Latin America. For many years, generally speaking, the use of video has been regarded as an extension of the end-user security system. However, at present, we can highlight different ways video can help customers and businesses in different areas they were unaware of, providing benefits that go beyond security and allow for better operation or management of business. The growth momentum of small, medium and large businesses can be gained through the diverse use that video provides.
Video analytics, high-value competitive advantage
The retail sector is a market in which there is a lot of interest in the new advanced analytics capabilities that are available in video solutions. According to a study by ABI Research[1], the retail sector around the world will have invested USD 1.5 billion in video analytics solutions by 2021, with a compound annual growth rate of 13.8%.
These companies find a lot of value in new video technologies that can provide additional business intelligence insights beyond traditional loss prevention use cases. For example, advanced analytics capabilities such as heat mapping, people counting, face recognition, among others, provide business owners or managers with useful information about the overall behavior of their establishment, customers, and staff. This data can help them improve customer service, develop targeted marketing strategies, and potentially create a more personalized shopping experience, while maintaining the safety of their employees and merchandise.
A different paradigm, accompanied by new video application opportunities
With a global distribution of 66 million network cameras worldwide destined for different sectors in 2016[2], the security market has had a great growth thanks to the evolution and adoption of new technologies by companies.
With new applications for video, a new paradigm of use emerges, that is, the universe of practical cases for this tool is expanded. For example, it can be used in construction monitoring to assess the status of a project or prevent the theft of materials from the work; in cities, to monitor and manage road traffic; in the health sector, for the supervision and monitoring of patients, operating rooms, stretchers, corridors and rooms to have an immediate response; and in drones for commercial and recreational uses. In addition, live video can support the monitoring of beaches, mountains, and weather conditions (humidity, rainfall, heat, etc.); resorts and hotels can use the recordings to promote their facilities for tourism; in zoos the video can serve as a bridge for people to see animals from home remotely.
In glass and steel manufacturing, the Wide Dynamic Range (WDR) capabilities in certain cameras allow workers to see details that were previously imperceptible to the human eye, aiding quality control and efficiency. In the railway sector, the video of high-performance IP cameras helps in monitoring the contact of electric pantographs on trains at high speeds to avoid failures, maintain efficient operation and ultimately improve safety; the video also allows labels to be read in high resolution, which supports logistics coordinators to track progress efficiently, minimizing loss and theft.
In conclusion, security-specific video solutions are one of the many possible applications for this type of tool. Integrators must be intelligent and visualize the infinite possibilities that video provides to reach other markets and different verticals, with this the opportunity to offer different services and generate greater diversification, compared to the traditional security market, will increase.
By Elisa Swanson, Solution Marketing Manager of Axis Communications and Janik Arellano, Small Business Accounts of Axis Communications
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