Tely Labs Offers Rebate on TV-Based Webcam Amid Umi Shutoff

Tely Labs hopes to build its customer base using what’s left of the Cisco umi subscriber list, which will be left without video service as of Jan. 31 when Cisco pulls the plug on the ill-fated and pricey umi telepresence service. Cisco’s umi components began at $599 when launched in 2010 and then took a price cut to $499. Amazon was selling the umi unit Thursday for $399. Reports began circulating a year ago that Cisco planned to stop selling the umi system -- comprising an HD webcam, console and remote -- but it was unclear what would happen to existing customers who were still paying the $10 monthly service fee for the HD service.

A terse message on the Cisco website Thursday said: “On Jan. 31, 2013, Cisco will discontinue the Cisco umi service. You can continue to use umi service up to 11:59 pm PT on Jan. 31. If you want to save videos you have stored on connect.com, you must download them prior to Jan. 31.” The website provided a link for help with downloading videos and gave a toll-free phone number for customers to call “to learn about a recycle program."

Tely Labs Vice President of Enterprise Marketing David Crilley told us he doesn’t know how many umi users remain, but he estimated there’s a “sizable number of folks looking for something now that umi telepresence has ended.” Tely Labs is offering umi customers a $50 rebate on its $249 Android-based telyHD device, launched at CES 2012, which offers 720p resolution on video chats between telyHD devices. Consumers don’t have to use telyHD devices to have Skype chats, Crilley said, but other webcams typically offer lower resolution.

There’s no service fee for telyHD, which attaches to the top of a TV and has a built-in webcam, microphone and speakers. According to Crilley, advantages of the $250 telyHD over the free cameras built into notebooks, tablets and smartphones is HD resolution (when communicating with another telyHD) and “no need to carry a laptop around.” Crilley said Tely Labs will announce additional functionality for telyHD devices, including sharing features, in the future. Crilley said telyHD devices have AirPlay, but said there are no plans to enable Facetime video chats at this time.

Meanwhile, Cisco will provide full hardware refunds to those with active umi service plans, Cisco spokesman Jim Brady said in an email, along with service refunds on pre-paid service contracts. He didn’t respond to our question about the number of active umi customers or the reason Cisco discontinued the umi platform. Brady said Cisco “is committed to the satisfaction and trust of our customers” and said the company will continue to focus on how to help its service provider and enterprise customers expand offerings for consumers “and help ensure the network’s ability to deliver on those offerings.” An example of that, he said, is Cisco’s Videoscape Unity Pay TV platform, announced last week at CES, which enables service providers and media companies “to create and connect new personalized, synchronized and intuitive video experiences across multiple screens.”