With coronavirus continuing to spread worldwide, many companies and businesses around the world are eliminating business travel and requiring employees to work from home. The concerns over coronavirus have led to an increase in remote work in recent weeks, with analysts expecting demand for online collaboration tools to increase.
To support the growth in remote working and to help organizations reduce the impact of coronavirus by avoiding physical meetings, several unified communications (UC) vendors are offering special deals and free access, including the following:
Microsoft Teams: Microsoft is offering a free six-month trial globally for a premium tier of Microsoft Teams. The tier was originally designed to enable hospitals, schools, and businesses in China to get up and running quickly on Microsoft Teams, and that tier is now available globally. In addition, Microsoft will also update the free version of Teams to lift restrictions on how many users can be part of a team and allow users to schedule video calls and conferences.
WebEx: Cisco has expanded the capabilities of its free WebEx offering in all countries where it is available to allow users to host meetings with up to 100 participants for an unlimited amount of time. Additionally, Cisco has also decided to provide free 90-day WebEx licenses to businesses through its partners and sales team.
Google: Google has announced that they will be rolling out free access to “advanced” features for Hangouts Meet to all G Suite and G Suite for Education customers globally until July 1st. These features mean individuals can now participate in virtual meetings with up to 250 people and live streams with up to 100,000 viewers. Additionally, they can save recordings of their meetings to Google Drive for free.
Do you need help identifying the most effective UC tool for your business?
StableLogic is an independent consultancy business – we don’t sell anything. Our consultants offer independent advice to identify the most effective unified communications solution that meets your company’s business requirements and strategic direction.
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