Audio video conferencing is a shorthand way of describing a virtual conference where no one has to leave her office to meet up with the rest of the group. A virtual conference may use telephones, televisions, computers, conferencing software, collaborative software, file sharing, headsets, the Internet, or any combination of these equipments and tools. Slide presentation, streaming audio, and document sharing are some of the extras you can incorporate into this conferencing method. The ultimate goal is to make the meeting as realistic as possible, where everyone can see each other, hear each other, view and modify projects, and so on � all at a cost that eventually pays for itself in travel savings.

The audio video industry has yet to work out all of the kinks. As you can imagine, there can sometimes be technical difficulties in which lines can get torn down in a storm, computers and other equipment can malfunction, and so on. Furthermore, audio video conferencing doesn't work very well for complicated communication techniques, such as those used in closing a sales deal. Audio video conferencing lends a rather impersonal air to meetings, and socializing and bonding don't take place as they would in the real world.

You can set up for audio video conferencing in a number of different ways. The older method, still great for a wide variety of teleconferencing purposes, is to have one group in one room, another group in another room (perhaps in another city or country), and have them talk to each other. Each of the two groups utilizes a television, a video camera mounted on the television, a speakerphone, and perhaps some file sharing software for collaboration on computer projects. The newer style is online audio video conferencing, wherein each participant has her very own station in her very own office. This utilizes a computer, the Internet, a web cam, a headset, and file sharing software. This new method allows for even greater ease of planning and attendance, applicability to collaboration, and mobility. You could attend a web conference on the beach while the other attendees are on a train, at home, in a restaurant, or anywhere else.