Global business center operator, Regus, has launched what it calls the world’s first publicly available telepresence suite in its facilities in London.

The site, located in Regus’ Berkeley Square location in Central London, will feature Polycom’s RealPresence Experience High Definition immersive telepresence system and is part of a joint initiative with Cable&Wireless Worldwide worth £32 million over five years.

Following the initial announcement in May, this site is the first in a global rollout that will include Polycom RPX telepresence suites in 14 cities. As part of the initial phase, Regus plans to open Regus Telepresence Suites in Paris, Singapore, New York and San Francisco this summer.

“We are redefining the world of work, offering business of all sizes flexible, innovative and inspiring locations in which to meet, work and collaborate,” said Mark Dixon, Group CEO, Regus plc. “In response to rising demand from these organizations we are augmenting and expanding our existing business lounge network around the globe, as we look to better enable the workers of today and tomorrow. The telepresence solution will play a fundamental role in helping us achieve this.”

According to Regus, it already offers the world’s largest network of publicly accessible video conferencing rooms with more than 600 studios worldwide featuring Polycom standards-based video conferencing solutions.

No pricing details were disclosed. Also, it is uncleared whether the public telepresence service will be able to access telepresence sites inside corporations, or whether it only accesses other Regus sites. And while the announcement highlights that it is Regus first publicly available telepresence site, other operators, including Tata Communications have introduced public telepresence booths that can be rented out by independent users.