Whatsapp's video calls are undergoing a massive change

Instant messaging app, WhatsApp has launched a new feature aimed at improving how its video chat function operates. The feature, known as ‘Communities’ will make it easier for users to organize multiple group chats into one place to facilitate engagement. All two billion WhatsApp users will have access to the new tool in the next few months.

Communities

Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp announced the feature earlier in the year and had since been testing the beta version. It works by allowing communities like neighbourhoods, parents at school, and workplaces to connect under one umbrella to organize conversations on the app.

Administrators can then send messages to everyone in that community. It will appear as a tab at the bottom of the app and users can start a new community, or join existing ones. In a blog post announcing the launch, WhatsApp explained how to get started:

Tap on the new communities tab at the top of your chats on Android and at the bottom on iOS. From there you can start a new Community from scratch or add existing groups. Once you’re in a community, you can easily switch between available groups to get the information you need, when you need it, and admins can send important updates to everyone in the Community

Other new features

The rollout of Communities is part of a series of changes that include making it possible for users to create and participate in polls with their chats. Additionally, group video calling will now support up to 32 participants.

Also, the maximum number of members any group can have has been increased from 512 to 1,024. Rival, Telegram allows groups of up to 200,000 users. According to WhatsApp:

With Communities, we’re aiming to raise the bar for how organisations communicate with a level of privacy and security not found anywhere else. The alternatives available today require trusting apps or software companies with a copy of their messages – and we think they deserve the higher level of security provided by end-to-end encryption.

Sources used:

The Independent: WhatsApp rolls out new ‘Communities’ feature, alongside polls and massive video calls

Geeky Gadgets: WhatsApp Communities feature launched

WhatsApp: Communities Now Available