Kenneth Hune Petersen

With its 16th annual MIPS - Milestone Integration Platform Symposium 2021, 100% virtual and free of charge, Milestone Systems invites partners, customers and media to explore the future of video technology under the theme of ‘Shaping the New Next’. With more than 2,000 registered attendees from across the globe, MIPS (Milestone Integration Platform Symposium) is where the Milestone Systems community comes together to share insights, experiences, best practices and the latest innovations. Virtual MIPS conference Due to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic spread, this will be the first virtual MIPS conference and the first where attendance is free of charge. At the event, Milestone Systems will investigate how video technology is transforming business and society, and why video management systems are at the core of this change. During the two-day event, Milestone Systems will share inspiration from global innovation experts and Milestone Systems executives, and present success stories and industry insights from partners. Milestone Systems’ newly appointed CEO Thomas Jensen will talk about how video technology has moved beyond security and how we will be working with partners to embrace this shift. Discussion of macro-technology trends The MIPS event also offers a deep dive into the impact of video technology on city management Milestone Systems’ Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Bjørn Skou Eilertsen and CSMO, Kenneth Hune Petersen will discuss macro-technology trends, accelerated technology adoption in key industries, and why Milestone Systems believes that video technology is the electricity of the 21st century. The MIPS event also offers a deep dive into the impact of video technology on city management, how video technology is improving every facet of transportation, and how computer vision and analytics are creating new opportunities in the retail industry for automation, personalization and even combatting Covid-19. Latest deployment possibilities of Milestone VMS Moreover, Milestone Systems will share insights into the latest deployment possibilities of their video management software, give an exclusive intro to Milestone Systems’ future direction, and present a new product launch. “Not only does MIPS bring together Milestone Systems’ global partner community to discuss our vision of where we are going and how we can contribute to each other’s success. This year, we are looking into how our technology is transforming how we work and live and how we can empower people to make the most of video technology – in security and beyond,” said Milestone Systems’ Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Thomas Jensen. MIPS will be held on March 1-2, 2021 for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and March 2-3, 2021 for both the Asia-Pacific and Americas events.

Times are changing fast and so is the need for using and combining technologies in new ways. With the new edition of Milestone Marketplace, buyers will not only find the complementary hardware and software functionality, but they will also explore solution services when building best-of-breed video management solutions. COVID19 has forced businesses, cities, and entire countries to operate in new ways and increased the demand for new technologies and digital solutions. Adaptable video solutions Versatile use of video solutions that can be expanded with more functionalities help companies thrive when the world changes, whether the need is to ensure public safety, secure access to buildings, or check adherence to social distancing rules. Milestone Marketplace is empowering businesses to explore the unmatched possibilities of video solutions, relevant to companies looking for a new video solution and for existing users of Milestone XProtect looking to enhance the solution’s functionality. In addition to verified hardware and software, the new release of Milestone Marketplace also holds solution services with a total of more than 500 options to choose from. Digital platform The global digital platform includes powerful technologies, like artificial intelligence, augmented reality, video analytics, GIS, and GPS along with combined solutions tailormade to meet several business challenges. The partners behind this are all part of the Milestone Community, ready to help businesses use video solutions to solve new challenges. Explore, connect and deploy Buyers can filter through a network of trusted Milestone integration partners to find the best fit Milestone Marketplace allows buyers access to a vast catalog of Milestone Systems XProtect-compatible software, hardware, and solution services, as well as recommendations and guidance on how to solve specific challenges. Moreover, buyers can filter through a network of trusted Milestone integration partners to find the best fit for their business across the globe. Customer cases, documentation, implementation guides, and demos are just some of the elements made available by the partners using Milestone Marketplace to allow customers to explore solutions available to them. Onboarded integrators “Since we first introduced Milestone Marketplace in 2019, we’ve been working to extend the experience for both customers and partners when searching for and creating XProtect-compatible solutions.” “With this version we’ve onboarded integrators as a new partner type, improved the search functionality, and added use categories to name but a few, all with the aim to offer a future-proof platform open to integrating with innovation from around the world,” says Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems.

Milestone’s primary focus and concern is for the health and well-being of customers, partners and employees. In response to increasing concern for potential health risks from COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Milestone Systems has canceled the APAC/EMEA MIPS Conference scheduled for April 20-22 in Dubai. MIPS is Milestone System’s largest annual event, attracting more than 1,500 attendees, globally. Sharing insights and innovations Without the ability to effectively predict how events will transpire over the next two months, Milestone Systems is following the recommendations of relevant national authorities and international health organizations in determining this proactive health measure. “The well-being of employees, partners and other stakeholders always take priority at Milestone. The MIPS conference is important, sharing insights and innovations as well as exploring upcoming trends, new technologies and challenges, together with our partners. While it has been difficult, we firmly believe that we have made the most responsible decision,” says Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone System’s Chief Sales and Marketing Officer. Milestone Systems is considering alternate ways to share the essential information prepared for MIPS, Dubai.

