It must have been the early nineties when I started talking to customers about video phones and such, but even though people thought it was cool, it never really took off.

Was it too expensive? Was the quality not good enough? Was it not considered a necessity? Probably all of the above. But in terms of the business world, I think people just thought a talking head didn’t add much value. I also think many of the technologies that are now taking off in business (think IM) were spawned in the consumer world – and video just never caught on there.

But now that it’s 2008, it seems like video is finally starting to gain some traction. While there some slow growth in the early 2000s, there appears to be a peak in interest now - why? My hunch is that the video craze in the handhelds - and finally the beginnings of the ubiquitous infrastructure to support it – is behind the rise in video.

Sure, the economy is helping to fuel the market in which travel budgets are tight, but is it the talking head we seek? I say no. I believe it's the just-in-time world we live in that will drive video and deliver a new level of customer service. The product demo, pictures of the polo in multiple colors, the streaming video on how to set up your TIVO – we seek all of this out on the devices we now use the most – our cell phones and PDAs.

In my opinion, companies that jump on this bandwagon and use video to differentiate their brand will win the hearts and minds of both techies and the up and coming generation that expects this rich experience. Do you agree? How will you use video in your business?