The COVID-19 pandemic brought about the rise of virtual meetings, gatherings, and events, with Zoom undoubtedly taking the spotlight. The video calling platform is now expanding beyond virtual meetings and is rolling out a virtual events platform this summer.
Zoom Makes Its Official Foray Into Virtual Events
A post on the Zoom Blog revealed Zoom Events, a platform dedicated to hosting virtual events, classes, and presentations.
Zoom already unveiled a similar platform, called OnZoom, which functions as a marketplace for online events. But once Zoom Events is rolled out, OnZoom will simply be “folded into” Zoom Events, and “serve as a directory of events that can be searched and explore.”
Zoom Events will be a full-featured platform that allows users to build their own “hubs” to host live events on. You’ll need to have a paid Zoom subscription in order to host events, though.
Zoom Events comes with an array of features for hosts, which will likely be attractive to large businesses and corporations. It will let you manage tickets and registration, as well as track statistics.
It’ll also enable you to host multiple different sessions in a single event. In other words, you’ll be able to host an overarching event that branches off into separate rooms or meetings. Zoom Events will even come with a virtual lobby, letting participants chat and network while they wait for the event to start.
Oded Gal, the chief product officer at Zoom, acknowledged the uncertain future of in-person events, and how Zoom is attempting to help workplaces and businesses adapt to these evolving circumstances:
We know that people are looking for flexibility in how they attend events in the future. The hybrid model is here to stay, and Zoom Events is a perfect solution for our customers who are looking to produce and host customer, company, and public events with an easy, yet powerful solution. This is another way we’re helping customers scale to meet consumer demands and the evolving virtual and hybrid landscape.
Zoom’s goal is to make it easy for users to find virtual events through its directory. When Zoom Events launches, it’ll be interesting to see what kinds of virtual events start popping up.
Will Virtual Events Remain in Demand?
Zoom clearly thinks that virtual events will always be a commonality—but will they really? Virtual events stemmed out of the COVID-19 pandemic, but that doesn’t mean they’ll forever remain a necessity.
Let’s face it: there’s really no replacement for in-person conferences, concerts, or classes. When in-person events resume once again, virtual event platforms may struggle to stay relevant.