Milestone Systems’ annual MIPS brings together a rich community of video, security, and technology solution partners focused on advancing innovation. Special guests including Milestone officers, industry leaders, renowned futurists, authors, and a popular TEDx speaker will share their inspirations. Milestone will also showcase three start-ups from its Kickstarter Contest with compelling technologies and businesses that comprehensively address pressing security and societal issues. Milestone Systems, a global provider of open platform video management software (VMS), is hosting the 2020 Milestone Integration Platform Symposium (MIPS) conference, in Dallas, Texas on February 17-19, 2020. Partners, customers and influencers are invited to register for the special two-day event. Applied innovation in video surveillance Milestone will feature a variety of speakers and topics, including TEDx speaker Anders Sorman-Nilsson, and one of the Top Ten Futurists in the world, Gerd Leonhard. The event will also include an exhibition pavilion featuring products and programs from partners including Axis Communications, Dell, Intel, Herta, Lenel S2, and Seneca Data and an innovation showcase with the three most promising ideas from Milestone’s incubator program, Kickstarter. We glimpse at the future through the ideas of our Kickstarter contestants" “MIPS is a one-stop destination for applied innovation in video surveillance,” notes Tim Palmquist, Vice President for the Americas at Milestone Systems. “Each year we hear from an array of speakers that challenge our thinking about today’s technology and the new frontiers of tomorrow. We see new products and programs from the most innovative companies in our industry. Together with XProtect, they serve the needs of our many customers. Finally, we glimpse at the future through the ideas of our Kickstarter contestants. MIPS is a hub for business, network connections and, above all, novel ideas!” Video analytics Leveraging the power of the open platform, the Milestone XProtect video management software (VMS) is compatible with more than 8,500 security and surveillance devices, and more than 450 software integrations from over 3,500 technology partners. Technology partners include providers of network video cameras, cloud solutions, DVRs and NVRs, servers and storage equipment, alarm and detection systems, video analytics, GPS technology, laser and radar scanners, emergency call boxes and more. “The open platform provides an opportunity to innovate freely as circumstances and opportunities dictate, not as a VMS provider dictates,” says Palmquist. “This freedom of innovation has already yielded some of the very best technologies and collaborations in the security industry. It has also resulted in scalable and future-proof systems in healthcare, education, city surveillance and other verticals where Milestone is the platform of choice and where professionals accept nothing less than freedom of choice to do their jobs at the best of their capacity.” Milestone Marketplace 2.0 Integrators will promote their installation experience and connect with technology partners on Marketplace Milestone will launch version 2.0 of the Milestone Marketplace on its website which will enable customers to find resellers and integrators that deliver video solutions based on their pain points or location. Integrators will promote their installation experience and connect with technology partners on Marketplace hereby allowing end-users to access information on the latest innovations. “By launching Milestone Marketplace 2.0, we are inviting customers to search for the latest and greatest technologies in our community. Milestone supports the co-creation of solutions, allowing our community to supply best-in-class technology for a variety of customer needs,” says chief sales and marketing officer at Milestone, Kenneth Hune Petersen. Integrated cloud-based solutions A large part of the MIPS 2020 Dallas event focuses on the many advantages of an open solution, with the Milestone XProtect VMS platform enabling reliable and efficient integrations with thousands of third-party hardware and software products. Detailed discussions of solution applications as well as previews of new integrations and partnerships help integrators, resellers and partners of all types to shape the future of their own businesses. Cloud-based services and integrations will soon take video management systems to a new level MIPS 2020 promises to usher in new integrated cloud-based solutions, which will greatly impact the future of how video systems are designed, deployed, and monetized. Cloud-based services and integrations will soon take video management systems to a new level, expanding how security professionals think about technology and their own business models. Open for startups Additionally, three finalists in Milestone's annual Kickstarter contest will demonstrate their visions. MIPS 2020 participants will have an opportunity to vote for their favorite software coder with the winner being announced during the gala dinner. Milestone believes in inspiring talent to make the world see through connecting new technology ideas, business strategy, and innovation. Three 2020 finalists will have a chance to showcase their visions directly to the Milestone Community of partners and customers at the MIPS2020 conference and beyond. They are: Benoit Koenig is the co-founder and COO at Veesion. Benoit was confronted with shop-lifting on a regular basis in his family-owned supermarkets. During his studies in Artificial Intelligence, he saw the great potential of deep learning applied on video data, which inspired him to start Veesion with two other engineers. Veesion are developing a gesture recognition technology to detect shoplifting in the retail industry. Commenting on Benoit’s idea and company, Palmquist noted, “Veesion is what MIPS is all about. This is an innovation that addresses a major commercial issue for retailers around the world but does so using technology in a respectful, considerate and intelligent manner. I am proud and encouraged that Veesion is enabled by the open platform.” Jennifer Ivens is the founder of Canscan, a technology company that provides automated container inspection services. It was impatience and ambition that prompted her to leave her position as a logistics analyst for an ocean carrier to go into this business for herself. Canscan’s idea is the next-level shipping container checking system, powered by artificial intelligence (AI) called Virtual Checker. “Jennifer and her team have come up with an innovation that addresses many social, economic, and criminal issues. It has the potential to avert some of the human tragedies we hear of and see on television across the globe each year,” Palmquist said. Zeljko Tepic has over 15 years of experience in the development of client/server and cloud architectures. He works on projects involving advanced algorithms, signal processing, Artificial Neural Networks, deep learning, generic algorithms, fuzzy logic, spectral analysis, and more. Venzo Secure’s idea is to provide seamless awareness of critical events by transparently displaying an intuitive “alert timeline” on top of the XProtect Smart Client camera views. The solution will give customers the option to dynamically arrange a view of the cameras in the Smart Client which are closest to the event at hand, and to handle any related events, alarms, analytics or metadata inside the Milestone XProtect video platform, including those from third parties. “Smart city managers, emergency responders, and police will benefit from this new technology enabling them to better respond during a crisis. This technology is poised to save lives, and I am proud that Milestone is supporting Venzo through our Kickstarter program,” commented Palmquist. Over 750 attendees are expected to attend MIPS 2020 at The Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center on February 17-19, 2020 in Dallas, Texas.

Milestone Systems, a pioneer in open platform IP video management software, recently hosted the regional partner and customer events MIPS (Milestone Integration Platform Symposium) in Nashville, Copenhagen and Bali. The three events attracted nearly 2,000 attendees and 124 exhibitors, to discuss industry-relevant themes such as the impact of disrupting innovation, blending human and machine intelligence, and how the power of the platform economy is a game-changer for players who build intelligent video technology and security solutions. On stage, C-level Executive Advisor and author Sangeet Paul Choudary spoke about the platform revolution within the security industry and the transition from pipelines to platforms, examining the core interaction between consumer and producer. As a true platform-based business and business community orchestrator, Milestone Systems unveiled their new digital platform Milestone Marketplace. Marketplace helps unleash the innovation power of the Milestone Systems partner community and makes it easier for them to explore new business opportunities outside their existing partner network and customer base. Responsible Use Of Software And Technology The core message in the Copenhagen Letter is that one must ensure that technology is used in a balanced mannerWith the innovation power and reach that Milestone Systems and its partner community bring to the market, comes a need to advocate responsible use of software and technology. This was the overarching theme of all three regional events. Milestone Systems has taken an active role in creating the Copenhagen Letter, a technology declaration developed by 150 people from all industries and signed by more than 5,000 individuals. The core message in the Copenhagen Letter is that one must ensure that technology is used in a balanced manner. This message was well received by the partners, end-customers and industry professionals present at MIPS. Other highlights from the events Other highlights of the three regional events include a presentation of the Milestone Systems platform roadmap, cloud strategy, a new Technology Partner Program, a new driver framework, and the status on the company’s Accelerate Innovation program in Research & Development. External industry professionals included Futurist Brian Solis, who talked about Innovation in the era of Darwinism, entrepreneur Ola Ahlvarsson, who discussed exponential technologies and industry transformation entrepreneurship, and IHS Markit, elaborating on the development in the surveillance industry. Recognizing The Partners Milestone Systems celebrated its all-important foundation of the business model, namely the partner communityWith the Milestone Systems community events in Nashville, Copenhagen and Bali, Milestone Systems celebrated its all-important foundation of the business model, namely the partner community. Partners were officially recognized with awards saluting top performances in sales, marketing, technology, collaboration and innovation for camera partners, solution partners, technology partners, distribution partners, channel partners and installations of 2018. “Once again, the interest, engagement and commitment from our community of partners have been overwhelming. MIPS is no longer a Milestone Systems event; it is truly a partner event. It shows the strength and the opportunities that lie within our platform and within our community. “I’m very excited to see where the future brings us and how we can create new innovations within video technology in new and even more responsible ways,” said Kenneth Hune Petersen, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Milestone Systems.

LenelS2, a provider in advanced security systems, and Milestone Systems, an international open platform developer of networked video management software (VMS), announces a 10-year agreement for LenelS2 to distribute Milestone products globally. The companies had a previous agreement for North America. LenelS2 is a part of Carrier, a global provider of innovative heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security and building automation technologies. Founded in 1998, Milestone is a stand-alone company in the Canon Group. Seamless User Experience The joint offering of LenelS2 OnGuard access control and Milestone XProtect video management software through the LenelS2 channel lowers the total cost of ownership for end users and integrators by offering reduced licensing fees and efficient pre- and post-sales support. This integration, which has been successful through the LenelS2 OpenAccess Alliance Program (OAAP) and Milestone Certified Solution, provides customers with tight, efficient interoperability between the OnGuard and Milestone XProtect systems. We’re excited to expand this proven, integrated access-video offering to customers globally" “We’re excited to expand this proven, integrated access-video offering to customers globally,” said Jeff Stanek, president, LenelS2. “This strategic integration will provide our partners the benefit of an offering from the VMS and access control solution providers in the global security industry. This integration includes a seamless user experience and specific interface enhancements across our systems, a direct outcome of the collaborative effort.” Leverage The Momentum “Customers have reacted very well to our collaboration,” said Kenneth Hune Petersen, chief sales & marketing officer, Milestone Systems. “Rather than being locked into a single provider, customers can work with two companies that have real synergies. As security threats become more sophisticated, continuous innovations with strong interfaces between industry pioneers are in demand. That’s what this alliance delivers.” “We are excited that this agreement has been expanded into a global partnership,” said Stephane Baudena, managing director, Fire & Security Products, EMEA, LenelS2. “This will allow us to leverage the momentum and proven success achieved by the North American team.” LenelS2 and Milestone Systems have a combined 40 years of industry experience in providing customers with proven security solution technologies. Both companies offer open platform solutions that provide customers flexibility to select the optimal security systems to meet their needs. Milestone Systems has been a member of the LenelS2 OAAP since 2012.

