Zoom has revealed its plan to roll out ads to free users of its video conferencing software in an effort to support investment and to continue providing free access to its platform.
When employees around the world made the transition to working from home last year, the video conferencing service experienced exponential growth as its user base expanded from primarily being made up of enterprise users to include a large volume of individual users.
Now though with organizations implementing hybrid work policies, more employees are returning to the office and relying on video calls less often throughout the day. While the age of Zoom may not be over yet, the company is changing its tactics when it comes to free users.
It's also worth noting that there is still a 40-minute limit on the length of group calls for free Zoom users which could entice some people to upgrade to its paid plans.
Pilot advertising program
In a new blog post, chief marketing officer at Zoom, Janine Pelosi explained that the company is rolling out a pilot advertising program targeting its free Basic users.
As part of the new program, ads will be rolled out for free users running Zoom's video conferencing software in a browser once they end their meeting. Only free users in certain countries will see these ads if they join meetings hosted by other Basic users but the company did not specify which countries will be part of its pilot advertising program.
Going forward, free users will see a banner add on Zoom's website after ending a meeting with a link above the ad recommending they “Upgrade to Remove Ads”. Pelosi also pointed out that the company will not use meeting, webinar or messaging content including audio, video files and messages for any marketing, promotions or third-party advertising purposes.
While Zoom is bringing ads to its platform for free users of its service, the company is doing so in a way that isn't obtrusive and likely won't interfere with the quality of their meetings.
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