Top 5 Problems of Managed Video Surveillance / SaaS

Managed video is becoming one of the most overhyped trends in the video surveillance industry.

A number of factors drive interest. The concept of reducing on-site setup and eliminating deployment of DVR/NVRs is quite attractive. Further fueling interest is its potential to generate recurring revenue streams rather than installation revenue. In the background is the general IT trend of migrating software applications to on-line services.

In talking with industry professionals, I see a lot of noise and unclarity about how managed video works and how competitive it is (and will be) versus traditional video surveillance solutions.

While I believe in the long term potential (last year I selected managed video as one of 3 top emerging technology trends), it's not a fully mature technology. As such, there are many problems that will constrain its use for years to come.

Here are the top five:

• Last mile bandwidth limitations
• Cost/complexity of deploying/integrating cameras/recorders on-site
• Advantages are not as compelling as they are in other applications
• Generally weak business case compared to traditional solutions
• Vendor promotion is driving the hype
• Plus - Free offerings will limit growth