The global video management industry is seeing innovation like never before, creating new opportunities that transform the way video management technology is used - not only to protect people and assets, but also to help optimize business and improve the way people live and work. Milestone Marketplace Milestone Systems’ open platform makes these innovations easily available to buyers - integrators, consultants and end-customers - enabling the industry to build intelligent solutions together and expand their reach. Milestone Marketplace is a centralised knowledge hub for the industry Milestone Marketplace enables the Milestone Technology Partners to market their applications, hardware or services effectively. With Milestone Marketplace, they get global reach, are exposed to the existing base of more than 150,000 customer installations and can easily connect with Milestone System’s worldwide network of thousands of partners. Integration partners, consultants and end-customers get an overview of the vast number of applications, hardware and services verified to work with Milestone XProtect. Centralized Knowledge Hub Milestone Marketplace is a centralized knowledge hub for the industry, including installation guides, demos, and other relevant documentation that have never before been available to the industry in one place. “With Milestone Marketplace, we open up the innovation power of our community of buyers and sellers. Milestone Marketplace enables our technology partners to grow their businesses through the global Milestone Systems community. At the same time, Milestone Marketplace helps simplify complex choices for our system integrators and end-customers, who gets access to a rich and trustworthy resources pool from which they can build video management solutions,” says CMSO Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems. Milestone Marketplace will expand with new areas in the years to come. Leveraging Partner Community's Potential The new program also enables partners to benefit from a wide range of marketing resources and activities" To join Milestone Marketplace, technology partners need to be part of Milestone Systems’ new Technology Partner Program – a program that offers applications, hardware and services that complement and extend the Milestone XProtect video management platform. The program empowers system integrators to design and deliver innovative video-enabled solutions to end-customers, and helps partners explore the full potential and opportunities of video management technology. With the Technology Partner Program, Milestone Systems wants to leverage the full potential of its partner community by enabling technology partners to market verified technology offerings together with the global network of installers and their customers. Promotion through Milestone Marketplace “With the introduction of the new Technology Partner Program, we want to stimulate and drive co-innovation, allowing partners to explore technology synergies with the open XProtect video management platform. This allows Technology Partners to build joint technology offerings that address specific industry or functional needs utilizing the core video capabilities of the XProtect video management platform." "The new program also enables partners to benefit from a wide range of marketing resources and activities, including promotion through Milestone Marketplace,” says Kenneth Hune Petersen.

Milestone Systems, the pioneer in open platform IP video management software, will host its annual industry event in the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions. Milestone Systems invites partners, customers and influencers to explore how disrupting innovation and blending human and machine intelligence is rapidly pushing the limits of the video technology industry. During MIPS 2019, Milestone Systems will take a deep dive into how the power of the platform economy is a game-changer for players building intelligent solutions in the video technology and security industry. Innovating And Building Intelligent Solutions Milestone Systems is making it easier to access, combine and integrate video solutions and add value to customers"“Milestone Systems has had an open platform-approach since day one, enabling us and our partners to reach customers and scale the services and products we, as an industry, offer. But we can do so much more by innovating together and building intelligent solutions on aggregated data that is already available. “Milestone Systems, as an orchestrator of the video technology platform, is making it easier to access, combine and integrate video solutions and add value to customers,” says Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems. Launch Of Milestone Marketplace During the MIPS event in Nashville, Milestone Systems will launch a new, global digital platform, Milestone Marketplace, which will dramatically increase the availability of community-created software applications, hardware, and services that integrators and installers use when designing intelligent customer solutions. Milestone Systems has high expectations to the network effect of its platform business model: “With the launch of Milestone Marketplace, we help unleash the innovation power of our partners and make it easier for them to explore new business opportunities outside their existing partner network and customer base. Marketplace will support the co-creation of solutions, allowing our community to give the market’s best match to a variety of customer needs and expanding market reach,” says Kenneth Hune Petersen. Coherent Search Experience For Operators The search framework enables operators to find video recordings and to extend search functionality using new data sources and customized visualizationOne of the technological innovations presented at MIPS 2019 is a new search framework, which will provide a coherent search experience for Smart Client operators. It enables operators to find video recordings and to extend search functionality using new data sources and customized visualization and easily retrieve metadata such as object type, size or color from video recordings. It provides one single place to search and discover video recordings, while making the recordings actionable for fast decision-making across a range of rich third-party applications. Other Highlights Of MIPS 2019 Include: A presentation of updates to Milestone Systems’ XProtect video management software, performance improvements, security, privacy protection, encryption of data and other new functionalities Overview of new additions to the MIP SDK (Milestone Integration Platform Software Development Kit used by community partners to build or extend functionality) Insight into how computer vision and machine learning can provide automation within the platform Insight into how Cloud and AI will bring new opportunities for Milestone Systems’ customers and partners “We are very excited about MIPS 2019 and continuing our quest to explore the intelligent world. As a true market leader, our open platform enables our community of partners to pursue new opportunities in the market and create even better and more intelligent solutions,” says Kenneth Hune Petersen.

Milestone Systems, the global number one open platform provider of networked video management software (VMS), will once again be exhibiting at IFSEC International 2018 in London, June 19-21 – Booth C340. The theme from Milestone this year is the benefits of high performance in business video systems, enabling Milestone community customers to do more with less, driving down the total cost of solutions. Milestone will be showing the highest performing VMS server at IFSEC; the combination of the recently announced XProtect 2018 R2 VMS with eight NVIDIA graphics cards can handle more than 2,000 video streams on a single server, as tested by Milestone and to be demonstrated during the show. The benefits of high performance for customers are savings on hardware and infrastructure with fewer servers needed, and the ability to upgrade the system capacity by just adding a supported graphics card. System Builder program enables hardware manufacturers to explore new business opportunities Milestone System Builder Program The Milestone System Builder open market initiative has been well received by the Milestone Community, since the announcement in February this year. The first System Builder partners are: Arbitech, Arrow/Seneca, BCDVideo, HIKvision, IOnodes and VENZO Secure. Several of them will have a presence at the Milestone Booth. The System Builder program allows hardware manufacturers to design, build and ship hardware optimized for having XProtect VMS pre-loaded. The System Builder program enables hardware manufacturers to explore new business opportunities with new products in their existing channel and expand their market reach through Milestone’s worldwide channel network. Intelligent Business Strategy The partner community is integral to the Milestone business strategy, and a strong partner presence in the Milestone trade show booth illustrates that commitment. A wide array of innovative technology partners will showcase their solutions integrated with Milestone in booth C340 and throughout the showroom. Pivot3 builds simple, intelligent and automated hyperconverged infrastructure solutions. Pivot3 has an Intelligence Engine that eliminates resource contention, automates data and workload mobility, prioritizes resources and consolidates them on one infrastructure. Quanergy delivers robust and intelligent, real-time 3D mapping solutions using LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), that work day and night, rain or shine, while performing object detection, tracking, identification, and classification. Milestone Care is a complete service and support program that takes care of Milestone software throughout its lifetime Advanced Video Analytics Capabilities Visitors to the Milestone stand will also have the first chance to see the latest version of Milestone XProtect 2018. Again, performance is in focus as the R2 version enables hardware acceleration for in the Milestone Recording and Mobile servers, shifting the video decoding and image scaling process to supported graphics cards, thus freeing resources for other tasks and for advanced video analytics capabilities. Additional focus at the show will be on Milestone Care, which is a complete service and support program that takes the best care of Milestone software throughout its entire lifetime. A dedicated pod in the booth will also provide information on the Milestone developer program and custom development services. XProtect VMS Integration            “This is a show that proves our dedication to making video an important business tool, now and in the future – and how we work to give our community the abilities to see new possibilities and innovate,” said Kenneth Hune Petersen, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Milestone Systems. “Milestone System Builder program enables the Milestone community with industry leading hardware powered by XProtect VMS. Milestone Systems is pleased to announce that the first partners to join the Milestone System Builder program are: Arbitech, Arrow/Seneca, BCDVideo, HIKvision, IOnodes and VENZO Secure.”

