Will the Event Industry Zoom in to JioMeet?

by  EVENTFAQS Bureau Marketing | July 8, 2020 | Feature

Reliance Industries JioMeet Zoom Nanni Singh Keyur Patel

Work environments have become virtual and video calling is now an essential service for the corporate world. Digital platforms like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet have never had it so good. And now, Reliance Industries has forayed into space with JioMeet, with reports of Airtel following suit.

Much like Zoom, JioMeet also offers unlimited free calls to users and supports 100 participants on a call. One difference pointed out by critics is that JioMeet calls can go on for 24 hours, unlike Zoom where calls up to three people are unlimited but the rest are capped at 40 minutes. While Zoom’s paid plans have found favor, how JioMeet will stack up against them is still not known. Tech watchers like TheWindowsClub have also outlined some of JioMeet’s drawbacks compared to Zoom.

Irrespective, will JioMeet score over Zoom when it comes to live events? The expectations certainly seem high from Indians in general and the event frat in particular.

EVENTFAQS Media reached out to event practitioners for their views on JioMeet and their current choice of app for virtual meetings and events. Several corporate users and event managers we spoke with said their current app is Zoom. Companies like PayTM Insider continue to host live ticketed events of all hues on Zoom currently. But there are other apps in contention too.

Pramod Gaikwad, Director, ICE Global, said, “We work on MS Teams, Zoom and Google Meets for clients. We also use other live event platforms and stream on Vimeo, etc. I have not used JioMeet as yet.”

There are others currently on Zoom but awaiting the arrival of JioMeet. Keyur Patel, Director, Prasang Events and Entertainment, said,  “At the moment we are using Zoom meeting app as it is popular, user-friendly and we can have as many participants as needed by paying for it. People are used to Zoom and when the lockdown started, lots of people had also downloaded and learned to use it."

“With regards to JioMeet, we would love to use it as an alternative meeting app. It will take some time to get used to it and migrate from Zoom. But we are learning and yes, definitely, it's an Indian app and we are hoping it is user friendly to do live events.  In terms of security and privacy, JioMeet is having an upper hand as per my knowledge," he added.

Navneeth Mohan, Director & CEO, Laqshya Live Experiences - Laqshya Media Group, declined comment as the company was yet to test the app. The intent is to try it out soon.

At ShowCase Events, the app currently used is Zoom, but depending on the client’s requirement they also work with Cisco WebEx or other applications.

Nanni Singh, CEO, reveals that the agency did install JioMeet to check on the features. “It's very good and user friendly. The most advantageous feature, for now, was no time restrictions and better bandwidth connectivity. Both being pretty significant. Also, the individual calling feature: so it can be used instead of a WhatsApp call too.”

“JioMeet looks promising. Let's hope they add some more features soon which allow branding possibilities etc. too. Becomes easier for us to use in the events space,” she added.

Shaju Ignatius, Founder & Director, The Ignite Enterprise said, "While currently, I'm using the Zoom app more frequently, as it is user-friendly and generally people are also used to it since the lockdown started, we would also love to get going with the JioMeet app. Glad and would be happier to try it,  since it's an Indian app -  with great features I hear.

There are other apps also which we have used in the past like the House Party app, and for professional online meetings we have also been using Google Meet and Microsoft Teams."

May the best app win.