Itracks Realtime will also feature a ‘virtual backroom’ that allows researchers to run text and video focus groups on the same software platform and allows observers to chat to one another and the moderator virtually.

The tool will also allow users to view and debate participant responses, poll results, whiteboard data, mark-up activities and other information coming from focus groups.

Dan Weber, chief executive of Itracks, said that Realtime would get additional features and languages in the future to ensure it can be used worldwide.

Weber added: “The backroom, that hidden room behind the one-way glass where stakeholders and clients can watch the research as it happens, is an essential part of the research process.

“Now, more than ever, researchers need software that’s able to provide that realistic backroom experience.”