The renowned video conferencing platform, Zoom, which experienced a surge in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, is now facing a significant threat to its market dominance from a formidable competitor—Meta’s WhatsApp.
WhatsApp, a platform utilized by billions worldwide for text chats, video calls, and voice calls, has announced the introduction of a feature that enables users to share their screens during video calls. Having completed beta testing, Meta has initiated a phased rollout of this feature across Android, iOS, and Windows desktop platforms.
Zoom, currently grappling with backlash over changes to its terms of service granting it rights to user data, is now encountering its most substantial challenge. This is due to WhatsApp’s massive global user base, exceeding 2.7 billion individuals. In contrast, Zoom reported supporting “over 300 million daily meeting participants” in April, constituting a mere 11% of WhatsApp’s user count.
As Zoom contends with accusations of intending to use user data for training AI models without proper consent, WhatsApp users are being offered the ability to share their entire screens or specific apps on their smartphones—similar to the capabilities of Zoom and Google Meet.
Although Zoom remains a dominant player in the global video conferencing industry, WhatsApp’s landscape video call feature poses a potential threat to its revenue. WhatsApp’s accessibility through users’ mobile contact lists has made it a popular choice for casual gatherings, such as catching up with friends and family, planning events, and celebrating occasions. Expanding into formal work meetings encroaches on Zoom’s core clientele.
With Meta reporting a 16% profit increase in Q2 2023 to $7.8 billion, the financial resources to propel WhatsApp’s ascent to becoming the premier platform for various types of meetings are in place. WhatsApp had previously introduced features like picture-in-picture for video calls on Apple devices in February and the ability to share short video messages in chats last month.