Milestone Systems, an open platform company in IP video management software (VMS), announces its new Vice President for EMEA, Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft, who also becomes member of Milestone Systems’ Extended Leadership Team. She will be responsible for the whole EMEA region, including Sales Operation, Custom Development and Support and will focus on further strengthening the EMEA partner community of distributors, installers, solutions partners and camera manufacturers. “I’m very excited to join Milestone Systems and I look forward to being part of this forward-looking and innovative company. The concept of openness and community is a profound part of Milestone Systems’ dna and is undoubtedly one of the reasons why we will lead the disruption changing the security industry in the years to come,” Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft says. I’m very excited to join Milestone Systems and I look forward to being part of this forward-looking and innovative company" Innovation And Business Developments Innovation and business development have played a significant role in Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft career in the telecom industry – an industry that was truly disrupted with the rise of mobile telecommunications and later the introduction of smart phones. Disruption emerges when customers require change, so it is essential to understand who the customers are as well as their requirements for design of services and products, according to Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft “Milestone Systems is an industry leader, and our ambition is to maintain this position. My goal is to further grow the EMEA region and support our sales organization and community of partners in rethinking how we do business and especially how we can grow business together as a community,” Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft says. Changes In Security Industry “We were looking for someone with proven leadership skills and the ability to dare think differently. We believe that the security industry is facing significant changes and Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft is the right person to lead this change in the EMEA region and to support our ambition to increase growth in the years to come,” Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems, says. Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft joins Milestone Systems after a long and remarkable career at Telenor, most recently as Head of B2B. In 2016, Malou was elected a Top 100 Business Talent by Danish national business magazine Berlingske Tidende. Malou Mousten Dyhr Toft will be based in Milestone Systems’ headquarters in Copenhagen and report directly to Kenneth Hune Petersen, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer.

Milestone Systems, the open platform company in networked video management software (VMS), concluded a series of regional partner and customers events for 2018 with MIPS (Milestone Integration Platform Symposium) in Las Vegas on February 21. The three events gathered 1,509 attendees and 90 exhibitors, and the theme was how Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be the next market disruption for video technology. Milestone Systems also took the opportunity to award partners for their contributions to the community over the past year. MIPS 2018 celebrated its 13th anniversary, and the 2018 events were the second time for the events to be held in APAC, EMEA and the Americas. Milestone Systems’ top management presented products and platform initiatives for 2018, including the technology game-changers they see impacting the industry. The importance of co-creation with the partner community was highlighted as a key enabler for success. I will amplify human beings to new heights" Artificial Intelligence With every device being a sensor, and technologies connecting them in new ways, the amount of data keeps growing. This requires more efficient ways to translate data into intelligence for taking faster decisions both for making the world a safer place, and for moving beyond security into many improvements for video business systems. On stage at MIPS Americas, Tanmay Bakshi, Algorithmist, Author, Watson & Cognitive Developer at IBM, spoke about how AI equals IA (Artificial Intelligence = Intelligence Augmented), where the technology actually helps humans become more intelligent by supplementing human analysis, planning and decision-making. “AI will amplify human beings to new heights,” said Bakshi. The Milestone Systems community events brought together 1,500 integrator and technology partners Intelligent Video Systems A number of other prominent speakers in Hanoi, Barcelona and Las Vegas shared their views on intelligent video systems that can support people and organizations in making sense of the rapidly increasing influx of data. Presenters included, among others: Louis Richardson, Chief Storyteller, IBM Watson; Dr Shiliang Pu, Director & Chief Expert, HikVision; Monica Wang, Senior Analyst Video Surveillance, IHS Markit; Ben Hammersley, Futurist and Global Digital Leader, Hammersley Futures. The Milestone Systems community events in Hanoi, Barcelona and Las Vegas brought together 1,500 integrator and technology partners to discuss combining human and Artificial Intelligence to create an intelligent world. To Milestone Systems the community of partners is the all-important foundation of the business model Celebrating Top Performers To Milestone Systems the community of partners is the all-important foundation of the business model. To recognize this officially, Milestone Systems celebrated the annual top performances in sales, marketing, technology, collaboration and innovation for these categories: camera partner, solution partner, technology partner, distribution partner, channel partner and installation of the year. “It’s been an honor to host MIPS 2018 for our entire community of partners in the APAC, EMEA and Americas regions. With 1,500 attendees, we created a forum to discuss innovative technologies and how we take the next steps toward creating an intelligent world together,” said Kenneth Hune Petersen, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Milestone Systems.

