At first glance, it might not seem like a big deal that Extron acquired a Switzerland-based software manufacturer this week.
That’s before hearing from the folks at Extron who indicate that its acquisition of Zurich-based Entwine AG, which specializes in video capture and presentation solutions using OpenCast Matterhorn, HTML5 and WebRTC, will help the Anaheim-based manufacturer evolve with the demands of its AV integration partners.
Video capture has been around a long time, points out Extron VP of sales Casey Hall, and demand used to stem mostly from higher education and house of worship markets. “Now we’re seeing adoption in most markets including the corporate commercial side, so that’s very exciting to us.”
Related: Entwine’s 350 Classroom Lecture Capture Solution at U. of Manchester
The Entwine acquisition comes on the heels of Extron releasing its SMP 351 streaming media processor for capturing and distributing live AV sources and presentations. Adding a Entwine’s software to the SMP 351, says director of product marketing Joe Da Silva, puts Extron on track to provide its dealers with and soup to nuts video capture solution.
“We have been hearing from our channel that customers need to capture meetings and they’re looking for a system approach,” Da Silva says. “A lot of times there is no software to managing it. We had been hearing that. So we’re hoping to provide an end-to-end solution.”
With more integration clients focused on capturing video content, integrators have an opportunity to provide offer more value and strengthen the integrator-client relationship. The flip side, however, is that if integrators aren’t equipped to solve video capture needs, clients will seek help elsewhere.
“There are a number of different ways to capture video but with our hardware [SMP 351] you have a purpose built device that’s easy for an AV integrator to bring to the table and envelope into their AV system,” Halls says.
“What we’ve really found with that device is that there wasn’t [prior] a stable hardware platform on the market. We’re seeing a lot of interest by the integrator network because they have a solution that they can bring to the table.”
In Entwine, Extron is bringing on board an engineering-centric software group with decades of experience solving video capture and distribution challenges across several markets including education, corporate and health care. It developed software for what’s called Europe’s largest lecture capture system at the University of Manchester.
Check out the University of Manchester lecture capture project:
“When you look at Entwine their software has been predominantly used in education but they’re now seeing more medical and corporate demand for capturing and recording and managing content,” Hall says.
The engineering aspect of Entwine is a big factor for Extron, according to Da Silva. “It’s basically the acquisition of an engineering team with years of experience in this market and application. It’s a very engineering oriented company, so very similar to us and very easy to see that they would fit in just fine with us.”
That fact that Entwine’s software approach is so critical to an integrated solution says something about how the industry is evolving, Hall adds. “We as a manufacturer of pro AV products look at software and software products as being very important going forward. That goes back to the ‘end to end’ solution.
“There’s a natural integration between software and hardware and much is heading to the software domain. As a forward-thinking company we need to move in that direction. There’s a strong parallel between that and AV integrators needing to become IT experts.”
