| | March 20178CIOReviewEnd-to-End Solutions are a Dead End: The Road to the Future is OPENThe video surveillance industry has reached an important crossroads where manufacturers can choose to continue in one direction that solely focuses on their own products and profits, or to move forward in another direction that emphasizes building partnerships for the greater good of the community.On one side lies the short road of end-to-end, proprietary solutions from companies looking to protect their own interests by locking customers into their products alone. This road ends fast when a customer wants to add new functionality to their system, and it has not yet been created by their single vendor. This limited short-term way of doing business puts existing investments in jeopardy and places integrators in a very awkward situation.On the other side lies an entire network of roads that stretch far and wide with open platform solutions designed by a collaborating community. This choice is filled with components from technology partners that work together to create a comprehensive solution to meet each customer's evolving needs. At any time, solutions can be upgraded or added as partners develop new technologies and functionality while maintaining existing investments.The physical security industry is at this important crossroads, and Milestone Systems is forging confidently forward to continue blazing the trail of open platform solutions. We are taking the next step in this evolution by moving from the open platform company to the open platform community.The Open Platform Community Serves Customers BestWith the open platform community, we're putting the focus on partnerships first. This move from an open company to an open community can best be illustrated by comparison with a small town. Envision a town center with a courthouse and city hall, a bank, doctor's office and school, the local market-all anchored by Main Street where the community gathers to do business. As time passes, small towns grow into cities. But to accommodate the growth and thrive, two key elements must be in place: leadership and critical infrastructure.First, it takes leadership with a vision for growth to move forward. Second, it takes critical infrastructure--water, power, electricity, bridges, streets and highways--to grow and scale out a town. With leadership and critical infrastructure in place, the small town can grow and welcome more people, new industries and jobs over time.By Tim Palmquist, VP Americas, Milestone SystemsTim PalmquistIN MY OPINION
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