Benefits of network video surveillance standards

There are many services and functions in society that would not be able to function without well-defined standards. Despite the clear benefits of standards, some industries are yet to develop their own standards. The security industry has addressed its own shortfall in standardisation.

Standards also give users the flexibility to choose between different products that in one way or another meet their preferences, not just because they are technically compatible with the required service or function.

Standards exist in several forms and are promoted by different players in the industry. In the technology field, the most common form is by technical alliances that are formed by manufacturers coming together and specifying usage of one or several common specifications. An example for this is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). It has a strong influence on computer networking. These types of standards are often referred to as de facto standards. Other standards are developed by official standardisation bodies like the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). The use of official standards could be mandatory or voluntary. Typical mandatory standards are those that control safety of products. Most countries have their own standardisation office which represents their respective country in the IEC.

International standards enable and support trade. If a product is compliant with an international standard, it can be deployed everywhere the standard is recognised, without restrictions.

Security industry driving its own standards

The security industry has been accustomed to standards being mandatory, voluntary, official and de facto for a long time. For several years, the rapid growth of IP-based products in the security market led to a lack of a common standard that could offer interoperability. This in turn created operational silos that offered little alternatives to the end users.

In 2008, the network camera manufacturers Axis, Bosch and Sony joined forces and formed ONVIF. This open industry forum is developing global standards for interfaces of IP-based physical security products.

ONVIF provides a common interface for achieving interoperability between products and systems of different manufacturers. For network video, this is defined by Profile S that includes specific features such as pan, tilt, zoom control, audio streaming and relay outputs.

In December 2013, ONVIF released Profile C to include physical access control products.

How standardisation will benefit the surveillance industry

ONVIF’s vision is that all security systems share one interface. It is working to standardise and promote this interface for effective interoperability of IP-based security products. This enables seamless integration of ONVIF-conformant security products regardless of manufacturer and will make it even easier for end users, integrators, consultants and manufacturers to take advantage of the possibilities offered by IP-based security solutions.

End users

The biggest beneficiaries of standards are end users. Instead of being locked into proprietary solutions, standards allow them to pick and choose best-of-breed components from different manufacturers with confidence that all the pieces will work well together. Freedom of choice tends to increase competition between vendors, ultimately speeding delivery of better products to the market at a lower price as the market expands at an ever-higher rate. Greater product demand, higher production volumes and lower integration costs for vendors and manufacturers will also translate into lower costs for the end user.

Standardisation will also offer end users a greater level of futureproofing for their investment. The standard will ensure that interoperable products are available from a large variety of vendors, no matter how the market develops.

Integrators and consultants

The interoperability between different vendors’ products, aided by the standard, will make it easier for integrators and consultants to offer their customers cost-effective and simple solutions. Installation will be simplified, regardless of brand, and there will be greater freedom to specify a system with products from different vendors, thus making it easier to fully meet the specific needs of each customer.

Manufacturers and software vendors

Manufacturers will benefit from a standard as efforts can be spent on developing unique features with high value to the user community knowing that the very basic functions are being interoperable through the standard.

The benefits offered by standards to end users, integrators and consultants will result in increased interest in network video products and IP-based security solutions. This means that the development of an industry standard is an important spur to the growth of the network surveillance industry as a whole.