Corporate Deployment of E-meetings Grows

OCTOBER 22, 2003 -- Ashburn, Va. -- Web conferencing in Corporate America has surged over the past year, with usage up 31 percent over the year before, according to a study commissioned by MCI, the big telecommunications company.

Three-quarters of respondents have attended a web conference, and more than half of those responding positively had attended their first web conference within the past 12 months, according to the study.

"This year's Meetings in America study shows that many people have changed the way they conduct business, embracing collaborative technologies, especially web conferencing, as a part of daily routines," said Phil Knell, vice president of conferencing for MCI.

Nearly 70 percent of respondents said the main reason they prefer remote conferencing, including teleconferencing and videoconferencing, to traveling was because it saves time and is a more efficient way to meet. Other reasons were to reduce corporate travel budgets, 37 percent; company policy, 36 percent; better work-life balance, 29 percent; and increased productivity, 28 percent.

The study was conducted by Impulse Research Corp., of Los Angeles, last August among 1,003 respondents representing a cross section of business travelers in the United States. Complete results of the study can be viewed at www.mci.com/conferencing.