Milestone Systems is embracing artificial intelligence and deep learning in a big way at this week's yearly Milestone Community Days (MIPS 2018) in Las Vegas. The Danish company's theme is "Creating an Intelligent World," and Milestone's stated goal is to make "the Milestone community part of every surveillance installation in the world."   Science Fiction Becomes Reality In a presentation on opening day, Milestone CSMO Kenneth Hune Petersen pointed to the 2002 movie The Minority Report as highlighting a variety of gadgets and systems that seemed futuristic at the time but are now perfectly possible, and in some cases outdated. Movies have previously highlighted gadgets and systems that were futuristic, but are now perfectly possible, or outdated "If we dare to dream together we can make this a better world," says Petersen. "Through AI and machine learning, we can help define tomorrow. There's no doubt about it: There is a massive business opportunity for us in artificial intelligence." Despite all the talk about artificial intelligence, only about 0.5 percent of all the data in the world has currently been analyzed or used, says Peterson. "Our open platform technology is the foundation for intelligent video systems and our partners have the expertise and infrastructure needed to reach the next frontier in intelligent video solutions," said Bjørn Skou Eilertsen, Milestone Systems CTO. "Together, we can provide unlimited solutions for our customers." Deeper Integration And Broader Coverage Expanding the Milestone community this year has included the addition of 1,000 new models of supported hardware devices; there are currently more than 7,000 models supported. Milestone is also pursuing broader coverage of installations through their partners, with deeper integration of functionality, and by deepening existing relationships with customers. ‘Creating an intelligent world’ includes deep learning and lots of video systems, says Milestone at their annual conference Under new agreements, hardware partners such as Dell EMC and BCDVideo now provide XProtect Essential+ software pre-loaded on servers they sell. The focus at MIPS 2018 on AI included a presentation by Tanmay Bakshi, the "world's youngest IBM coder" and TED Talk speaker, at 14 years old. The prodigy, who has been coding since the age of 4, has worked with IBM and other companies on a variety of AI-related projects. Using deep learning with video is currently limited because so much video is unlabelled and unstructured In his MIPS 2018 keynote speech, Bakshi traced the development of AI through high-profile events, such as IBM's development of the "Watson" computer, which successfully competed on Jeopardy!, and Google's development of AlphaGo, a program that successfully plays the complex ancient board game, Go. Data Demands Deep-Learning Bakshi focused on security and healthcare as two disciplines where deep learning can potentially have a big impact. Using deep learning with video is currently limited because so much video is unlabeled and unstructured. Still, projections are that there will be a billion cameras worldwide by 2020, providing an over-abundance of data that demands the use of deep learning to make sense of it all. "There is a misconception that AI is meant to replace us, to make humans obsolete. AI is not replacing us. It is created by humans to amplify human skills. AI can reduce information overload to enable humans to work with the data more efficiently," said Bakshi. He suggested that AI is equivalent to IA; Bakshi's abbreviation meaning "intelligence augmented." Johnmichael O’Hare (left) of the Hartford Police Department, and Tanmay Bakshi (right) discusses key security issues of the modern day The ability to scale AI applications using "distributed deep learning" and graphics processing unit (GPU) hardware is paving the way for greater use of deep learning in video applications. Adam Scraba, Global Business Development Lead at NVIDIA, outlined the trends that are making the current "Big Bang" of deep learning possible. He said it is "the most exciting time in tech history," with "software that can write its own software" now among the tools that make previously unsolvable problems now solvable. AI-driven intelligent video analytics can now achieve "super-human" results, he said. An Intelligent World To Combat Crime Instead of sitting for hours staking out a suspected drug dealer alone, entire investigations now take hours instead of days A success story about the game-changing capabilities of video data was supplied by Hartford, Conn.'s Capital City Crime Center (C4). The Hartford police department uses video data in a "predictive policing" approach. They have created an "intelligent world with smart policing to combat drug trafficking," according to C4 Supervisor Johnmichael O'Hare of the Hartford Police Department. Instead of sitting for hours staking out a suspected drug dealer, for example, video of a site can be analyzed to determine areas with higher levels of foot traffic that indicate drug buys. The result is investigations that take hours instead of days. Hartford incorporates several technologies, including ShotSpotter gunshot detection, Briefcam video synopsis and other systems, all tied together using the Milestone platform. More than 700 attendees make MIPS 2018 the largest such event ever, and exhibits by around 60 Milestone partner companies attest to the continuing expansion of the Milestone community. [Main image:Tanmay Bakshi (left) and Johnmichael O’Hare of the Hartford Police Department (right) discuss key security issues of the modern day]

Technology, products and services are vital to the security market, but so are the people behind them. This year, SourceSecurity.com has been highlighting some of the key characters who make up the security market. Along the way, we’ve discovered a broad spectrum of experiences and viewpoints that make up the industry. Many of the most insightful responses were to the question: What is the best professional advice you have received (and from whom)? Don’t underestimate yourself, says Don Erickson, CEO of the Security Industry Association Scott Brothers, Executive Vice President of Corporate Development, Oncam Listen, listen and listen some more. Which continues to take real training because of my passion over spilling into a “need to be heard” when really, I should be listening. It’s a trait I continually work on and seek feedback on. Listening for me equals learning and the best ideas sometimes come from the unexpected voice in the room. The open environment we cultivate at Oncam really promotes this kind of interaction at all levels. Don Erickson, CEO of the Security Industry Association Don’t underestimate yourself. John Stroia who is a former chairman of SIA and presently the president of Hamilton was literally the first person who encouraged me to apply for the CEO role at SIA. I was perfectly content handling government relations at the time the position opened. I also hadn’t aspired to the role. John actively encouraged me to go for it despite my reservations about whether I was ready for it.  Liam McShane, Sales Director at Perfect Display Technology Take whatever chances come along. It’s much better to regret something you did than something you didn’t do! (From a mentor at my first financial services company) Return all calls as soon as possible and no later than the end of each day, advises Scott Schafer Eddie Reynolds, President & CEO of Iluminar Many of my childhood friends' parents would always say to me, “If no one wants to give you an opportunity, create your own.” Scott Schafer, Chairman-elect of the Security Industry Association My father was in the major appliance industry and showed by example the importance of outworking your competitor.  He also made sure to return all calls as soon as possible and no later than the end of each day. Kim Loy, Director of Marketing at Vanderbilt Industries The best advice I have received is that we are only in competition with ourselves. If we strive to always improve our knowledge and performance, success will follow. That there are no boundaries, we are all capable of doing anything we strive to do as long as we don’t set limits for ourselves. This advice is something that I heard from a very young age and grew up completely believing – it came from my dad, Chuck Robinson. Thomas J. Langer, President of ASIS International From my father and totally by accident. He was 60 and learning computer aided design which was making his drafting table obsolete. I asked him why, at 60, do that now? His response was that he doesn’t get to choose where advancements take his profession. I have never forgotten that and therefore never settled for the status quo. Change and advancement are a constant in everything. You have to have a work life balance and be resilient in order to manage the ups and downs of business and your career Thomas Cook, Vice President of Sales at Hanwha Techwin America My first manager, Marty Meyer, told me when to keep emotion out of everything you do at work; especially when you are negotiating and presenting your side or case. Fredrik Nilsson, Vice President of the Americas at Axis Communications My manager, Bodil Sonesson, VP of Global Sales at Axis has given me great advice over the years. She says that your career “is a marathon not a sprint,” meaning, in order to be successful long-term you have to have a work life balance and be resilient in order to manage the ups and downs of business and your career. Kenneth Hune Petersen, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of Milestone Systems Flemming Tamstorf, CEO of my former company, showed me by example that you should never tell anyone “See, I told you so.” He never did it himself. If you play to the limit, there is a risk that you will fail. If you’re taking a risk, things can go wrong. And he never said “I told you so.”

Milestone Systems, the open platform company in video management software (VMS), is hosting the EMEA Milestone Community Days (MIPS) on May 8-10 in Dubai, UAE. Danish Ambassador to the UAE and Qatar Merete Juhl opens the event at the opening reception on May 8. Milestone partners will highlight and showcase integrated solutions. Several conference tracks will give the participants inside information on VMS technology and Milestone community development. Future Trend Highlights Also, Milestone top management representatives will highlight industry future trends in their keynotes. The second product update of XProtect 2017, will be presented during the event. The partner community is essential to the Milestone open platform business strategy and Milestone partners will demonstrate innovative solutions, ranging from advanced storage to video analytics on the edge. More than 30 partners will showcase integrations to XProtect and a wide range of add-on products. Sponsoring Partners Diamond: Allied Telesis, Fujitsu Platinum: iCetana, Pivot3, Seagate Technologies, Venzo Secure Gold: Axis Communications, Fibernetix, Hikvision, IBM, Intrasa, NetApp, Scality Silver: Advancis, Axone Systems, BARCO, Bosch, Dahua, Dell EMC, Ela-soft, G2K Group, Ipsotek, Nedap, Optex, Pablo Niklas, Parking Spotter (Milestone Kickstarter winner), Promise Technology, Quantum, Rasilient, Snap Surveillance, Soliton, Spectra Logic, Vidsys, XPR Group XProtect 2017 VMS Showcase Milestone continues to maximize the business value of VMS for partners and customers and is set to release an update of the award-winning XProtect VMS software. This is in addition to adding two new business-ready products to the XProtect product portfolio. Open platform technology enables Milestone and partners to rapidly optimize the software to fit ever-changing market needs.   “Including this EMEA event, we will have had have more than a thousand participants globally at our community days. This is clear proof of the attraction of the Milestone Community and a testimonial to our number one market position,” says Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems Chief Sales and Marketing Officer.

