In our latest review, we looked at Infinte Conferencing and Yugma. GatherPlace and iLinc in our post: Webinar Software Review: Infinite Conferencing and Yugma, and we have also reviewed GatherPlace and ILinc, ConferencePlus and TalkPoint, Fuze Meeting and MS Live Meeting, InstantPresenter and Freebinar, omNovia and ON24, Adobe Connect and ReadyTalk, GoToWebinar and Webex. This week, we’re going to take a look at Infinite Conferencing and Yugma.
Criteria | BeaconLive | MeetingBurner |
|---|---|---|
| Has different products? | Fully managed events as well as do-it-yourself options. Capability of functions and pricing are based on which type of service you are using. Beaconlive also recently introduced BeaconCE, which allows the Continuing Education Industry assurance of participation during the webinar, webcast or on-demand playback of the event. | One product |
| Pricing (by mo/attendee volume) | Flexible pricing options | Freemium model -- service is free to use for 95% of the users. Paid subscriptions will be availble later in the year for people who need advanced features, larger meetings, etc. |
| Screenshare or uploaded | Screenshare and uploaded available | Screenshare only |
| Ease of Installation - Need Plugin or all web | Browser based for the audience, with no download. The presenters may be required to upgrade/download Java on their computers if they plan to share their desktops. | Meeting participants only need flash installed and no download is required. Meetings load extremely fast. Hosts need to download a small java app in order to share their screen. No installation on the local hard drive is required. |
| Interactivity (polls, breakout groups, highlighting, raise hands, Q&A) | Polls, Surveys, Q&A, highlighting, talk with the moderator, chat, and post-event testing (BeaconCE) | Chat and Q&A. |
| Has integrated Twitter stream? | No | No |
| Recording file type | Files are recorded in wmv by default, with the capability to record in all other formats when requested prior to the live event. Audio conferences are recorded as mp3's but are also available in other formats. | One click record allows you to download in mp4 format, post to YouTube, or embed on a webpage. Super simple and easy to record. |
| Has moderator on webinar? | Yes, every call has a live moderator dedicated to one webinar at a time. | Yes |
| Branded Presentation room | Fully customizable landing page and browser color scheme selection. BeaconLive recently introduced the capability to have a customized flash landing page. | Core branding is done. Complete branding of every element of the webinar system is coming soon. |
| Audio options (phone AND computer)? | Both | Both plus Skype integration. |
| Drawing Tools | Yes | Coming soon. |
| Video streaming | Yes | Coming soon through the video upload tool. |
| Webcam integration | Yes | Yes. |
| Post-session survey or quiz | Yes, through BeaconCE. | No |
| Browser compatability | Completely browser based. Works with all browsers | All reasonable browsers and operating systems. |
| Document sharing? (for participants to download) | Yes | No |
| Clickable links in slideshows? | Yes, on co-browsing feature | Clickable links in special area at the bottom of the screen |
| Scheduling/Registration - Ability to register participants for a fee? | Fully customizazble registration and e-commerce capabilities. Automated email responses, reminders and distribution of handouts. | Schedule in advance or meet now. Integrated with major calendars. Text message reminders available. |
| Ease of Use by Attendee | Completely browser based, robust yet extremely intuitive | Extremely fast and easy experience |
| Ease of Use by Host (i.e. alternating tools, etc) | Easy passing of control between presenters. Use of Moderator to assist with anything necessary. Dry and tech-runs avaliable with the moderator | Straight forward and easy. |
| Trial Offer Available (how long? includes all features?) | Yes, full feature trials available. Time allotment negotiable | Completely free during beta testing period. 30 day trial will be available when beta ends. |
| Ability to use animation in slides | Available during the Screen Sharing mode | Yes. |
| Full Service (includes registration, reminders, facilitator...) | Yes | Yes |
| Customer Service/Tech Support (accessibility/Knowledge) - during, after, before webinar | Exceptional customer service before, during and after the webinar. An assigned event producer oversees all details before, during and after the event. Additionally, a moderator is available to assist both the presenter and attendees throughout the webinar | Yes. Enhanced support will be part of the paid packages once the beta period is over. |
| Reporting Functions - Attendee attendance tracking | Detailed post event reports provided, including lists of registrants, attendees, duration, and CE verification. Results of survey questions and question asked of the presenter during the Q&A are also available in the post event reports. | Reporting available before, during, and after the meetings. |
| Mobile enabled? | works on many smartphones | Coming soon. |
| Max # of participants | Unlimited | 65 now but expanding to 300 in coming weeks |
| Downsides | Webcam feature is not available to attendees who do not have Flash on their computer. | We don't allow feature bloat which means some infrequently used features will not be included. Other downside is that the service is still in beta testing. |
(Above chart put together in conjunction with Workshop University)
Please let us know if you find any errors in the above!
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