PLEASANTON, CA--(Marketwire - Oct 20, 2011) - [ Polycom, Inc ]. (NASDAQ: [ PLCM ]), the global leader in standards-based unified communications (UC), announced today it is supplying an HD video collaboration solution to power a live appearance at The Tech Awards Gala, an event recognizing entrepreneurs who are using technology to benefit humanity. The Polycom® HDX® solution will bring two past award laureates "on stage" via HD video to provide updates on their progress since winning the award. Laureates Venkatesh Mannar of the Micronutrient Initiative and Yvette J. Alberdingk Thijm of human rights non-profit organization WITNESS, will join from Polycom's Chicago and New York briefing centers, respectively, for a conversation with Master of Ceremonies Liz Claman of Fox Business Network, who will be in-person at The Tech Awards Gala in Santa Clara, Calif. Polycom President and CEO Andy Miller will address the Gala audience. This is Polycom's fourth consecutive year as the exclusive Global Communications Sponsor of The Tech Awards program.

"It's an honor and a privilege to help bring Venkatesh and Yvette to The Tech Awards Gala through lifelike HD video technology," said Miller. "Those who are being honored at The Tech Awards have truly changed the world for the better -- something all of us in technology aspire to. At Polycom, our vision is to make it possible for millions of people to use video to communicate and collaborate from anywhere, at any time. Having these two former laureates share their experiences in real-time is a great testament to the power of video collaboration."

"Thanks to Polycom's cutting-edge technology The Tech Awards is able to bridge past and present laureates who can share their compelling, inspiring stories in real time, before the world," said Tim Ritchie, president of The Tech Museum. "Polycom continues to be a dependable partner of The Tech Awards, helping us to spread the word about the people who are using technology in creative ways to benefit humanity. Polycom's innovations are having a meaningful impact in how people communicate, collaborate, and stay productive."

The Polycom technology used in the live gala video conference includes:

• The [ Polycom HDX series ] of room telepresence systems, which delivers lifelike video, voice, and content-sharing interactions, from auditoriums to personal workspaces to corporate meeting rooms, with Polycom's legendary HD quality and ease of use.
• The [ Polycom® RealPresence™ Platform ], which is the foundation of the Polycom experience and the most comprehensive software infrastructure for video collaboration. The platform includes universal video collaboration, video resource management, virtualization management, universal access and security, and video content management.

The Tech Awards, presented by Applied Materials in association with the Center for Science, Technology, and Society at Santa Clara University, is a signature program of The Tech Museum. The international program recognizes laureates in five categories: Environment, Economic Development, Education, Equality, and Health. An individual is also honored as a James C. Morgan Global Humanitarian, which recognizes those whose broad vision and leadership help to alleviate humanity's greatest challenges. This year's recipient is renowned philanthropist and social entrepreneur Jeff Skoll. Past recipients include education and cross-cultural dialogue advocate Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, Nobel Laureate and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Applied's Chairman Emeritus James C. Morgan, who inspired the award.

Since The Tech Awards began in 2000, 245 laureates around the world have been recognized for their work in changing lives for the better. The Tech Awards Gala will be held at the Santa Clara Convention Center on Thursday, October 20, 2011, starting at 6 p.m. PT for an audience of 1400 Silicon Valley business executives, government officials, educators, and community leaders. For more information on The Tech Awards, please visit: [ http://thetechawards.thetech.org/ ].

About The Tech Museum
The Tech Museum is a hands-on science and technology institution designed to engage people of all ages and backgrounds in experiences that educate, inform, provoke thought, and inspire action. Ensconced in the heart of Silicon Valley, the museum captures the spirit of the region through innovative content and programs such as The Tech Challenge, our annual team design competition for youth, and the internationally renowned The Tech Awards, which recognizes technology to benefit humanity. Daily, The Tech Museum celebrates the present and encourages the development of pioneering ideas for a more promising future.

About Polycom
Polycom is the global leader in standards-based unified communications (UC) solutions for [ telepresence ], [ video ], and [ voice ], powered by the Polycom RealPresence Platform. The RealPresence Platform interoperates with the broadest range of business, mobile and social applications and devices. More than 400,000 organizations trust Polycom solutions to collaborate and meet face to face from any location for more productive and effective engagement with colleagues, partners, customers and prospects. Polycom, together with its broad partner ecosystem, provides customers with the best TCO, scalability, and security -- on-premises, hosted or cloud delivered. Visit [ www.polycom.com ] or connect with Polycom on [ Twitter ], [ Facebook ], and [ LinkedIn ].

NOTE: The product plans, specifications, and descriptions herein are provided for information only and subject to change without notice, and are provided without warranty of any kind, express or implied. Polycom reserves the right to modify future product plans at any time. Products and related specifications referenced herein are not guaranteed and will be delivered on a when and if available basis.

© 2011 Polycom, Inc. All rights reserved. POLYCOM®, the Polycom "Triangles" logo, and the names and marks associated with Polycom's products are trademarks and/or service marks of Polycom, Inc. and are registered and/or common law marks in the United States and various other countries. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.