Barco’s ClickShare solution has been on the market for 13 years and was first designed to address some of the frustrations people were facing with meeting spaces and bring-your-own-device (BYOD) set-ups.
“A lot of people had issues with sharing their content from their laptop to the meeting room displays,” explains Oliver Van Camp, head of product at ClickShare. “Not everyone had a HDMI, VGA or DisplayPort connector, and wired solutions meant presenters had to sit in specific places at the table to share. We built ClickShare, and the ClickShare button, to solve this issue.”
In 2020, Barco expanded ClickShare’s capabilities with conferencing functionality to allow users to bring the room’s audiovisual systems to their device. BYOD and hybrid working have both grown substantially in recent years, and the need for room systems has emerged.
Recognising this shift, Barco began laying the groundwork for the new ClickShare Hub, a modular Android-based room system that allows for simple hybrid meetings and content sharing. It began the development process by partnering with Microsoft.
“You cannot make this type of solution without a partnership with Microsoft,” says Van Camp. “It’s a key element of bringing this type of solution to market and it was the first big milestone that opened the path towards building a room system solution.”
Barco has been working with Microsoft since the beginning of 2024 and was also one of the first adopters of the Microsoft Device Ecosystem Platform (MDEP), Microsoft’s Android operating system.
“MDEP is the platform of choice for next-generation devices, and we’re working closely with the MDEP and Microsoft Teams Rooms teams to ensure our solutions are compatible and certified for Teams,” says Van Camp.
To address the needs of organisations focusing on BYOD and flexible meetings, the ClickShare Hub was designed with modularity in mind, meaning that organisations can create flexible spaces using the audio and video solutions that best suit them.
According to Van Camp, the ClickShare Hub is a unique offering. “On the one hand, it brings the reliable compute you need for a room system, such as a Teams Room set-up, and on the other hand it provides the ease-of-use familiar with the ClickShare portfolio and the ClickShare button,” he says.
Additionally, ClickShare is designed to make it easier for IT admins to install, manage and maintain devices within an ecosystem.
Barco is set to launch several certified bundles featuring the ClickShare Hub and audiovisual solutions from ClickShare Alliance partners, such as Sennheiser Team Connect bars.
“This addresses a need that isn’t being met today: companies don’t want all-in-one front-of-room solutions because they have specific needs,” says Van Camp. “Maybe they want higher-quality audio, better video solutions or multi-camera set-ups.”
Looking ahead, Barco’s priority is to continue providing offerings that support the needs of various customers.
“We’re designing our new certified bundles to cover everything from small to large rooms,” says Van Camp. “Customers and partners will have a range of choice, and be able to select the bundle that best fits their space and needs.”
Barco is also focusing on firmware updates and new capabilities to add more functionality to the ClickShare Hub.
“We want to make sure the ClickShare Hub really takes its place in the room system market,” says Van Camp. “We believe everything that made us great in the BYOD segment will make us a strong contender in this space too.”
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