RSI brings video verification to CMS, Mace CSSS

LONGWOOD, Fla., ANAHEIM, Calif. and WHITE BEAR LAKE, Minn.—RSI Video Technologies has announced two new Videofied partnerships that could improve police response to alarms and provide a valuable dealer differentiator. On Oct. 28, Criticom Monitoring Services, one of the largest wholesale monitoring companies in the country, announced it would begin offering Videofied, and on Nov. 3 Mace Security International announced its central station Mace CSSS had successfully integrated the Videofied video verification security monitoring system into its stages automation platform. The parties involved say the partnerships will improve cost and functionality, and improve relations with emergency responders.

Keith Jentoft, president of RSI, said the New York City Police department has said it would give higher priority for response to alarms that are video- or audio-verified and Westchester, N.Y., was in the process of making quicker response to verified alarms official policy. According to Jentoft, municipalities in California were making changes as well.

“Videofied offers several things to our dealers. It's a nice, simple solution for video verification. It's an all-in-one unit that has a very specific job: verification … It's a nice package for the dealer,” said CMS president Tony Wilson. “The first system we put in—the first night—we actually got a capture out of it.”

The Videofied integration allows Mace CSSS to receive and respond to video-verified alarm events, an important differentiator for Mace dealers according to Mace Security Services Division president Peter Giacalone.

“Dealers really need to stay on top of new services and technology,” Giacalone said in an email interview. “Videofied—and especially how Mace has integrated Videofied into our operation—allows a dealer to offer new and cutting edge services with real value. It is our quest to be great advocates for our dealers and keep feeding them new services that will allow them to enjoy new sources of revenue to grow their businesses.”

Mace CSSS has added RSI's server to its central station and integrated the signal and video processing with the stages automation processing system, which Mace CSSS implemented in July.

Jentoft said it was Videofied's ease of use, low price and alarm verification capability that set it apart. “What's different about Videofied—a lot of people don't get this, they think we're surveillance, but no—we really do just a little bit of what we do, but we do it more efficiently than the other guys. We do it inexpensively. Once your central station's efficient, you don't have to be priced out of the water,” Jentoft said. “All they're trying to do is answer the question: 'Is someone there?' If there is someone there you dispatch differently. This is positive for the police, positive for the security company and positive for the monitoring company … Instead of police going verified response—'we're not going to come unless you have verification'—the concept here is, 'If we get a video-verified alarm, we're going to give you guys higher priority.' Because face it, cops like to catch people. That's why they become cops, and if you know there's someone there to catch, you go.”