WhatsApp is one way in which billions of people worldwide communicate because it is easy to use. It is either you type words on your phone, or you leave voice notes, or you make audio or even video calls. In fact, this platform has become a solid part of our lives.
It is proving more so, from the reports we are getting from the company, in regards to what happened during the holidays towards the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021. Because of the need to observe the protocol for keeping safe during the pandemic, many people celebrated Christmas and New Year apart from their friends and loved ones.
This observation made common sense as people participated in safe, socially distanced New Year’s Eve celebrations. To keep in touch, people made use of messaging systems and telephone networks. Facebook reported that WhatsApp saw a record number of calls over the holiday, and more than 1.4 billion video and voice calls took place globally from that platform alone.
In March, Facebook was one of the establishments that saw a rise in requests for their services when the pandemic was declared. At that time, people started working from home, avoided friends and family members. That led to an increase in messaging and calls. The company also detailed its effort in trying to cope with the increased traffic.
Facebook said the New Year’s Eve represented the single most calls ever made on WhatsApp in a single day. Messenger also saw a new record with the most group video calls made in the US.
It is also confirmed that both Facebook and Instagram were heavily used to live broadcast celebrations, with more than 55 million live sessions recorded on the final day of 2020.
With the pandemic still very much around, the use of these platforms will not decrease anytime soon. Though vaccines are arriving, COVID cases are climbing and it may take several months before many people could really get vaccinated.
