ISJ hears exclusively from Leo Levit, Steering Committee Chairman, ONVIF about how standards are driving innovation in physical security.
The promise of cloud technology is very real – offering scalability, remote accessibility, advanced analytics and reduced infrastructure costs.
Yet many organisations hesitate to fully embrace cloud migration.
The reason? Concerns about vendor lock-in, integration complexity and the loss of the competitive flexibility that has become essential to modern security operations.
This hesitation is not only understandable, it’s also familiar.
Two decades ago, the physical security industry faced similar challenges when proprietary protocols dominated the surveillance landscape.
Organisations jumping on the IP video train were faced with limited vendor choices, costly system upgrades and the inability to mix and match best-of-breed components.
The solution then was standardisation through ONVIF, which has created an ecosystem of more than 30,000 compatible products and has offered organisations freedom of choice.
Today, as cloud adoption accelerates, we have a unique opportunity to apply these same standardisation principles to unlock the cloud’s full potential while preserving the vendor flexibility that security professionals have come to expect and demand.
The parallel between past and present
Before ONVIF and similar interoperability standards transformed our security ecosystem, organisations often found themselves locked into single-vendor environments.
Adding a camera from a different manufacturer meant replacing infrastructure or extensive integration costs.
Upgrading systems required wholesale replacement rather than the ability to add incremental improvements.
Innovation was constrained by proprietary barriers and organisations paid premium prices for the privilege of limited choice.
By establishing common protocols for device communication, ONVIF standards have enabled organisations to select cameras, recording systems and management platforms based on quality and actual needs rather than compatibility constraints.
Integrators have the flexibility to design solutions tailored to specific client demands. Manufacturers now compete on features, performance and value rather than proprietary lock-in.
The result has been accelerated innovation, reduced costs and expanded options across the entire security ecosystem.
As the industry migrates to cloud architectures, some of the same underlying dynamics from the IP transition still exist.
Proprietary cloud platforms, closed APIs and vendor-specific integration requirements threaten to create similar barriers to interoperability that standardisation worked hard to eliminate.
Without standardised camera-to-cloud protocols, organisations may find themselves facing familiar challenges: limited vendor choices, complex migrations between platforms and reduced negotiating power with suppliers.
The stakes are even higher in the cloud era. Unlike on-premises systems where vendor switching is difficult but possible, cloud dependencies create deeper operational entanglements.
Data storage, analytics engines, user interfaces and management functions become tightly coupled to specific platforms.
These dependencies can escalate exit costs and make organisational knowledge only platform-specific.
The economics of open architecture
It is becoming more widely understood that the economic advantages of standardised protocols extend beyond initial procurement costs.
While proprietary systems may appear competitively priced at deployment, the total cost of ownership can tell a much different story.
Organisations locked into single-vendor cloud platforms face limited negotiating leverage during renewals, constrained options for system expansion and significant switching costs if business needs change or better solutions emerge.
Consider a mid-sized organisation deploying 200 cameras across multiple facilities. In a proprietary cloud environment, camera selection is limited to models compatible with the chosen cloud VMS platform.
If a particular camera excels at license plate recognition but isn’t supported by the platform, the organisation must either compromise on performance with an inferior but compatible model or undertake costly workarounds.
Analytics capabilities are similarly constrained. Even if third-party AI providers offer superior algorithms, proprietary architectures may prevent integration.
With a standardised approach, the same organisation can select cameras based on specific performance requirements, such as thermal imaging for perimeter detection, high-resolution models for facial recognition and cost-effective options for general surveillance
Cloud platforms compete on analytics capabilities, user experience and value-added features, rather than device compatibility.
When new AI capabilities emerge, organisations can integrate them without replacing infrastructure or switching platforms entirely.
The competitive dynamics matter equally for manufacturers and integrators. Standardised protocols lower barriers to entry, enabling innovative companies to compete with established players.
Small manufacturers can develop specialised cameras knowing that the devices will work with major cloud platforms.
Providers offering services via the cloud can focus on differentiation through better analytics, intuitive interfaces and vertical-specific features rather than building proprietary device ecosystems.
