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Cisco TelePresence vs Skype for Business comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 3, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco TelePresence
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Skype for Business
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
62
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Virtual Meetings category, the mindshare of Cisco TelePresence is 3.4%, down from 4.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Skype for Business is 13.4%, up from 8.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Meetings
 

Featured Reviews

OSCAR DE LA PENA - PeerSpot reviewer
One-click meeting access and seamless integration enhance video conferencing experience
Cisco TelePresence could improve the WebRTC connections, as they are quite slow. The end user experiences delays when using WebRTC, sometimes taking one minute or more to receive a connection. This issue is mainly due to Cisco taking a long time to download and start the WebRTC client on their devices. Ensuring it is embedded in the device could help.
Magdalena Teodorczuk - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers great audio and video quality for virtual meetings
I like the instant messaging feature in the product since I prefer to use the chat functionalities provided by the solution. It is easy to integrate the product with some of the other solutions in the market. I rate the integration capabilities of the product a ten out of ten. The product's user interface is user-friendly. I use the product at a personal level, so I can't speak about the support it provides for the maintenance part. I rate the overall tool a ten out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"TelePresence allows our customers to have a quick meeting while traveling and still be effective. It saves time and money."
"It was stable. So, I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"Cisco is a leader in video conferencing solutions because they apply the latest technologies to their devices and services, such as artificial intelligence and versatile functionalities."
"The configuration is a valuable."
"The most valuable features of Cisco TelePresence are the basic standard features and the ease of use. Additionally, the configuration and integration are exemplary."
"Telepresence's most valuable feature is keeping highly paid employees, such as executives, on the ground instead of wasting time flying around the world. So if you have the right telepresence plan and form, it's not just the video cameras and the systems behind them, it's the way you lay out your meeting room.You can have multiple offices interconnecting in a single meeting, and it looks like everybody's in the same big conference room together because the telepresence yields such a fantastic amount of clarity."
"The SpeakerTrack feature is the most valuable feature."
"PresenterTrack cameras improve the meeting experience."
"The security seems good."
"You can do meetings of up to two hundred people in a single conversation."
"There are free versions of the solution available."
"It has benefited my organization because I can use it on the phone, I can use it on a laptop, wherever I want. The communication channel is very easy now and I can call and chat. It's experienced. Together, my team manages everything. It's very easy."
"It's a good and stable product that fits my needs."
"The deployment is very fast."
"I use the chat feature to communicate with my staff, which is very helpful."
"One of the best features of Skype for Business is that you can set it up on mobile phones, and you can set it up on laptops. You can connect to the tool from anywhere."
 

Cons

"The tool is expensive."
"MX800 comes only with one available DVI port. A few more HDMI ports will improve the system's capability."
"I was in touch with one of our clients and they mentioned that they would like to have a holographic video conferencing. It would be great if that feature would be added."
"I would rate my experience with the initial setup a three out of ten, with ten being expensive. It was complex with badges and certificates. Too crazy."
"The calling features can be improved."
"Cisco TelePresence could improve its integration capabilities."
"Cisco TelePresence could improve the WebRTC connections, as they are quite slow."
"The price of Cisco TelePresence overall should be reduced."
"We need a feature where you can virtually raise your hand to silently let the presenter know that you have a question."
"The inability to integrate Skype with other products is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"I venture to say that 30% of the people using this solution at our company have had issues with stability, due to the volatility and crashes."
"Whenever someone is using a messaging platform, the messages needs to be stored. In Skype for Business, the message will not be seen later on if you're not online. It isn't useful, in my opinion."
"The integration with Outlook could be improved."
"I feel that the whole look and feel of Skype should be improved, including its user-friendliness. It should also improve its scalability."
"We have had trouble with scalability when trying to host large meetings."
"The stability could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I will rate the tool's pricing an eight out of ten."
"The price of Cisco Telepresence is high, especially in Brazil. However, the quality of the product justifies the cost."
"We used high definition, 1080p, but again, it required license purchases. For example, with three licenses (TP licenses), each allowing one 1080p screen, if I had six participants, I'd need to lower the resolution to 720p or lower to accommodate more participants. More licenses meant more cost."
"Cisco TelePresence license is expensive and should be reduced. There is only a cost for the license and it is annually."
"The pricing is expensive, therefore I rate it an eight out of ten."
"Previously, I did not use another solution."
"When it comes to the pricing of the solution, I rate it as a five out of ten. It falls somewhere in the middle between being cheap and expensive."
"A license is required to use the solution."
"The pricing is really good. It is quite affordable because it came with our Office 365. It is on a per-user license, which is nice. I quite like that they have made it very granular with all of their licensing."
"I am using a corporate account for which I have not made any payments."
"The cost of Skype for Business is incorporated into our Office 365 licenses."
"The licensing is billed on a yearly basis."
"We had a license for every one of our users to use Skype for Business. The license we used was part of an overall Microsoft license package."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
University
14%
Government
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Educational Organization
92%
Financial Services Firm
2%
Computer Software Company
1%
Government
1%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco TelePresence?
It was stable. So, I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
What needs improvement with Cisco TelePresence?
Cisco TelePresence could improve the WebRTC connections, as they are quite slow. The end user experiences delays when using WebRTC, sometimes taking one minute or more to receive a connection. This...
What advice do you have for others considering Cisco TelePresence?
Cisco is a leader in video conferencing solutions because they apply the latest technologies to their devices and services, such as artificial intelligence and versatile functionalities. Security i...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Skype for Business?
Skype for Business is affordable and has decent pricing. The video quality is a bit lower than Teams or Zoom, but it remains a good solution overall.
What needs improvement with Skype for Business?
The video quality could be improved, possibly due to internet connection issues. However, there is no significant weakness in Skype for Business.
 

Also Known As

TelePresence
Skype for Business Plan 1, Skype for Business Plan 2, Lync Server
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Afni, AGCO, Bellevue, Came Group, Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC Children's), Del Papa Distributing, Instituto Zaldivar, ING Bank, Moffitt Cancer Center, Park Nicollet, Pentana Solutions Australia, San Jose State University, Sub-Zero Wolf, Transwestern and Metropolis Investment Holdings, Vital Images
EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services,LA Fitness, MedcoEnergi International, Tampa General Hospital, and HopewellHoldings Limited.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco TelePresence vs. Skype for Business and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
848,716 professionals have used our research since 2012.