Free Desktop Sharing

Uhingen, 07/12/2007 – Following a test phase, the latest version of the popular desktop-sharing software TeamViewer is now available free of charge for private users. The tool can be downloaded directly from the manufacturer’s website at http://www.teamviewer.com. Licences for commercial use can also be obtained there. The software, which is only 400 KB in size, enables the remote control of any Windows computer from anywhere via the Internet. To do this, the program only needs to be started on both computers; installations or administrator rights are not necessary.

What makes the system special is that it also works through firewalls since the connection runs automatically via a dedicated TeamViewer router if no direct connection between the two partners is possible. That is the difference between TeamViewer and many other free solutions available up to now, which as a rule cannot communicate through firewalls. After the program starts, a unique partner ID is generated and transmitted to the partner by telephone or via an e-mail invitation. After entering the target partner’s ID, connection to the computer is immediately established automatically, so that it can be remotely controlled conveniently by mouse.

Besides remote control, TeamViewer also allows the convenient transfer of files between computers, to which no access normally exists, as well as the simple presentation of screen contents. The direction or ‘viewing direction’ can be switched at any time, so that both participants can view or control the other's desktop. This makes genuine online teamwork possible. The entire exchange of data takes place encrypted via private/public key exchange for security reasons.

Earlier versions of TeamViewer were only free of charge for testing purposes and the duration of a session was limited to 30 minutes, which significantly restricted its use. These limitations are now completely removed; only the total duration of use is restricted to a maximum of 25 hours per month – a value which private users will not generally reach.

“In taking this step we are naturally placing great trust in the honesty of our users, because, after all, we are making a full functional version available here,” explains Dr Tilo Rossmanith, executive manager of TeamViewer GmbH. “Past experience shows, however, that commercial users are willing to buy a licence once they are aware of the many possibilities that TeamViewer offers, particularly in the field of customer support. In any case, the price of our licensed model is in most cases well below that of our competitors’ comparable products.”
TeamViewer is available for commercial use in the Small Business, Enterprise and Enterprise Concurrent versions. Prices range from 349 to 998 Euros.