Macromedia announced the immediate availability of its Breeze Live tool for creating and conducting online meetings.

Because it is based on Macromedia’s Flash Player, which the company estimates is present on more than 98% of online desktops today, most Breeze Live meetings can be planned and run without having to download additional software, the company said.

"Online meetings have become a popular way for organizations to reduce the expense of meetings while retaining the interactivity and productivity,” said Keith Kitani, vice president of product management at Macromedia. “Breeze Live eliminates both the technical barriers and learning curve that have previously limited widespread adoption."

To join a Breeze Live meeting, users simply click on a Web link – they don’t need to perform any complicated downloads or setup. The tool eases the job of the meeting presenter as well because it lets users add content, such as PowerPoint presentations, to the presentation ahead of time. Meeting participants can also share live content, such as spreadsheets or product demonstrations, and make changes in real-time during the meeting.

Breeze Live also has a feature called persistent meeting rooms that lets users or presenters store and save their meeting setups. This makes Breeze Live suitable for recurring meetings or presenting the same content to multiple groups, the company said.

Breeze Live is available as either a hosted ASP service or via an enterprise license. The ASP service, which includes the Web conferencing solution, plus video and archiving, costs $83 per month per user.

For more information, visit Macromedia.