Research Examines If Milestone XProtect Go Is Key To Opening Up Low-End Market

  • Sep 13, 2010

With the recent announcement by Milestone Systems that it will start supplying XProtect Go, a free eight channel version of its video management software (VMS) platform. But what does this mean for the video surveillance industry? Free VMS is not a new phenomenon -- a number of network security camera vendors supply VMS for free, bundled with their cameras. So is this announcement significant to the VMS market?

Unlike other free VMS products, two of the key differentiators that the free Milestone product offers are openness and functionality. Much of the software bundled for free with network security cameras is proprietary, it only works with one particular vendors’ hardware.

While the adoption of open standards, such as ONVIF and PSIA, will increase the openness of vendors supplying free VMS products; currently the percentage of available ONVIF compliant hardware is relatively low and these vendors will still lack support for non-ONVIF compliant hardware. Secondly, much of the free software currently available has poor or limited functionality. Whilst XProtect Go does not contain the full feature set of its more advanced siblings, its feature set is more expansive that other free VMS offerings and is potentially better suited to the residential and small business market.

Offering free or ‘lite’ software has been an incredibly successful business model in other software application markets. Customers get a taste for the product and upgrade the software as their requirements and/or installation size increases. Furthermore, the availability of free open platform VMS may entice the existing installed base of low camera count deployments to part with their existing, and typically proprietary, system and embrace an open platform VMS.

The network video surveillance market has, to date, not been successful in the low-end of the market (the 8 to 16 channel camera market). When compared to an analogue DVR system, the high price of VMS licenses, coupled with the higher price of network cameras, has served as a deterrent in this highly price sensitive market segment. Currently, the low-end market is serviced by inexpensive and low cost analogue CCTV products.

“The rapidly declining cost of network cameras, free VMS and open standards will all play key factors in network video surveillance equipment beginning to penetrate the low end market,” said video surveillance analyst Gary Wong. “However, even free open platform VMS may not provide the key to penetrating this market segment as customers may continue to favor the familiarity of existing analog systems.”

 

Featured

  • AI Is Now the Leading Cybersecurity Concern for Security, IT Leaders

    Arctic Wolf recently published findings from its State of Cybersecurity: 2025 Trends Report, offering insights from a global survey of more than 1,200 senior IT and cybersecurity decision-makers across 15 countries. Conducted by Sapio Research, the report captures the realities, risks, and readiness strategies shaping the modern security landscape. Read Now

  • Analysis of AI Tools Shows 85 Percent Have Been Breached

    AI tools are becoming essential to modern work, but their fast, unmonitored adoption is creating a new kind of security risk. Recent surveys reveal a clear trend – employees are rapidly adopting consumer-facing AI tools without employer approval, IT oversight, or any clear security policies. According to Cybernews Business Digital Index, nearly 90% of analyzed AI tools have been exposed to data breaches, putting businesses at severe risk. Read Now

  • Software Vulnerabilities Surged 61 Percent in 2024, According to New Report

    Action1, a provider of autonomous endpoint management (AEM) solutions, today released its 2025 Software Vulnerability Ratings Report, revealing a 61% year-over-year surge in discovered software vulnerabilities and a 96% spike in exploited vulnerabilities throughout 2024, amid an increasingly aggressive threat landscape. Read Now

  • Motorola Solutions Named Official Safety Technology Supplier of the Ryder Cup through 2027

    Motorola Solutions has today been named the Official Safety Technology Supplier of the 2025 and 2027 Ryder Cup, professional golf’s renowned biennial team competition between the United States and Europe. Read Now

  • Evolving Cybersecurity Strategies

    Organizations are increasingly turning their attention to human-focused security approaches, as two out of three (68%) cybersecurity incidents involve people. Threat actors are shifting from targeting networks and systems to hacking humans via social engineering methods, living off human errors as their most prevalent attack vector. Whether manipulated or not, human cyber behavior is leveraged to gain backdoor access into systems. This mainly results from a lack of employee training and awareness about evolving attack techniques employed by malign actors. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • AC Nio

    AC Nio

    Aiphone, a leading international manufacturer of intercom, access control, and emergency communication products, has introduced the AC Nio, its access control management software, an important addition to its new line of access control solutions.

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file.