UMPIRE: a universal moderator for the participation in IETF remote events

UMPIRE provides seamless meeting interaction among remote and local participants. It uses the BFCP, an IETF standard for moderation. BFCP introduces automated floor control functions to a centralized conferencing environment. This article discusses the design and implementation of the UMPIRE system and highlights the most notable solutions we devised to handle variegated requirements and constraints. We also discuss the lessons learned while experiencing in the first person how the application of research results that have eventually led to new standards still must confront a number of minor yet concrete issues that might completely undermine the overall process of wide adoption by the community.