Core problem is that video conferencing is inherently an unsatisfying, oddly asymmetrical social presentation. On the phone, users can talk, and be present, yet

Core problem is that video conferencing is inherently an unsatisfying, oddly asymmetrical social presentation. On the phone, users can talk, and be present, yet multitask. On a video conference, you have to present (via acting) a presentation of "present thought", which since most systems show you a real time display of your face, quickly becomes a "mirror exercise" more than a conveyance of information. It's a poor simulacrum of social interaction, a compromise that satisfies no one.