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WhatsApp appears to be chasing Zoom with its mobile web app to support video calls with up to 50 people, offering an effective alternative to Zoom, Google Meet and Skype.
The new video calling feature is currently in a beta version of the desktop app, which was discovered by WABetaInfo. It works by transferring people to Facebook’s new messaging rooms, a service within Facebook and its linked messaging service that makes video calls with large groups easy.
A shortcut in the WhatsApp menu redirects people to the Facebook messaging rooms, where they can create a virtual meeting room within the Facebook service and then invite people to join. Users can also do all of this directly from the WhatsApp web application. And Facebook Messenger Rooms allows Virtual funds to be added for individual participants, giving the service another feature that has proven popular at Zoom.
It is not known when WhatsApp will take this beta feature and integrate it into the full public launch of the WhatsApp website. But we suspect that you will do so sooner rather than later if you want to take advantage of today’s appetite for video calls and meetings.
WhatsApp recently released eight-person video calls on their mobile app, doubling the previous call limit. And the 50-person video call option is slated to reach WhatsApp on iOS and Android, although having such a large number of people in a single video call is probably best saved for the web app when you’re on a laptop or desktop with a bigger screen.
Since buying WhatsApp for $ 19 billion in 2014, Facebook hasn’t made too many drastic changes. But adding more integrations with Facebook and Messenger could expand WhatsApp beyond being a very popular messaging service.
It has a long way to go to dethrone Zoom, which has increased in popularity as more people turn to video calls for business and to stay in touch while under coronavirus blockade. But services like Google Meet, Google Duo, and Microsoft Teams are constantly adding new features, providing a host of valuable alternatives.
