A noted name in the telecom sector, Videocon has rolled out their new range of entry level and pocket friendly CCTV solution known as the Eco Series. The CEO of the company, namely, Arvind Bali, talks on this new venture and gives an insight into the current security and surveillance market.

Q What prompted your shift in attention from telecom to surveillance?
After exiting mobility business and losing heavily, we started looking at business opportunities which are among the growth industries, synergic to our existing business lines, did not require any capex investment, and most importantly are self sustaining i.e. profitable from the word go. Having explored various opportunities, we found security and surveillance business to be one of the lines that fit the bill. Videocon is a strong brand in consumer durables and appliances with over 17 manufacturing units across the country; R&D centres worldwide and also assures a strong distribution network. All these factors synergise with the security and surveillance business and hence there is no incremental investment for us.

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Q What according to you is security?
While the literal meaning of security is the state or sense of being free from any kind of threats, this can apply to people and their possessions, valuable items, assets, organisations, infrastructure or even a nation. It is the prevention and protection of self and others’ items from deliberate or unnatural occurrences. However, for me, the simple meaning of security is peace of mind.

QHow will this new range of Videocon WallCams improve the security of a household?
We have recently rolled out our new range of CCTV product and solutions known as the Eco Series, which is an entry level, pocket friendly CCTV solution for retail segment comprising of household part and small commercial establishments (shops and offices) to reach out the masses. The product range is aimed at making CCTV solution affordable to retail segment and kill their perception of CCTV being an expensive solution. The eco series range starts at a never before price point of Rs 4999 for a set of four cameras (two indoor and two outdoor) and a DVR for live view and recording. The solution comes with a convenience of plug and play, and bundled with many features such as remote viewing on smartphone, alarms etc.

We have seen that CCTV solution acts as a deterrent to curb crime, generally the anti social elements keep away from premises which are secured through video surveillance. I think this small investment will go a long way to improve security of household.

Q What is your strategy in sustaining the reasonable rates of the CCTVs that Videocon claims to provide?
All our products are “Make in India”, which gives us an edge in terms of price. We have our own design and R&D centre in Japan, Korea, China and India which helps us use our internal resources and reduce the prices on new product development. Further, this is a growing business and with the launch of eco series, our volumes are going up. This will give us an economy of scale and help sustain prices in the long run.

Q Are there any new features that we can expect from this new range of eco series?
Yes. We will keep adding more features and product lines to our eco series range. To start with, we will be adding lost cost IP based cube cams, video door phones, and a range of sensors and alarms for home use among others.

Q How will the Vodafone 4G solution contribute toward an enhanced technology?
We recently partnered with Vodafone to launch the first of its kind 4G bundled CCTV solution that includes 4G enabled vehicle surveillance kit and stand-alone 4G enabled outdoor/indoor CCTV cameras, both with a 4G sim slot to support 4G connectivity. We understand that seamless connectivity for the devices is the key for any Internet of things based solution. This solution can be installed in moving/mobile vehicles and one no longer needs to be stationed at one place or be dependent on network/Wi-Fi enabled places. This will make video surveillance practically ubiquitous, and CCTV being one of the most important aspects of connected devices, will see a sea of change in the way it is used.

Q What is the potential CCTV surveillance market in the country at present?
As per the available market research, the current video surveillance market of approximate Rs 3650 Cr is 55 per cent of the overall Rs 6600 Crore security and surveillance market and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 26 per cent and reach Rs 9150 crore by 2021, which is 2.5 times the current market size. The growth will be driven by households, including small commercial establishment segments. We, however, foresee the market to cross Rs15,000 crore by 2021 which is a whopping little more than four times the growth of the current market size.