadcasting and embrace content delivery to new screens in new ways. Complete details are available at www.nabshow.com.
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About NAB
The National Association of Broadcasters is the premier advocacy association for America's broadcasters. NAB advances radio and television interests in legislative, regulatory and public affairs. Through advocacy, education and innovation, NAB enables broadcasters to best serve their communities, strengthen their businesses and seize new opportunities in the digital age. Learn more at www.nab.org.
