Exploring Verint's Video Strategy

Verint's objective is to be an end-to-end solutions provider delivering a complete product offering of IP video products. This is a significant evolution from Verint's early days when the company was mostly known for its high quality DVRs (from Lanex and Loronix). This strategy is important because other large companies seem to be emulating this and it sets the stage for 2 major alternatives for IP video solutions.

Overview of Verint Video

Verint's goal is to eliminate complex integration and provide a single source for enterprise customers to obtain IP video solutions. Verint offers a wide range of cameras, encoders, wireless devices, analytics and video management software.

The value proposition is that by providing an end-to-end solution, the system will perform better and the integration costs will be lower.

Verint is now offering turnkey IP solutions that bundle encoders, software,servers, switches, cables, etc. to make it as simple as possible for analog customers to migrate.

For instance, Verint's Nextiva, their IP video management software provides extensive integrated support for outdoor analytics, retail analytics as well as PSIM features - integrated maps, rules based engines and virtual matrixes. This has the potential to reduce the 3rd party products needed to build an enterprise video monitoring system.

At the same time, Verint is not a closed system. It supports both Object Video and Agent Vi for analytics as well as a number of leading IP camera manufacturers such as Axis, IQinvision and Arecont Vision.

Emulating by Others

The recent moves by Tyco and March Networks clearly indicate that this strategy is being emulated by other large companies. Tyco's acquisition of an encoder/NVR company and an analytics company, Intellivid, provide Tyco with a broad IP video portfolio. March Networks acquisition of Cieffe's cameras, encoders and IP video management systems is similar as well.

Verint certainly has an extensive head start so it will be very interesting to see how quickly and how well March and Tyco can close this gap.

At a higher level, what seems to be happening is the incumbent DVR companies, as a group, are expanding their product set and transitioning to end to end IP video systems.

Two Major Alternatives

This is producing a clear contrast in the marketplace between end-to-end solutions and dedicated software providers. On the one hand, you have Verint, March, Tyco and Cisco. On the other, you have companies like Milestone, Genetec and IpConfigure.

The end to end providers have two significant advantages: (1) they can use their brand and distribution to target the whole deal and (2) they should have some benefits in ease of integration.

The dedicated software providers have advantages: (1) greater flexibility to choose exactly what's best for you and (2) potentially access to better parts that the end to end solution might not support.

I do not know what will win but Verint's strategy and how the major incumbents are responding indicates that this will be a core issue in the evolving IP video market.