In just three months, Zoom has grown from 10 million daily active users to 200 million. Part of its success lies in its free plan, where it offers video conferencing for up to 100 participants. Also, Zoom does not require attendees to create an account to join a web meeting. All this makes for a seamless experience, and users love the fact that Zoom works reliably well. To combat the rise of Zoom, Microsoft has brought its consumer app Skype to the fore. With a new feature called Meet Now on Skype, the company is offering lots of free gifts. Let’s go through the article piece by piece to better understand this new feature and how we can use Skype Meet Now for free video conferencing.
Install Skype Meet Now for Free Video Conferencing Calls
There are two ways to create a web meeting in Skype: via a web browser or a native application. If you want Host a meeting now without creating a Skype account then select the web browser method. It only takes a few clicks and attendees can join the meeting via a web browser. Yes, no one needs to create a Skype account, neither the host nor the participants web version. This is great, isn’t it?
However, if you want more features like background blur and real-time subtitles, choose the native app for your operating system. In this method, only the host will have to create an account and then a video conference call can be initiated. Also, attendees do not need to create an account to join calls.
However, the best part about Skype Meet Now – and it applies to both web and native apps – Group Call has no time limit, unlike Zoom’s 40-minute ceiling on free tier If you have more than 3 participants. This is one of the most important additions to Skype and will change the whole game for free users. So, considering all the points, it seems that Skype’s new offering is much better than Zoom’s and you can have all these hassle-free features at no cost. Now, after explaining all the points, let’s move on to the steps.
1. Open Skype Meet Now page in a web browser and click “Create Free Meeting”.
2. Next, copy the link and share it with your friends and teammates. After that, click “Start Search”. This much. Participants can now join the search there and there. Note that if you are using a smartphone, you will need to install the app to join a call. But if you’re on a desktop, you can join the web meeting without installing an app or creating an account.
3. If you are using a native app for Skype, make sure to update it to the latest version (Profile -> Get Skype App). You can also download the latest version from here. After that, sign in and new “Meet Now” button will appear in your control panel. Click on it to create a share link.
4. After doing that, copy the link and share it with your friends and teammates. Later on, Click “Start Search” and you will be alive in seconds. Enjoy!
Say Goodbye to Zoom and Embrace Skype Meet
This was about Skype’s new Meet Now feature. After Microsoft merged Skype for Business with Teams, we were skeptical about Skype’s future role. However, with this new feature addition, Skype is acting as a free solution for Microsoft Teams. As a result, Skype has become one of the best alternatives to Zoom for users using its free plan. Anyway, that’s it for us. If you found the article helpful, comment below and let us know. And if you’re still choosing to stick with Zoom, check out our in-depth article on the best Zoom tips and tricks for securing your Zoom meetings.
