Zoom vs. Skype: The Video Conferencing Battle

Video conferencing has become a $11 billion dollar market in 2018 according to Global Insights and a mainstay of businesses large and small.  When it comes to professional communication, nothing beats the experience of video conferencing. But which platform and equipment should you choose? We’ll take a look at two of the top solutions in the marketplace: Zoom and Skype.

The Stats

Good communication is all about making things easier, and who wants to spend hours traveling to a meeting? According to a recent study, 89% of remote teams prefer video conferencing to connect with colleagues or supervisors. The same study goes on to clarify that about 75% of US corporate  employees use video collaboration to work remotely, with a majority reporting higher productivity as well as better work-life balance.

Overview

Zoom

Zoom is no ordinary video communication platform. It’s a cloud-based innovative technology that houses a full spectrum of modern conferencing tools. Zoom comes with breakout sessions, which you can leverage to split your viewers (for instance clients or employees) into smaller groups for webinar trainings, specific topics or online class discussions.

With Zoom, the meeting organizer has the power to fully control the meeting. You can mute all microphones, control attendees’ presentation access and so on. Moreover, this tool allows attendees to contribute to the conversation by virtually raising their hands. With Zoom’s chat utility, viewers can directly communicate with the instructor and other attendees, ensuring a collaborative classroom setting.

SKYPE

Imagine communication with your employees via instant messaging, screen sharing, file sharing, as well as informal based video or audio calls right from your PC/phone. Effective and direct — that’s what Skype is all about. With a wide user base, chances are that your employees are already familiar with it. Skype is designed using innovative technology for easy communication.

Like Zoom, Skype’s intuitive chat interface allows users to send quick messages to other users. Users can effortlessly integrate video with audio right from their chat windows. In a nutshell, Skype is a great platform for instant messaging, document sharing, screen sharing and informal-based video or audio calls.

Zoom and Skype are two powerful communication channels and choosing between the two can be tricky since both are cost-effective and efficient. Let’s compare the features, pricing, and product performance of the two to secure the best solution for your video conferencing needs.

General Information

By definition, Zoom is a video conferencing based software that was designed to promote collaboration via an innovative integrated system featuring web conference, group messaging, as well as online meeting.
On the other hand, Skype is a software application, which comes with powerful text, voice and video tools, providing users with a simple way to share experiences with others, irrespective of location.

OS Supported

Zoom supports Android, iPhone, Mac, iPad and web while Skype is web-based and supports all windows, Android phones, iPhone, Mac and iPad.

Available Features

Zoom is packed with an array of features including video webinar, integrated scheduling and group collaboration. Other powerful features of this platform include cloud and local recording, premium audio, as well as Zoom Meetings.

Zoom Rooms

Skype also comes with powerful communication features including Skype-to-Skype calls, group calls, call forwards, one-to-one video calls and video messaging. You can send texts, video messages and share screens, files and contacts.

Popular Clients

Both Zoom and Skype offer premium video conferencing solutions — a reason they have loyal clients across the globe. Zoom boasts loyal clients like the University of Washington, UBER and Zendesk, while Skype is the choice of VerbalizeIt, AIRDEX and Diverse Learners.

Pricing

Zoom

Zoom offers four enterprise pricing packages: Zoom Basic Plan, Zoom Pro Plan, Zoom Business Plan and Zoom Enterprise Plan.

Zoom Basic Plan: The basic plan — which is specifically designed for personal meetings — is free, can host a maximum of 100 participants and offers unlimited one on one meetings.  It’s a powerful offering at no cost.  With this plan, you can:

• Conduct group meets for up to 40 minutes
• Have an unlimited number of meetings
• Get online support
• Enjoy video and web conferencing features
• Be sure of secure group collaboration

Zoom Pro Plan: The Zoom Pro Plan is for small teams and it costs $14.99 a month per user. It comes with all the features of the Basic Plan and can support 100 participants. With the Zoom Pro Plan, you’ll get unlimited meeting duration, assigned scheduler, assigned custom personal meeting ID and meeting reporting. The plan also features user management capabilities, admin controls, REST API and Skype for business interoperability. With one GB of M4A and MP4 cloud recording, users can store and share huge amounts of data.

Optional Add-on Plans: The optional add-on plans include five sub-plans: Extra cloud recording storage that goes for $40 per month, 323/SIP Room Connector which starts at $49 a month, Join by Zoom Rooms which is offered at $49 per month, Join by toll-free dialing/Call Me which is available for about $100 a month and Add Video Webinars at $40 a month.

Zoom Business Plan: Zoom Business Plan, which goes for $19.99 a month per person, is exclusive for smaller companies. Equipped with all the features of the Pro plan, mid-sized businesses can leverage it to take their communication to another level. The plan allows you to host up to 10 hosts, has an admin dashboard, phone support and features a vanity URL. If you prefer on-premise deployment, the Business Plan is a great option. Other features of this plan include:

• Managed domains and single sign-on
• Company branding and custom emails
• LTI integration

Zoom Enterprise Plan: Zoom Enterprise goes for $19.99 a month per person/host. The plan, which contains all the features of the Business Plan, requires you to have a minimum of 100 hosts. With this plan, you can have up to 200 participants on board. With unlimited cloud storage, a zealous customer success manager and executive business reviews, the Enterprise plan is perfect for large companies with varied conferencing needs.

Skype

Skype is free. However, if you are looking to improve productivity and boost revenue, Skype has an enterprise pricing package for $2 per month per user.

Business plan: With Skype’s Business plan, users can enjoy features like online meetings (250 participants) and secure communication lines using strong authentication as well as encryption.

Online Plan 2: This plan costs $5.50 per user per month and is designed for business online meetings. With Online Plan 2 you can:

• Join on any device
• Enjoy group HD video as well as audio calling (250 people)
• Receive enterprise-level based technical mobile support
• Online versions of Office
• 50 GB mailbox
• 1 TB file storage

Office 365 Business Premium: The plan goes for $12.50 per month per user. Notable features of the Office 365 Business

Essential plan include:

• Pre-installed Office apps on PC/Mac
• Tablet and phone office apps

In addition, Skype’s parent company Microsoft has been advocating for Microsoft Teams over Skype as a meeting and video conference platform.  As a result, support for Skype may diminish over time in favor of Teams.

Supported Integrations

Zoom: Zoom supports an array of integrations, including Microsoft One Drive, Box, Slack, Salesforce, Microsoft Outlook, Google Chrome, LTI (Cancas[MD1] , Backboard, Desire2Learn and Moodle), Okta, Facebook Centrify, Kubi, Intel Unite, Zapier, Marketo, and RSA. Other integrations supported by Zoom include:

• Google Drive, Pardot and DropBox
• Firefox and Acuity Scheduling
• Microsoft Active Directory and Eloqua
• Hipchat, Hubspot and Infusionsoft

Skype: Skype offers integration with systems such as MS (Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Lync), WordPress, Lucid Meetings, Mendix, SalesExec, Bitium, OnePage CRM, Cayzu Helpdesk, Grasshopper, Interactive Intelligence CaaS, BigContacts, 1CRM, Slack, and GroupWise.

Other systems can also be integrated with Skype, such as:

• Agile CRM
• Wimi and 8×8 Virtual Contact Center
• Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online
• Moxie Concierge and Yugma

The Bottom-Line

Zoom and Skype both offer premium solutions and are designed to take your communication to the next level.  Enhancements to the Zoom platform on free and paid tiers give it a slight edge.  When shopping around for the right software for your remote communication and video conferencing needs, consider contacting MacroNet to design the perfect solution for you regardless of the software you choose.