Communications regulator Ofcom has received a further 10,000 requests for wireless frequency assignments from London Olympic Games organisers and expects more to come.

The request is in addition to the 12,505 applications that have already been granted for the games, which will be used for a variety of technical support functions, reports BBC News.

These include facilitating wireless television cameras and wireless microphones to record and broadcast the event, as well as the provision of video conferencing facilities to help team members, sports officials, organisers and support staff communicate.

Ofcom says it has been working hard to secure the extra frequencies needed for the games, and has had to borrow part of the spectrum from the Ministry of Defence. It is also been taking advantage of the spectrum freed up by the void left in broadcasting analogue television signals.

It has been a long project for the watchdog. Ofcom began its Spectrum Olympics Plan in 2006 and plans to finalise the programme by early February.

On Media.Ofcom.org.uk, the body’s chief operating officer, Jill Ainscough, said: “The UK’s airwaves are already among the most intensively used in the world. The London 2012 Games will significantly increase demand.

“Ready and prepared for this challenge, Ofcom recognises that there is no room for complacency. We are working behind the scenes to make this capacity available, to ensure that this demand is met.”

Video conference facilities have named as a key tool to improve business productivity by the Anywhere Working Consortium.

The consortium, formed by the government with the aim of providing more flexible working solutions across the UK, has encouraged business owners to invest in video conferencing solutions as soon as possible in order to boost the efficiency of their company.

Transport minister Norman Baker, who played a key role in the consortium’s formation, has been amongst the professionals championing the benefits of the technology.

In an interview with microsoft.com, he detailed the various other advantages of investing in video conferencing.

“It’s simply not necessary for us to always trudge to and from meetings when modern technology allows you to circumnavigate the globe virtually from the comfort of your front room, local coffee shop or when you’re on the move,” he said.

“Working flexibly by using video conferences, webinars or cloud computing can help increase productivity as well as employee wellbeing, not to mention dramatically reducing our carbon footprint. This interactive portal can help businesses reap these rewards.”

Baker unveiled the Anywhere Working Consortium last November. According to workingmums.co.uk, the body hopes to introduce new more efficient methods of working to at least 30,000 businesses across the UK.

Reports have confirmed that researchers from the University of North Carolina are continuing work on what is being called “true” 3D telepresence, perhaps suggesting it could become a reality sooner rather than later.

According to etcenter.org, a graduate student, Andrew Maimone and Dr Henry Fuchs are leading the work. In fact, they have managed to create a telepresence system boasting “room-sized real-time 3D capture and a life-size tracked display wall.”

This could represent a major breakthrough in 3D telepresence research, particularly as the prototype allows users to view a live scene and experience a changing perspective as they move their eyes. It is “as if the displays are a window into another room”, reports confirmed, meaning “as you walk past, you’ll be able to look around objects.”

When asked why telepresence could benefit from 3D technology, Maimone argued that it really can make the feeling of a “presence” seem greater; helping the experience feel altogether more real. This could help aid organic communication, he added.

Furthermore, being able to visually “look around” the room can help preserve any aspects of the situation that are lost during 2D telepresence. Maimone explained: “Imagine that you are seated in a meeting room and that someone’s head is blocking your view of a whiteboard. In our system, as in real life, you would naturally move your head around for an unobstructed view.

“In traditional video conferencing, you must interrupt the meeting and ask that the remote user move his or her head,” he concluded on 3dfocus.co.uk.

Both telepresence and video conferencing will grow further in popularity in 2012, according to a report published by Network World.

It revealed that the increasing affordability of such solutions will encourage more businesses to adopt them, which in turn, might well encourage the industry as a whole to continue improving its offerings.

“We expect to see increasing use of HD video communications across all market segments — including B2B, C2C and B2C,” explained Larry Hettick, a Network World writer. “Video traffic will continue to grow… leaving traffic engineers to consider video first, data second and voice third when it comes to managing bandwidth consumption.”

In fact, Hettick even went as far as to claim that video conferencing and telepresence could replace telephone communication altogether. Although he said this might not happen in the coming 12 months, he definitely believes it is where the future will lead the world.

His comments tie up with research recently published by IDC, a market intelligence organisation. It revealed on Information Week that the industry is set to grow by 18.3 by 2015, reaching a global revenue of $44 billion (£28 billion). This would represent a $19 billion (£12 billion) rise since 2010, demonstrating just how fast the medium is being embraced by companies worldwide.

The benefits of video conference solutions in making meetings more effective have been expounded by a performance improvement company.

Donna Merrick of Consult Capital spoke to Fresh Business Thinking about ways in which meetings can be improved, given how many employees are beginning to consider them as a “waste of time”.

One of her suggestions when considering the most convenient meeting location is to make use of “teleconferencing”, which has been “massively beneficial in terms of facilitating efficient meetings.”

Firstly, Ms Merrick highlighted the fact that using such solutions saves time and money. It brings together people from different sites, cost-efficiently and immediately.

She also asserted that teleconferencing can maintain the productivity of employees, no doubt through quicker decision times and less time wasted getting to or from unnecessary meetings.

Lastly, she emphasised the huge advantage of being able to include people who were previously excluded due to distance, customers, suppliers or colleagues who are based overseas, for example.

Other tips that have been suggested to get most out of a meeting – which could be applied to those held via video conference – is to issue and agenda “with specific times allocated for each item”, Business 4 U says. This helps not only to prepare all delegates for the meeting, but prevents is from running over schedule.