Integrators gain the flexibility to design optimal solutions rather than navigating compatibility matrices and vendor restrictions.
Strategies for implementation and deployment models
Standardisation doesn’t mandate only a single approach to cloud deployment. Organisations can choose implementation strategies, such as pure cloud or a hybrid approach, that best aligns with operational requirements, budget constraints and risk tolerance while maintaining the flexibility that open protocols provide.
Pure cloud architectures centralise video management, storage and analytics entirely in the cloud. Cameras stream directly to cloud platforms where processing occurs and data resides.
This approach maximises scalability and minimises on-premises infrastructure but requires robust network connectivity and careful bandwidth management. Standardised protocols ensure organisations aren’t locked into specific cloud providers and can migrate or multi-home for better redundancy and performance as business needs evolve.
Hybrid edge-cloud models distribute processing between cameras, local servers and cloud platforms. Edge devices handle the initial analytics, local recording and bandwidth optimisation while cloud platforms provide centralised management, long-term storage and advanced processing.
This approach balances performance, cost and reliability.
Standardisation ensures that the edge devices and cloud platforms interoperate regardless of manufacturer, enabling organisations to optimise each component independently.
Multi-site deployments must handle additional complexity. Organisations with distributed facilities need consistent management interfaces, unified analytics and centralised oversight while accommodating varying network conditions and local requirements.
Standardised protocols help to enable centralised cloud management of geographically dispersed systems without forcing hardware standardisation across every location.
Regional offices can deploy cameras suited to local conditions while maintaining enterprise-wide visibility and control.
Each approach offers distinct advantages and many organisations deploy combinations suited to different facilities or applications.
The key is maintaining flexibility to adjust strategies as technology evolves, business requirements change and new capabilities emerge.
While proprietary systems force organisations to commit to specific architectural approaches, often tied to vendor roadmaps, standardisation preserves the freedom of choice in nearly all areas of the deployment.
Market evidence
In general, markets with robust standardisation consistently show increased innovation, improved price-performance ratios and expanded vendor participation.
The surveillance camera market itself provides clear evidence of the innovation that accelerated dramatically after interoperability became widespread.
New entrants brought specialised capabilities, while established manufacturers competed more aggressively on features and value.
Organisations gained access to broader technology portfolios at more competitive prices.
Cloud platforms following similar principles show comparable benefits.
Organisations using platforms with strong API standards and documented integration protocols have reported easier vendor negotiations, reduced switching costs and greater willingness to adopt new capabilities.
The absence of lock-in creates accountability, requiring vendors to continuously earn business through superior performance rather than relying on traditional exit barriers to retain customers.
Standards and industry readiness
The physical security industry’s readiness for standardised cloud protocols is evident in multiple indicators. Technologically, cameras already support sophisticated edge processing, network infrastructure can handle cloud traffic and cloud platforms demonstrate enterprise-grade reliability.
Organisations have developed cloud expertise through deployments in other domains and the business case for standardisation is well understood.
The work to facilitate this transition to standardised cloud connectivity is well underway. Industry organisations such as ONVIF are developing camera-to-cloud standards that define how devices authenticate, stream video, share metadata and enable remote configuration.
However, these efforts require support, participation and coordinated action across the ecosystem to succeed.
End users should prioritise standardisation in their procurement decisions, emphasising that vendor flexibility and open protocol are non-negotiable requirements of the tender, rather than simply nice-to-have features.
Integrators should advocate for standardised approaches, educating clients about long-term benefits and designing systems with flexibility as a core principle.
Manufacturers and cloud platform providers should commit to developing and supporting open protocols rather than pursuing proprietary advantages that benefit individual companies at the industry’s expense.
We have already transformed the physical security industry once before through standardisation.
To ensure the cloud era delivers on its promise while preserving the vendor flexibility and competitive dynamics, we have the opportunity and responsibility to do so again, before proprietary approaches become entrenched and the opportunity passes.
For organisations evaluating cloud strategies, integrators designing systems and vendors developing products, the message should be clear.
Standardisation isn’t an obstacle to cloud adoption but rather the foundation that makes successful cloud migration possible.
