WorldStream Gets New Enterprise Clients

WorldStream Communications, (www.worldstream.com)) a provider of interactive communication for businesses announced several new customers on Friday: E.piphany ( www.epiphany.com), a software company; the Information Technology Association (www.itaa.org), a trade association representing the U.S. IT industry; The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) (www.shrm.org) which provides education and information services, conferences and seminars, to its members; and AIIM International (www.aiim.com), which represents Enterprise Content Management within e-business. WorldStream did not discuss any terms of the agreements.

Enterprise streaming is on the rise according to a study by Market Decisions Corp. The study, which was commissioned by Microsoft, found that one in four large enterprise businesses in the United States are using streaming media in their organizations. It also reported that streaming usage has doubled in the past 18 months.

Jim Wulff, director of product management, says that Worldstream will launch a series of new products that are made for different customers. "When you focus on the enterprise you have to make sure that they have the right tool for the right job," he said. He said that the products will step users through a range of services, from simple audio webcasts to full interactivity, which is Worldstream's flagship service.

WorldStream's service combines streaming video and audio with PowerPoint slides, group and private chat, e-mail, links, Q/A, and polling. Unlike some competitors, however, it doesn't let users control PowerPoint presentations. "It differs from competitors," said Wulff, "because we want the presenter to be in control. It's much easier for lower bandwidth connections."

Wulff said WorldStream can support an audience of 10,000 although he admitted that there aren't many examples of those kinds of events. "Most events are 500 to a few thousand," he said. Pricing for Worldstream is based on a subscription basis, primarily.

What about the competition? Wulff doesn't seem to be worried. "We have technology and platform to be a one stop shop for customers," he said. "Our platform is so well positioned to be one place to go." Wulff also said that Worldstream's products are not "vaporware." "Customers have been using it for a year."

Wulff said that WorldStream uses its own products internally. "Why are you in the business if you don't use it?" he said. "We eat our own dog food."