With the global pandemic striking earlier this year, videoconferencing apps faced a larger crowd and growth in terms of new users. Due to the lockdown, from classes to business meetings, from chatting with friends to giving exams everything started taking place virtually. So, many videoconferencing platforms made their app free for everyone. One such company is Google that made Google Meet free for everyone which means video conferencing for an unlimited time.
When the pandemic started taking monstrous shape, people understood that this is not going to end anytime soon. So, Google Meet made the platform free for all users in April. The company also mentioned that this free plan would be until 30th September 2020. And, yesterday the company made it clear that it is sticking to its words.
Google Meet Free till 30th September of this year
In the last week of April, Google announced making Google Meet free for everyone. The company said the privilege of enjoying unlimited video conferencing time will not just be limited to enterprise and education customers. So, anybody with a Google account easily created a meeting in Google Meet with 100 participants maximum and no time limit. But, the company gave a hint at the beginning that the time slot will be reduced to 60 minutes after 30th September. But, the users might have thought with time the deadline might have extended.
Google used the free for all strategy to also outrun Zoom in terms of the user base. When the lockdown started, the first videoconferencing platform that escalated to unlimited height was Zoom. But, very soon due to the compromised security system of Zoom or callous safety measures, Zoombombing took place. Google Meet saw it as a golden opportunity to take control of the market by both free meetings and ensuring safety. When Google made the platform free it made clear that Google will focus more on the safety measures. Thus, whenever a person will try to join a meeting using a link, first he will wait in the green room until and unless the host lets him in. This made Meet better and safer than Zoom.
Advanced features for G Suite
With the unlimited video conferencing time, Google also made the advanced free features free for everyone. At first, the features were made free till 1st July which was then extended to 30th September. But, along with the time limit reducing to 60 minutes, free users cannot enjoy the advanced features of G Suite anymore. When the G Suite features were also made available it allowed the G Suite for education customers to host meetings with up to 250 participants. The platform also allowed live-stream to up to 100,000 users within a single domain. And, these meetings recording could be saved in Google Drive as well. Unfortunately, all these privileges will go away after a couple of days with only the “Enterprise” tier of G Suite using it for $25 per user per month.
After the pandemic started, Javier Soltero, VP and General Manager of G Suite, said that in the time of needs the company wants to give everyone access to features that they enjoy. G Suite is one of the best products to win by choice and they are trying nothing but to help people around the globe. The company also noticed that the daily user base of Google Meet increased 25 folds as it was in January. So, free access even though for a limited time was immensely profitable for the company.
Other video conferencing platforms
In April, Google Meet witnessed a daily participant count of 100 million or more. After Zoombombing, every video conferencing company including Google Meet wanted to take its position in the market, thus ruling it. Among all these apps, it was Zoom to achieve great success within a very small period. The other companies eventually started chasing the meteoric rise of Zoom. But, with the virtual mode becoming the new normal for every purpose, it is time for Google Meet to get back to its normal plans.
So, the decision of ending free plans for all is fixed. Free users can still enjoy videoconferencing but with a time constraint of 60 minutes.
Annasha Dey is an NIT student, who apart from studying engineering is also a content writer. She has a great interest in photography, writing, reading novels, and travelling as well. She is a foodie who loves socializing and hanging out with her friends. She is also a trained Kathak dancer and a big fashion enthusiast. Dey also loves watching TV series, which includes F.R.I.E.N.D.S. and Big Bang Theory. To be a better writer she prefers to read more