Kenneth Hune Petersen has a simple plan for every day: “Get out of bed. Be awesome. Go to bed.” That’s how the upbeat Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of Milestone Systems described his typical day during the interview for his current position. Before coming to Milestone (and the video surveillance industry) in 2014, he was senior vice president and head of global sales at SimCorp, a global provider of investment management software and services. SourceSecurity.com Editor Larry Anderson caught up with him to find out more: How did you come to work in the security industry? Lars Thinggard (Milestone President and CEO) contacted me. I had just returned from 10 years in the United States working with my former employer, another Danish software company. It was a good match because 50 percent of Milestone’s revenue is in the United States.   What is the best professional advice you have received (and from whom)? Flemming Tamstorf, CEO of my former company, showed me by example that you should never tell anyone “See, I told you so.” He never did it himself. If you play to the limit, there is a risk that you will fail. If you’re taking a risk, things can go wrong. And he never said “I told you so.” What's something few people know about you? I was a Danish champion in ballroom dancing. What's the most rewarding thing about what you do for a living? Coaching people and seeing the joy when they succeed. Kenneth Hune Petersen's most recent vacation was in Majorca, Spain What are your interests outside security? I love to play golf, but I’m not very good at it. I’m playing now with my sons (ages 8 and 12), which is quality time away from traveling and business meetings. You can get your mind on something totally different. It’s a great way of bonding. Where was your last vacation? Recently we were in Majorca in Spain, a small island in the Mediterranean Sea.

MIPS 2017’s theme ‘Together We Make the World See the Future’ reflected a newly clarified company purpose Milestone Systems, the open platform company in IP video management software (VMS), held its 12th Milestone Integration Platform Symposium (MIPS) this month in San Antonio, Texas, with over 500 attendees. It is an open platform community event engaging hundreds of channel and alliance partners, customers, media people, Milestone experts and management. Milestone business activities and product innovations were shared, and 60 solution partners showcased their integrated offerings and services. Community Focus On Combined Solution Power This year’s event theme ‘Together We Make the World See the Future’ reflected a newly clarified company purpose. The emphasis is on community focus for the combined solution power of the Milestone open platform and its partners. CEO & President Lars Thinggaard appeared virtually as the audience put on VR headsets to visit beautiful landmarks of Denmark as inspiration to ‘see the future’. “We can only do this together,” said Kenneth Hune Petersen, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Milestone, from the stage. “We believe that the co-creation of value is unique to our open platform community.” Milestone Community Initiatives Petersen presented the three pillars of the new Milestone community initiatives begun last year, and more are planned in future. The Milestone Marketplace will start with new developments for the Milestone Store, the Solution Finder is evolving into the Solution Portal, and the Developers Forum is expanding. The afternoon was devoted to touring the Community Innovation Lab where Milestone Solution and Technology Partners demonstrated the latest innovations in the industry. After more VR fun watching introductions for the exhibit sections, each group was led by Milestone managers, and feedback walls in each category throughout the hall journey invited brainstorming. Milestone’s open platform community offers a framework to succeed – together – leveraging each other’s innovations Key Note Speeches On day two, Milestone VP Americas Tim Palmquist gave his keynote speech, further developing his topic from last year’s MIPS event: End to End is a Dead End; The Road to the Future is Open. He questioned whether the glory days are over for the surveillance market and recommended a more realistic look at today’s maturing IP market which is experiencing a natural consolidation, product price wars and other competitive factors. “It’s no longer fast growth and ‘easy money’ like the early phases in a technology lifecycle, so new business models must be developed to encompass the next market disruptions that will come. Milestone’s open platform community offers a framework to succeed – together – leveraging each other’s innovations,” said Palmquist. Digitization Of Security Systems Mike Sherwood, Milestone Director of Technical Operations, Americas, spoke on ‘The Engine of Innovation’: “We are driven to see one another succeed: we cannot develop in a vacuum. The best companies understand that it takes more than just one company alone to really succeed. I would reword Neil Armstrong’s famous moon landing remark, that we believe in many small steps to make a big leap!” DELL VP Ron Pugh took the stage to talk about the digitization of everything in our lives and how the Internet of Things (IoT) can unlock the potential of the unconnected by bridging IT and Operational Technology (OT). Milestone Partner NMS presented the breakthrough SpotterRF compact radar surveillance integration with XProtect VMS that gives aerial and ground views for perimeter protection. Milestone Open Platform Solutions Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport shared knowledge gained from growing their systems on the Milestone open platform, including RFID readers to manage taxi traffic, and a Unified Command Vehicle with six cameras as well as a Mobile Camera Trailer with solar power. Jamie Ritchie said: “We are building for capacity with a focus on multi-purpose solutions. In our work, we always run into the unknown: the future is just the next exit away – and with the open platform, we are excited about it!” Breakout sessions in the afternoon had parallel Technology and Business Tracks covering such topics as ‘New Cool stuff in the XProtect platform’, ‘Advances in Technology Evolving the Business Model’, Video Enabling IoT with Metadata’, ‘Public Safety & Transportation Interoperability’, ‘Video-Verified Access Control’ and ‘Cloud Solutions that Work with Today’s Technology’. "The feedback we are getting from our community is a key element for setting the direction in our product development" Global Advisory Board In early 2016 Milestone created a new global Advisory Board with the first of several groups focused on the Advanced products. Others are being formed to focus on the Business Ready portfolio, overall Business Strategy and the Developers Forum. Each has members that represent the spectrum of stakeholder roles: end users, partners and Milestone staff. Monthly questionnaires have been sent (in addition to the annual global partner survey), and quarterly meetings held. “The feedback we are getting from our community is a key element for setting the direction in our product development. We see a big opportunity for high-performing, platform-centric products with strong connectivity. This shift from product to platform thinking applies to both our software and hardware offerings, and is initially addressed in the XProtect 2017 R1 release,” said Milestone CTO Bjorn Eilertsen. Awards And Recognitions The final night of MIPS announced the following awards: Anixter: Distribution Partner of the Year (Americas) Wesco: Distribution Partner of the Year (USA) Southwest Microwave: Solution Partner of the Year Quantum Corporation: Technology Partner of the Year Differential Networks/ Spotter RF/ NMS: MIP Integration of the Year Convergint Technologies (Seattle, WA): Installation of the Year Brady Integrated Security: Education Partner of the Year Convergint Technologies (Houston, TX): Retail Partner of the Year Tactical Micro/Benchmark Electronics: Transportation Partner of the Year Tech Systems: Healthcare Partner of the Year Stone Security: City Surveillance Partner of the Year App-Techs Corporation: Regional Partner of the Year AND Government Partner of the Year Prosegur Technologia (Argentina): Regional Partner of the Year Presidio: National Partner of the Year Bosch: Camera Partner of the Year, Americas Axis Communications: Supported Camera #6,000 in Milestone Device Pack release 9.0 The first-ever Milestone Community Kickstarter Contest Winner of awards valued at $50,000 was Parking Spotter. Milestone Systems will be hosting MIPS Community events in Macao end of February and in Dubai early May, as well as other Milestone events in many regions throughout the year.

