The cost varies according to several factors, chief among them being the number of concurrent users. Terrell explains, "If you expect to have four classes online with 25 students each, you'd license a 100-user system. We generally recommend a 500 or 1000 concurrent user license. We also offer site licenses for entire organizations, which can be cheaper on a per-seat basis."
Still, even their smallest systems start under $15,000. To level the playing field relative to their corporate customers, Avacast offers a flat, 20-percent educational discount. They also lower the threshold of concurrent users, offering 5-, 10-, and 25-user systems that aren't available on their corporate pricing list. "It's just how I was raised," says Terrell, whose mother was a teacher.
Avacast is well aware of the budgetary strains on schools today. Boznos says, "Working with multiple entities within a school can be helpful to ease the strain on a particular departmental budget. Also, we demonstrate to administrators how Avacast fulfills not only particular educational missions and goals but is flexible enough to be used for Webcasting graduations, question and answer sessions with alumni and prospective students, and professional development for staff. The budget process can be a long and difficult one. We understand that and we take the time to work with the schools in this regard."
LEARNING CURVE
Even if the money is there, Terrell adds, "a bigger problem is getting buy-in. Sometimes online learning will have a champion high up in the administration, but the instructors and professors aren't sure what to make of it. In these cases it's important to show how Avacaster gives more power to instructors, rather than taking power away."
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
Maintaining existing network infrastructures often incurs huge technical debt before newer technologies are adopted over time.
Amid ongoing regional uncertainties, telecom infrastructure in the Middle East has expand to include terrestrial low-latency network infrastructure, which offers resilience and agility in navigating political complexities without relying solely on undersea networks.
