Do We Need Another Web Meeting App?

Does the World need yet another “webex-killer“?  The answer is probably no. Other then Webex, whose name became a synonym to web-conferencing, there is  GoToMeeting, Vyew, Teamslide, DimDim  1videoconference , Vyew, Live Meeting, Thinkature and probably quite a few more I forgot about.

So why on Earth has Zoho announced Zoho Meeting, entering such a crowded market?  One answer is that it’s a “software-making machine”, turning out new product regularly, so why not … but I think there’s more.

Zoho Meeting has a few unique features, and as usual, TechCrunch provides a good review, so I won’t even attempt to “compete” with them.

  I’d rather lament on what this really means.

After a year of pumping out standalone products ( I think the count is at 15 for now) this year Zoho will start focusing on tying them together.  This means integrating them, as well as some external products, create workflows and use some “glue” products in the process.  Mail, Wiki are such glue products (both are going through enhancements), and to some extent so is Meeting, as well as Chat.  They will enhance collaboration in context, while you work on your document, spreadsheet, presentation..etc.  The video below shows how Meeting is embedded in Zoho Show:

If you watched the video you may have noticed a spreadsheet in the background, while Raju was talking about embedding Meeting in Chat, which in turn will become part of all other applications. While the integration of Chat into Zoho Writer was somewhat of a non-event, I can give you a sneak preview of how it will work in Zoho Sheet, where the consequences are far more significant.

What this means is that Zoho Sheet, which recently added the capability to plot 21 different types of charts now supports real-time collaboration with instant updates on the individual cell level – this has been Editgrid’s competitive advantage so far.

This is just the beginning – keep an eye for Meeting, Chat and other “glue” products making our online life easier.

Last, but not least, several of the companies mentioned here will present at the Under the Radar Conference tomorrow, so if you have a free Friday, you may want to register here – today is the last chance to get $100 off.

(Disclosure: I am an Advisor to Zoho)