OVER the next few years, video, collaboration and virtualisation will be the big application drivers.

Like music before, video will be the next killer app. By using video to communicate, productivity in companies (and countries) can rise by 5to 10per cent, resulting from the reduced need to travel.

Collaboration is going to be extremely important in helping companies interact with staff and with suppliers and other business associates. This will drive the next wave of increased productivity.

For example, John Chambers, the chief executive officer of Cisco (whom I report to) and I have different styles of communicating using these collaborative technologies.

I like video and text communication and use Twitter to collaborate with a number of people, while John prefers video and voice. He interacts via video blogs and voice messages in our virtual mailbox.

I have a 16-year-old son and my communication with him is over a multitude of platforms including e-mail, SMS and Facebook messaging.

The third pillar is virtualisation where software runs across all hardware platforms. This leads to cloud computing where applications and services, which are delivered on demand, are separated from the underlying hardware infrastructure.

Lastly, sustainability is important. Many companies are using IT to reduce the world's carbon footprint.

At Cisco, we are working on an initiative called Smart Connected Communities where we use networks to make buildings smarter and more energy efficient.

The writer is the chief technology officer of Cisco.

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