DALLAS--Here at the fourth annual TechSec Solutions, designed to explore the impact of IP technology on the security industry, attendees were treated from the outset to a call to arms for standards development. From keynote speaker David Bunzel, managing partner at industry analyst Santa Clara Consulting, through to closing speaker David Morrow, chief security officer for software maker EDS, the message was clear: integrators and installers want plug-and-play systems where they can use best-of-breed products in virtually any solution environment.

"The general benefits are obvious," said Bunzel, "lower cost of ownership, more features, higher customer satisfaction, which means more customers, and that means a bigger pie, a bigger market."

This theme was echoed on the focused show floor, where exhibitors with IP-based solutions greeted conference attendees. Not only was the Security Industry Association present, handing out score cards for its various standards initiatives, but the manufacturers also consistently mentioned their desire to work with other vendors, develop common APIs, and distribute software development kits.

One attendee mentioned he'd seen on the Axis Communications site, for example, that its API was solely for use with Axis cameras, but Jumbi Edulbehram, Axis director of strategic channels, assured attendees as part of the "Future of IP" panel that the Axis API was freely available and open for use.

One common call was for manufacturers to agree on a common compression method for the output of video; others hoped for a common way of incorporating video analytics into video management software. Alan Lipton, chief technical officer at ObjectVideo, said his company was addressing the latter with its OV Ready initiative, which is a published and open standard for incorporating OV analytics into such systems.

As for the compression standard, industry representatives seemed to think that was a long time away.