Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, recently announced the development of a new feature named ‘Call Links’ in a Facebook post. This feature allows users to share a link, enabling others to join an audio or video call with a simple tap on the link. Notably, group video calls on WhatsApp will now accommodate up to 32 users, a significant increase from the previous limit of eight users.
While similar features like ‘Call Links’ have long been available on platforms such as FaceTime, Zoom, and Google Meet, the popularity of WhatsApp in India suggests that this feature will offer added convenience for call participation on the platform. The ‘Call Links’ feature is expected to be gradually rolled out during the upcoming week.
Once implemented, users can find the option to create call links in the calls tab. This allows users to share links for both audio and video calls, which can be distributed across various platforms, enabling others to join calls with a single tap.
In the same post, Zuckerberg mentioned ongoing testing of another feature that would enable users to initiate end-to-end encrypted calls for groups of up to 32 people. However, no specific timeline for the release of this feature was provided.
It’s worth noting that WhatsApp’s FAQ page already indicates support for video calls with up to 32 users, aligning with Apple’s FaceTime capabilities. In the case of groups exceeding 32 users, the call creator will need to selectively choose participants.
Earlier in the month, WhatsApp had been testing several additional features, including the ability to search for messages by date, hide online status, and edit sent messages. Users can anticipate the rollout of these features in the near future.
