Milestone CEO Lars Thinggaard launched the event with a helicopter view of five megatrends in our changing world, and the imperative to manage risks and spot opportunities for more than just security. Milestone managers shared important information on new products, tools, and services that help the partner channels to grow with the Milestone open platform.

The Milestone product road map was revealed, announcing new versions of XProtect® VMS available soon:

- XProtect® Corporate 5 for large, multi-site deployments will now have the distinction of powerful 64-bit recording servers that handle more cameras per server through increased memory capacity – unlimited depending on hardware capacity. New device connectivity management includes remote one-click camera connection and extended edge storage for flexible retrieval.

- XProtect® Smart Client 7 was simultaneously presented in a live webinar to almost 600 viewers, previewing a sleek new graphical user interface (GUIs) with a choice of two themes – dark or light – for different monitoring environments. Advances in flexible evidence creation and export include a timeline-coordinated framework for video sequences, separate camera inclusion or exclusion and higher security through digital signing. Alarm management can be accessed directly in live or playback modes, and controlled by time, location, or extended priority levels with expanded report facilities.

- MIP SDK 3 is the Milestone Integration Platform Software Development Kit to be released with XProtect Corporate 5 end of March. It will provide fast and easy new plug-n-play interoperability options for third party offerings with Milestone Solution Partners, among other innovative advances.

- XProtect® Mobile 1.0 iOS video management software is now released for Apple iPod® Touch, iPhone® or iPad® in addition to the existing Android support.

- XProtect® NVR will also be released as a ready-to-use solution that combines Milestone XProtect VMS with a preconfigured workstation managing up to eight or 16 surveillance cameras. It supports both Network Attached Storage and integration of third-party applications and business systems, making it ideal for retail chains requiring analytics or access control.

Other speakers at the MIPS gathering included Martin Gren, Co-Founder of Axis Communications, and Mark Collett, General Manager of Sony.  Breakout sessions were hosted by MIPS gold partners Iomnis Surveillance, Hewlett-Packard, Arecont Vision and Razberi Technologies. Plenty of time was built into the agenda for partners to network and investigate the Technology Showcase where 32 Manufacturer Alliance Partners and Milestone Solution Partners exhibited their innovative Milestone-integrated IP video solutions.

Connect with administrators, nurses, and facility managers from across the country for this 60 minute webinar and learn how critical safety systems can control risks to your facility and help to protect your residents and employees. Click HERE to register.
Start Time: 10:00
Date: 2012-02-28
End Time: 11:00

The security industry has also experienced significant technological improvements over the last decade particularily in terms of video surveillance.  Simple film cameras on the wall transitioned to VCR and tape based systems, then to analog DVR systems, and finally to IP Video, which is the next generation of video surveillance.

IP Video surveillance is digital, network-based video recording and can offer many advantages over previous analog recording systems.  Image quality is the most notable improvement.  With an IP based system, you are able to clearly capture an incident in progress and identify persons or objects involved.  Cameras using the newest scanning and megapixel technology can deliver a better image quality and resolution than their old analog counterparts.  IP Video surveillance will provide image quality very similar to high definition TV, which is now the standard that most of us expect in our living rooms from the cable companies and big screen television manufacturers.

With video surveillance, there is often too much video recorded and not enough time to properly analyze all the information collected.  Digital IP Video systems can be equipped with intelligent analytics which help to filter unnecessary video and can save time when searching for events.  Video analytics also have the ability to protect your organization against fraud, check kiting, and card skimming by using real-time monitoring, alerting, and investigative capabilities.

IP Video systems also offer more scalability and flexibility than the traditional analog based systems.  IP-based systems provide a means for multiple networked cameras to share the same wired or wireless network for communicating data.  This allows a number of network video products to be added to a system without significant or costly changes to the network infrastructure.  This is not the case with the old analog systems which require a dedicated coaxial cable to run from each camera directly to the video recording station.

Surprisingly enough, an IP Video surveillance system typically has a lower cost of ownership than a traditional analog CCTV system.  An IP network infrastructure is often already in place and used for other applications within an organization, so a network video application can piggyback off the existing infrastructure.  IP-based networks and wireless options are also much less expensive alternatives than traditional coaxial and fiber cabling used in analog CCTV systems.  Management and equipment costs are also lower since back-end applications and storage run on industry standard, open systems-based servers (Think Dell and HP), not on proprietary hardware such as a DVR in the case of an analog CCTV system.

One of the best features that IP Video offers is that network cameras can also be configured and accessed remotely, enabling multiple, authorized users to view live and recorded video at any time from virtually any networked location in the world.  This is advantageous if users would like a third-party company, such as Dakota Security, to also gain access to the video for service needs or a possible event which needs to be turned over to the authorities.  In a traditional analog CCTV system, users would need to be at a specific, on-site monitoring location to view and manage video.

Not only can IP Video systems be viewed remotely from any networked location, most IP Video manufacturers have developed mobile applications which allow authorized users to view live and recorded video right on their smart-phone or tablet computer.  These applications can be found in either the Android Marketplace or the Apple AppStore for free or a nominal charge depending upon features desired.

Video surveillance has experienced rapid technological change over the past decade and IP Video has emerged as the next generation of surveillance.  IP Video offers many advantages over previous analog recording systems including superior image quality, intellegent analytics, and scalable architecture.  If properly designed, an IP Video system can be more cost effective and flexible than a traditional analog system.  If you are considering video surveillance for your organization, you can be certain that IP Video is the solution of the future.

About Dakota Security Systems

Dakota Security has a mission to Understand Security problems, Solve them, and Support the solution.  Contact us today and let Dakota Security show you how our Steps to Security can make a difference for your organization.

About the North Dakota Safety & Health Conference

The 39th Annual ND Safety & Health Conference is the largest safety & health event in ND, MT and SD. Experience 3 days of in-depth professional development programs by some of the leading speakers from across the nation addressing all areas of safety, including emerging safety concerns in ND. We have arranged nearly 80 educational and motivational courses, including keynotes Garrison Wynn and David Teater.  Event Details can be found here.

As an Associate Business Member, Dakota Security will be working with facility administrators, nurses, and facility managers across the state of Arizona to Understand their security problems, Solve them, and Support the solution.  Visit www.dakotasecurity.com/healthcare to learn how critical safety systems can control risk to healthcare facilities and help to protect healthcare residents and employees.

As an Associate Business Member, Dakota Security will be working with facility administrators, nurses, and facility managers across the state of Iowa to Understand their security problems, Solve them, and Support the solution.  Visit www.dakotasecurity.com/healthcare to learn how critical safety systems can control risk to healthcare facilities and help to protect healthcare residents and employees.

As an Associate Business Member, Dakota Security will be working with facility administrators, nurses, and facility managers across the state of South Dakota to Understand their security problems, Solve them, and Support the solution.  Visit www.dakotasecurity.com/healthcare to learn how critical safety systems can control risk to healthcare facilities and help to protect healthcare residents and employees.