Meru Networks has announced today that it has joined the Polycom (News - Alert) (News - Alert) ARENA partner program. Polycom, a provider of unified collaboration communications solutions, initiated the ARENA program in an effort to allow software application providers, hardware device manufacturers and conferencing solution providers to integrate their products with Polycom’s unified collaboration platform to create new applications.

 

Meru’s enterprise wireless LAN solutions, integrated with Polycom’s unified collaboration platform, will enhance the ability of health-care workers, educators, and others to perform effectively without being tethered to a wired infrastructure.

Polycom has also chosen Meru to provide the wireless infrastructure for the Polycom Global Customer Conference in San Diego. Meru’s wireless LAN will be used to showcase partner technology demonstrations across the exhibit hall.

"Customers are investing in solutions that improve productivity, accelerate decision-making and lower costs. Through our involvement in the Polycom ARENA program, Meru will deliver integrated solutions that address their needs," said Rachna Ahlawat, Meru vice president of strategic marketing, in a Tuesday statement.

 

"Tying Polycom's unified collaboration platform into Meru's wireless infrastructure will allow doctors to move freely from room to room while accessing patient health records, viewing high-quality video and recording diagnoses. School resource teachers will likewise be able to videoconference and share instructional materials more easily than ever before."

"Polycom and its ARENA ecosystem partners such as Meru are focused on proliferating new collaborative communications solutions that will benefit organizations worldwide,” said Mark Roberts (News - Alert) (News - Alert), vice president, Polycom ARENA program, in Tuesday’s statement.

 
”Meru's solution addresses a pressing need for mobility in health care, education and other markets while successfully addressing concerns about quality of service with video
over wireless. We are pleased to welcome Meru into the Polycom ARENA program and looking forward to working with them to deliver this important solution to customers."

The agreement provides that Meru will leverage the Polycom platform, brand and channels to bring the solution to market. Polycom ARENA ecosystem partners can develop, test and certify interoperability between their solutions and the Polycom platform of voice, video and content collaborative solutions.

Beyond the platform APIs provided to developers, the Polycom ARENA offers a number of marketing and sales tools for business development managers in addition to marketing and sales professionals through an online portal. These tools are designed and in place to help partners speed time-to-market for their innovative unified collaborative solutions as well as broaden the reach to customers worldwide.

This integration between Meru and Polycom is designed to benefit those professionals who need mobility and functionality without wires. Doctors in particular will be better equipped to address patient issues and have a wealth of information at their fingertips, without wires to interfere with their efforts.

With this agreement, Meru will benefit from the tools available in the Polycom ARENA, as well as the brand power it can extract from Polycom and its other partners.

Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.