The current scenario has suddenly become too challenging that every single facet is bound to bear the repercussions of COVID-19 pandemic. However, it also equally true that the community’s safety has reached to an extremely accessible point where it does not demand much, but just the consistently practicing of social distancing. And the supporting role of video conferencing in this battle has undeniably made it easy to surpass this difficult phase. We have seen the world order, and consequently our day-by-day lives, shift rapidly over the last three months during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now more than ever before, we are relying on mobile to do our jobs, to stay informed and also to keep connected. Countries that were affected early by the pandemic have recorded surges in daily time spent on mobile, and everything from dating to gaming to finance is seeing coronavirus’s impact on mobile. In this thread, video conferencing has marked its special growth. Modern standalone video conferencing units feature the best video and audio quality – all thanks to more efficient compression and the smooth functioning over normal broadband internet connections.
Growing processing power and affordable accessories, right from the webcams to the smartphones, have also made video conferencing an ‘easy go to’ option. Further, the ease of using the dedicated software on a normal personal computer without any expensive or additional hardware has prompted the video conferencing growth. Additionally, due to practicing of social distancing, the work from home trend has seen a sudden rise. Since more and more number of employees are working from home all over the globe, there is seen a strong demand for solutions that allow people to feel connected and foster collaboration.
Apart from their free usage, these apps can also prove to be a good tool for business that otherwise has not customarily paid for these services. This could be seen through following recent activities-
- Google has opened up its premium paid features of Hangouts Meet for free
- ZOOM is offering K-12 students free access
- Microsoft is offering a free 6-month subscription to Microsoft Teams as a result increasing working from home policies
Increased focus of the companies on eliminating the communication costs has created opportunities for the key players in the market, which in turn, led to the development and deployment of advanced solutions and services such as video conferencing in the market.
In addition, various startups and initiatives by the companies in order to leverage the customer’s need also contribute to the market growth. For instance, GoPro, owned by Woodman Labs in partnership with Jabil Inc. announced to license out the company’s designs, technology, and intellectual property in June 2018. Both the companies are working together for the action-ready robots, self-driving cars, and video conferencing equipment. Whereas, other key players such as Zoom, Lifesize, Sightcall, and StarLeaf, among others are also focused on providing the advanced video conferencing experiences to the users by offering several conferencing services.
Nonetheless, the fact could have not been agreed more that our personal inputs of self-isolation could easily keep this pandemic at bay. And the people already practicing it have successfully kicked the virus out of their ‘safety zone’!