Additionally, meeting organisers need to consider an appropriate time of the day to hold the discussion, bearing in mind any time or working week differences.

The Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) has announced train fares are to increase by an average of 5.9 per cent in January, The Guardian reports.

Rail passengers will see the increase applied across England, Wales and Scotland from 2 January, with the extra money being ploughed back into station improvements and faster train services.

The increase still hovers above the current rate of inflation, which was 5.2 per cent according to the Retail Prices Index and has been described as “eye watering” by passenger group Campaign for Better Transport.

The rise in train fares may prompt some businesses to forego unnecessary rail travel by allowing employees to work from home or via video conferencing services to communicate with potential clients or colleagues across the world from a more convenient location.

Working this way is becoming increasingly popular as it reduces man hours wasted by travelling to and from meeting venues, plus promoting employee wellbeing by reducing stress caused by commuting. 

It’s a cruel blow to the many people who have abandoned their cars due to economic issues and been forced to use the train. The last time rail demand was so high, says BBC News, was in the 1920s.

Currently, rail passengers contribute £6.5 billion towards the the railways, while taxpayers pay £4 billion. ATOC says that the increase is an attempt to cut the taxpayers’ share.

The prospect of black ice across Britain is causing many motorists to err on the side of caution this season, reports the Guardian.

Traffic warnings have been issued throughout the country after collisions in Gloucestershire, Cambridgeshire and Buckinghamshire have led to hospitalised motorists.

A spokesman from Cambridgeshire Police commented: “The weather is making driving conditions very difficult and I would urge drivers to take extra care when out on the road.”

Commuting on the roads is a necessity for many workers but some firms allow employees to work from home thanks to video conferencing services. If drivers feel unsafe on the roads during winter, video conferencing with company staff and important clients from home could be a crucial investment for a business.

Scotland appears to be facing the brunt of the bad weather, with BBC News reporting the Met Office has currently issued more than three times’ its previously monthly record for weather warnings.

Scottish transport minister Keith Brown hailed the work of those advising motorists, stating: “Having Transport Scotland, the police, rail operators, road operating companies and the Met Office working side by side and agreeing messages for the travelling public has worked well so far, but we must stay sharp and keep up the good work.”

Research has revealed that traditional working practices and commuting are taking their toll on the average British worker, People Management reports.

A survey carried out by ICT company, 2e2 has found that two thirds of workers feel “restrained” when bound to a nine to five working day, claiming they would be more productive if they could work more flexibly, be it different hours or location.

The study also examined the effects that commuting to meetings or the office can have on effectiveness. It found that, due to various delays and transport problems, 1.5 days per employee, per year is lost. That equates to a massive £1.21 billion deficit.

Additionally, the convoluted journeys are causing employees to be more stressed and tired, resulting in reduced productivity and/or illness. This further costs UK businesses £1.03 billion every year, according to HR Magazine.

It’s no surprise therefore, that so many companies are using video conferencing solutions, to negate the need for travel, reduce lost man hours, maintain employees’ work life balance and cut costs.

The instantaneous nature of such communication means that business transactions can take place much faster, too.

Commenting on the findings, 2e2 director, Mike Hockey said: “Employers often don’t realise the impact of working culture on productivity. Different people have different working patterns and the traditional 9 to 5 way of working doesn’t suit everyone.” 

In order to help businesses manage their cloud computing system, Cisco has released an entirely new framework.

Designed to help businesses “build, manage and connect to public, private and hybrid clouds”, the framework has been named ‘Cisco CloudVerse’.

What’s more, eweek.com explained that Cisco is pushing the framework as the “first door on which potential cloud-system buyers can knock”.

According to a report on Cio-today.com, Cisco is aiming to help businesses adopt an “efficient” approach to their cloud storage; potentially meaning that those companies choosing to rent out video conferencing facilities will have no problem accessing any information they need mid-conference, as it will all be on hand.

Although previously known for its video conferencing and networking solutions, Cisco is now turning its attention to other technologies. In fact, one market analyst – Zeus Kerravala – has explained how the company is trying to get ahead of the game with cloud technology.

“CloudVerse is interesting because while other companies are trying to figure out what they are going to do in the cloud, Cisco is providing a framework to help,” said Kerravala.

“Cisco has forecast cloud adoption in its recent index, and they are the first company to do that. Now, they are offering the elements to help drive that adoption.”

Over half of British businesses believe that flexible working technologies would benefit their company, according to a new poll.

A OnePoll survey of 1,000 British companies has indicated that 51 per cent of business owners would find technologies such as cloud computing, remote server systems and video conference facilities useful during their working day.

What’s more, a quarter of firms have named the introduction of flexible working practices as their top priority for the coming year.

Of those already using flexible working technologies, 55 per cent were using video conferencing services whilst 30 per cent had given their staff tablet computers to help them work on-the-go.

Michael Stephens, who is the general manager of an independent video conferencing provider, claimed that the need for such facilities is only going to grow in the future.

Speaking to pcadvisor.co.uk, he said: “Even with the latest budget announcement supporting SMBs, the costs of travel will continue to rise, and therefore a need for high quality, interoperable and business-ready solutions at an accessible cost.

“Businesses of all sizes are cutting costs across the board but perceive that it is too complex to implement the required technologies to enable their staff to work efficiently from any location.”

According to onestopclick.com, the majority of firms planning to increase their flexible working abilities are in the healthcare sector.