If you’re in the market for a new business collaboration and communications suite, chances are likely that Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) is high on your list of solutions to explore, based on the heavy amount of online attention that it’s been receiving recently.
What exactly is WebRTC? It is a free open-source, browser-based communication and collaboration suite capable of offering voice, chat and peer-to-peer file sharing. The technology comes with promises of high-quality communications, interoperability with existing VoIP systems and, of course, cost-saving features. As a result of these attributes, as well as others, the WebRTC market is expected to reach about $4.7 billion by 2018, and will likely be used by about 60 percent of the Internet population by as soon as 2019.
It sounds great on paper, but is it right for your business? Look deeper and you’ll see that WebRTC also comes with some major disadvantages that could seriously impact the security and stability of your organization.
What are the main disadvantages of WebRTC? First and foremost, it’s not browser-agnostic, which could prevent a large chunk of your customer base from being able to interact with your employees when using the technology. As of right now, the only mainstream Internet browsers that support WebRTC are Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. While there is speculation that Apple and Microsoft may someday add WebRTC into their Safari and Internet Explorer, it remains to be seen whether these industry giants will ever adopt the technology.
Another major drawback with WebRTC is that it’s not entirely secure. To facilitate real-time voice and video communication between end users over the Web, WebRTC utilizes both local (private) and public IP addresses using Session Traversal Utilities for NAT (STUN) servers. In short, WebRTC makes it very easy for a website to locate a local IP address, which makes it possible to identify and track end users. This is a major security loophole that could jeopardize enterprise security.
Furthermore, WebRTC makes it possible for end users to send files directly from a browser to any remote endpoint. As a result, employees are much more liable to transmit risky files that could infect their computers and the network as a whole.
If you’re looking to upgrade your communication and collaboration platform, stick with a private, high-end browser-based communications platform like Onstream Meetings.
Click here to learn more about what sets Onstream Meetings apart.
