The COVID-19 pandemic has created both hype and demand for video meeting platforms to become more sophisticated. The response has been more platforms, more options, and more capacity — all developments in our favor.
As COVID-19 comes to a close, travel resumes, and people are eager to meet again, face-to-face, and so on.
But the need is still there; it becomes the replacement for phone calls and a new necessity for meeting with colleagues or customers.
But the rise in the number of these platforms, coupled with the decline in demand, increases the competition among them. As many claim to be more secure and others more agile, we have more options than ever!
Let us take a look at some of the key business moves and new policy developments of these platforms:
Microsoft is changing the features of its Teams free edition and adding premium users in order to charge for options, making Teams expensive in comparison to what it offers.
Vonage, recently bought by Ericsson, may create a tool for telecom operators to provide the service to their enterprise users, according to my recent meeting with the Global CEO of Ericsson. Ericsson will provide Vonage as a Service to operators, which will put them in a position to avoid using Teams or other competing platforms.
Verizon is pushing more for its BlueJeans after making impressive improvements to the platform, including its connectivity. As a result, BlueJeans is already among the top choices for enterprises — in the US and beyond!
While Zoom is struggling — cutting both costs and staff in response to a sharp decline in revenues and a drop in stock value that, according to their CEO, was greater than expected — it remains noteworthy that Zoom has still registered the highest increase compared to any other platform during COVID-19.
Despite all of the above, these platforms have become an integral part of our business needs and among our preferred communication methods, both personal and professional. One thing is certain: this essential role will continue.
