Zoom temporarily lifts 40-minute video call limit during the holidays

Zoom announced that they will be lifting the video call limit on their free version over Christmas and New Year to allow families to have their much-needed extended virtual chats. The US-owned video conferencing app has been a hugely popular means of virtual communication as the current pandemic has seen an increase of users who are working and studying from home.

The 40-minute free video call limit had also been lifted from 3pm on December 17, and will last until December 19 to coincide with the final day of Hanukkah.

The next window of extended free video calls will be from December 23 at 3pm until 11am on Boxing Day so users around the globe can celebrate a virtual Christmas together with their families. The final period for their extended free video chat will begin from 3pm on December 30 and last until 11am on January 2, 2021.

The company said Zoom users won't have to shell out any extra cash for the video calls during these time frames and can chat for long hours with their loved ones. They also need not do anything on their account to remove the limit as this will automatically be lifted within their system during these days.

The app usually requires users to sign up for a paid subscription to use its extended services which can cost from £9.99 a month.

"We're proud to have been a part of your lives in 2020 and wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season!," the firm said.

In line with its announcement, Zoom also urged users to follow good security practices on the platform, emphasising on using meeting passcodes to keep their calls secure, as well as not sharing meeting IDs on social media or other public forums.

Zoom revealed that in April, the app had around 300 million daily meeting participants globally, counting both free and paid users.

Back in December 2019, Zoom had already reached daily meeting participants of 10 million and has also been 2020's most downloaded free app in the UK. Its numbers saw a rise from 659,000 users in January to 13 million in April, according to the Daily Mail.