San Lameer, KwaZulu-Natal. 26 August 2007 - Cisco today announced the donation of three TelePresence systems to the South African government to enable better coordination and cooperation of the Presidential International Advisory Council on Information Society and Development (PIAC on ISAD) and its e-Skills Council. Mark De Simone, vice president for Middle East and Africa at Cisco made this announcement at the end of a three-day meeting of the held at San Lameer, KwaZulu-Natal. Mr de Simone is a member of the PIAC, which advises President Thabo Mbeki in the areas of the ICT. “This is part of Cisco’s contribution to improve communications and collaboration within and among members of the PIAC by harnessing the ultra-high quality, multi-way video and audio capabilities of the TelePresence solution,” said De Simone.” “Based on the outcome of the PIAC meeting, where e-skills and broadband were key focus areas, Cisco noted the importance of collaboration using state-of-the-art technology not only amongst the PIAC members but also with other leaders,” said De Simone. “As a result of the PIAC meeting and the need communicate frequently, Cisco is proud to donate our TelePresence systems to the offices of the President and the Department of Communications respectively. The design, planning and implementation of the technology will commence once Cisco has met the respective departments. Cisco launched its Cisco TelePresence offering last October. Through Cisco innovations in video, audio and remote communication technologies over the Internet Protocol (IP) network, Cisco TelePresence makes people in remote locations communicating via the network appear to be in the same room. Use of the terminals is as easy as placing a regular phone call. Cisco will be offering its highest-end version of the systems, the Cisco TelePresence 3000. Each system includes three 65 inch plasma screens complete with a specially designed table that seats six participants on one side or a "virtual table" for 12. It supports life-size images, ultra high-definition video as well as spatial audio capabilities. For more details on Cisco TelePresence, including videos and photos, please see http://newsroom.cisco.com/ciscotelepresence For additional enquiries, please contact: About Cisco |