Are the glory days of IP video behind us? Not by a long shot, if you listen to the upbeat message at ‘Milestone Community Days’ in San Antonio this month. Pledging to ‘Make the World See,’ the community of technology partners, distributors, integrators and customers joined in a celebration of past successes, with an emphasis on future possibilities, at the yearly gathering hosted by the video management system (VMS) vendor. Milestone Software Integrations "The industry is changing and it's not a time for business as usual," said Bjørn Skou Eilertsen, Milestone Systems Chief Technology Officer (CTO). "Our Open Platform Community is changing the way video technologies are used." Milestone has completed more than 150 software integrations using its platform, supports more than 6,000 camera models and is deployed in more than 150,000 surveillance installations around the world. The emphasis on community – how multiple companies can work together on systems built around the Milestone platform – has become a familiar theme at the yearly Milestone Integration Platform Symposium (MIPS), this year re-dubbed ‘Milestone Community Days.’ Unified And Integrated Experience There was a lot of talk about ‘co-created innovation’ and ‘co-created value’; the premise being that a ‘community’ working together through successful partnerships can accelerate collective innovation, combining best-of-breed solutions into a unified, integrated experience for customers. The community strategy creates an external ecosystem to generate complementary products and service innovations and to build positive feedback between the complements and the platform. The emphasis on community has become a familiar theme at the yearly Milestone Integration Platform Symposium (MIPS) "If you rely on your own employees, you will never solve all your customers' needs," added Eilertsen. "No matter who you are, most of the best people work for someone else. If you believe you have all the smart guys in your organization, you are wrong. We need the whole community to engage." There are more glory days ahead for video, according to Milestone. Video is changing the way companies are working, automating and driving compliance. It is becoming part of every industry and companies are using video in new ways. The Milestone community works to ensure continued innovation through a developer program, technology adoption programmes, advisory board and other initiatives. In effect, the community approach will continue to fuel growth, even if "the easy money is over," as Tim Palmquist, Milestone vice president, Americas, acknowledged. Virtual Reality Technology was a big part of MIPS 2017, including an exhibition of industry partners showing their contributions to the collective innovation. It was called the ‘Milestone Community Innovation Lab.’ A tour of the exhibition focused attention on each category of partners – storage systems, cameras, video analytics, etc. Attendees were provided with virtual reality (VR) goggles to view videos positioning Milestone's approach to each category, and then had time to meet with the various partners. The VR goggles were also used to view Lars Thinggaard, Milestone's president and CEO, addressing the group in a VR video produced at Milestone's headquarters in Denmark, formatted into the full virtual reality experience. One technology topic was hardware acceleration, which can increase surveillance system performance at the client level, at the recorder and/or for a mobile server application. Hardware acceleration involves leveraging the power of a graphics processing unit (GPU) to ease the computing load on the central processing unit (CPU). It is seen as an important enabling technology for the larger computational loads of higher camera count systems, and higher resolution/4K cameras. Milestone testing has confirmed a massive improvement in video processing using hardware acceleration. “Video is changing the way companies are working anddriving compliance. It is becoming part of every industry" Milestone Solution Portal Pre-recorded buffering in RAM (random-access memory) is one of the ways Milestone is improving performance and lowering costs of storage solutions. Buffering extends the life of the hard drive with minimal impact on RAM. Milestone has committed to provide a ‘solution portal’ as a peer-to-peer resource to promote greater innovation, such as bundling together solutions from various companies. Enabling co-selling among partners, the portal makes it easy to explore and combine elements with a global reach. A ‘Milestone store’ portal is also being devised, providing fast configuration, efficient order handling through distribution and encompassing the complete product portfolio. Applications beyond security are growing, with more on the horizon. "More than 35 percent of global installations have purposes instead of, or in addition to, surveillance," says Eilertsen. "It's changing the way companies are working, automating and driving compliance. Video is becoming part of every single industry." Plenty of reasons to be optimistic – and in the case of Milestone, ambitious: "We want to be a part of every surveillance installation in the world through video technology,” said Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone's Chief Sales and Marketing Officer.

H.265 compression continued to be a popular topic from exhibitors on the second day of IFSEC Video beyond security, compression, HD over analog and integration were on the lips of several exhibitors at IFSEC International 2016. Strangely for a security exhibition, there were plenty of exhibitors talking about non-security applications on the second day of IFSEC International in London. For Axis Communications, Atul Rajput, Regional Director for Northern Europe, said the Internet of Things will have a big impact on security systems. Having been a leader in the IP video space, Axis is now involved in applications such as audio, intercoms and HVAC (heating ventilation and air conditioning) -- all over IP. Looking ahead, in five to 10 years, the Internet of Things will include sensors that can report back information such as environmental data and the interconnectivity in smart homes. “Now we’re involved in access control, horn speakers and retail analytics such as people-counting,” said Rajput. Over at Hanwha Techwin, a press conference highlighted one pioneering application -- using video to monitor a person’s vital signs such as breathing and heart-rate. Such a set-up could, for example, be used to monitor the wellbeing of detainees in police custody. Again today, H.265 compression was mentioned as a popular feature among exhibitors. Hanwha Techwin uses its own Wisestream compression technology in addition to H.265. The company says Wisestream can deliver up to a 50 percent reduction in bandwidth, with this rising to 75 percent if used with H.265. To put it another way, when you combine both with 4K images, the bandwidth required is the same as that for HD video. H.265 Not The Only Compression Standard In Town But not everyone has been carried away by H.265. The folks at Axis use something called Zipstream compression and H.264; the thinking is that most video management systems don’t yet support H.265. Zipstream uses a dynamic frame rate that reduces the rate to its lowest when a scene is static, then increases it when there is movement or activity. Say you reduce your video storage by half, it translates into needing less hardware and less cooling, thereby reducing the carbon footprint of the end-user. Another big talking point was HD over analog, or AHD. At Hanwha Techwin, for example, where they have a full range of AHD cameras and NVRs, they say the technology has “taken the market by storm” – especially in the UK, southern Europe and even Nordic countries. It seems existing analog infrastructures, their ease of installation and low cost of implementation account for the high demand for this video technology. Partnerships and integration were also big themes at this year’s show, as Milestone promoted their Open Platform Community Partnerships Lead To Better Security Solutions Partnerships and integration were also big themes at this year’s show. VMS (video management system) supplier Milestone Systems announced what it describes as a “deep level partnership” with access control specialists Nedap. “Milestone always [was] an open platform company because we couldn’t do everything ourselves,” said Kenneth Petersen, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer. “We now want to take this to the next level to be an open platform community. Together with our partners, we can offer the best solutions.” Sieger Volkers, Managing Director of Security Management at Nedap, said: “The best of video management and access control will be combined into a solid, seamlessly integrated security solution. We’re committed to developing a deep integration between our access control platform AEOS and [Milestone’s] XProtect, reducing delivery risks and complexity for our mutual partners.” Hardware And Software In Harmony With this approach, Milestone hopes to provide more certainty about different software and hardware working well together, which should make life easier for integrators too, who are just beginning to integrate IP access control and video. A deep partnership, however, does not merely involve working together from a technical perspective but also with commercial operations such as sales and marketing. Milestone also announced a new global partnership with one of its existing partners, Dell OEM Solutions, which helps customers who have their own intellectual property to bring their technology to market. Dell will be able to fully test Milestone’s VMS and can simulate large camera systems, showing customers how their systems will perform before committing to them. Finally, speaking of VMS, AxxonSoft has brought these systems to a whole new level. The company was demonstrating what is said to be the first video transmission to a VMS from an HD-equipped drone. It incorporates a 14MP fisheye lens camera, flies at a height of up to 150 meters and can deliver images wirelessly within a 2km range. It is capable of providing video analytics and face recognition and should be available later this year.

