Video teleconferencing platform Zoom (NASDAQ: ZM) has recently announced that it plans to test advertisements for free "Basic" users.
Although the ads will only appear in "certain countries," it is nevertheless a necessary strategy that Zoom hopes will work to the benefit of the company as a whole.
This new plan will introduce users to the platform in new ways, as it has been expanding since the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Since millions of users are now accessing the free version of the Zoom platform, the company would like to take advantage of the vast opportunity that it has to offer continued services to individuals. This method of advertisement will serve as part of a pilot program that Zoom hopes will sustain itself in terms of investment opportunities.
The advertising will be initially shown to users on their browser pages as soon as they close out of their online meetings. One aspect of this advertising pilot program that the company of Zoom has clarified to the public is that it does not wish to utilize advertising for any marketing, promotions, or third-party advertising intent. Advertising will only be displayed if free Basic tier users join meetings with other free Basic tier users. Advertisements will not be shown during the meetings themselves, but will still serve as a big change for Zoom, in terms of the types of inhibitions that it places on users - which, in the past, have only been limited to factors such as 40-minute time restrictions on calls.
"This change ensures that our free Basic users are able to continue connecting with friends, family, and colleagues with the same robust platform we have always offered," Janine Pelosi, Zoom's chief marketing officer, wrote in a statement regarding this matter.
Although Zoom is undergoing some major changes in terms of advertising and restrictions that it places on it's free Basic tier platform, users will still be able to enjoy this method of communicating and connecting with others. It will simply be a way for Zoom to offer further services to individuals, even if it does place seem to impose further limitations on them.