Community was the big buzz-word at this year’s Milestone Integration Platform Symposium (MIPS). The folks at Milestone are long-time proponents of open systems, and presenters at MIPS 2016 described an expanded vision of how the Milestone video management system (VMS) platform can spur innovation in the market. Their “Open Platform Community” vision involves more interaction and technology development, both between Milestone and its partners (including third-party manufacturers), and also among the partners themselves. In their community vision, everyone brings new levels of innovation to the table, and it’s all tied together by Milestone’s open platform. But what is the substance behind the plan? Is the idea of a “community” just marketing speak, or is there more to it? I caught up with two top executives from Milestone to discuss details of the new plan, and how it will benefit Milestone’s partners and the industry as a whole. The following excerpts are from my exclusive interview at MIPS 2016 with Lars Thinggaard, Milestone President and CEO; and Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Chief Sales and Marketing Officer. SourceSecurity.com: What do you mean when you discuss the transition from a platform to a community? Thinggaard: This is something that’s new for us, and new for the ecosystem. But you can also claim that with the thousands of partners we have today, that we have been working as a community already. But it has been one-to-one instead of one-to-many.  We want to enable partners to connect the dots. We have been discussing among ourselves: What does it take to get a community off the ground? And one of the things we’re doing is to set up a Partner Advisory Board. We also need to make the software development kit (SDK) easier to work with. Petersen: And also to make the SDK deeper, to make sure that when we release new features for our main product, that it gets connected to the SDK, so people can take it to the next level without our involvement. SourceSecurity.com: You’re connecting to all these companies, and now you’re saying they are connecting to each other. There comes a point when it’s not really something you can control … Thinggaard: It’s true that control gets out of your hands very soon as you get a step away from the one-to-one point. But I think, what will happen, is that people will be cooperating together. SourceSecurity.com: You’re looking to enable the community … We facilitate knowledge sharingand successful partnerships. Weprioritize platform developmentbased on collective insights. Weaccelerate collective innovation Thinggaard: We are going to facilitate knowledge sharing among the [partners]. It’s not usually common for people to share their knowledge. But, occasionally I will have the partners together is a select group, and they will talk to each other, regardless of competition. It’s very interesting to see how much we have in common at the end of the day. We are competing for the same business, but we are also cooperating for the same business. Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose. Petersen: When I was walking around in the [partner exhibits at MIPS], a lot of our partners said: “We started out seeing this as just another exhibit for us, but now we are actually doing business here, and not just business with Milestone. I was talking with [other partners] and we talked some deals and how we can help each other.” So it has already started on a root basis – what we’re doing is putting a wrap around it, putting it into a structure, so that information and the whole community spirit is put into a structure. SourceSecurity.com: Is using the word “community” just marketing speak? How do you communicate that it is a real commitment? Thinggaard: We expect the community to hold us accountable when we meet next time. We are also in the midst of writing up a manifesto for the community, that you can subscribe to as a partner. We will collectively present that to the Partner Advisory Board: This is the manifesto that we believe in. Again, when a community builds, it’s very difficult to state that you own it, and that’s not our idea. We are part of the community. We would like to ignite the process, and we think and believe what we are doing today will do just exactly that. [It’s not just marketing,] it has to take hard work, and decisiveness, and persistence and proof that you really mean it. We really mean it, and we will be held accountable on our deliverables. Petersen: The proof is in the pudding. Some people might think this is just a marketing message Milestone is sending. We know that’s not the fact from the very positive feedback we have gotten already. All the partners are saying “How can we chip in?” I had a conversation with a hardware vendor who said: “I really want to meet with you guys and figure out how I can chip in to drive this.” I think it’s a very good sign for us that, when you release a message like this, it is embraced. We cannot drive this alone. It takes our ecosystem to embrace it. And I’m seeing that already on day one – and that’s a great sign. SourceSecurity.com: You have promised to expand the SDK, to make it deeper, and to enable partners to create solutions that you would certify. How different is that from the status quo? The "Open Platform Community”vision involves more interactionand technology development,both between Milestone and itspartners, and also among thepartners themselves Petersen: The way we will do the certification will be much deeper. When you want to sell on the App Store, for example, Apple requires certain things you have to comply with. We don’t want to take it to the Apple extreme, but we do want to make sure that people know that when it has been certified by us, that it is approved and working. Certification is one thing, but if you don’t know how to connect the two or three or four pieces together, it doesn’t make sense and you need a Ph.D. to do it. So we’ll make sure our new learning and performance portal framework [will include] education about how to connect these two or three pieces into a solution. Thinggaard: We don’t have answers for everything at this point. It would be dishonest to say otherwise. We need to digest it a bit. We have the obligation to build the manifesto for the community, and we need to spark the initiative. SourceSecurity.com: What exactly do you mean by manifesto? Thinggaard: I have some ideas of what might be included. For example: We facilitate knowledge sharing and successful partnerships. We prioritise platform development based on collective insights. We accelerate collective innovation. And there are some other ideas.  Petersen: We are doing this initiative on connecting the dots, and taking the lead on kicking off and introducing the community. Another thing that’s very important: We are still a software company, and we just completed the largest XProtect release in Milestone history. If you look at the lines of code we just launched in the 2016 version of XProtect, that’s the most code we have ever launched.

A spirit of cooperation pervades this week's 11th annual Milestone Integration Platform Symposium (MIPS) conference, the largest-ever such event with more than 500 attendees at the Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. MIPS is Milestone’s educational and networking event for its IP video surveillance and integration partners. New Approach For Security Partners "We have reached the defining moment in our ecosystem," said Lars Thinggaard, Milestone President and CEO. "We must seize the moment, change the rules, set the agenda and lead our industry. It's the next step in the evolution of our partner ecosystem." Thinggaard and other managers are seeking to reposition Milestone from an "Open Platform Company" to an "Open Platform Community" at the center of a network of Channel and Alliance Partners, including manufacturers whose products are integrated along with Milestone. Sixty of those Alliance Partners are exhibiting at MIPS this year, the largest number ever, reflecting the rapid growth in Milestone's ecosystem. The community approach points to more interaction and technology development by partners working among themselves, in addition to how they have historically worked with Milestone. Thinggaard pledged that the commercial platform will "expand the scope of opportunities for all of you." The transition from a "company" to a "community" is more than a marketing spin. Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems' Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, listed three ways Milestone will be promoting the change: Soon Alliance partners will be allowed to sell their solutions on Milestone's website. a "Partner Advisory Board" will be created to oversee the community and to prioritize Milestone's roadmap. a newly revised software development kit (SDK) will be unveiled in the second half of 2016; Milestone will certify any developed solutions. Creating The Partner Advisory Board The Partner Advisory Board's first mission will be to create a manifesto to outline how knowledge is shared and how to accelerate collective innovation. The Advisory Board will also provide insights to guide Milestone as it prioritises platform development. The new community will help to bring disruptive change to the industry, according to Milestone. The new approach comes as Milestone finishes a successful year by several measures. In addition to finishing an eighth consecutive year as video management system (VMS) market segment leader (according to the May 2015 IHS report), Milestone saw its business grow more than 30 percent in 2015. Making the growth possible was Milestone's delivery on its 2015 commitments to partners, as enumerated at last year's MIPS. They include additional personnel ("more feet on the street"), delivering more qualified leads, and aggressively hunting business together with partners. Looking ahead to 2016, Milestone made some new commitments: to make the company easier to do business with; to improve marketing and deliverables; and to invest in learning and performance. (The company has already begun expanding its training and certification programmes.)