>>> OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS, HUNKERED DOWN IN OUR
HOMES PROTECTING OURSELVES AND
OUR FAMILIES, WE’VE STAY
CONNECTED TO FAMILY AND
COWORKERS OVER SCREENS, BUSINESS
MEETINGS, CHECK-INS WITH GRANDMA
AND GRANDPA AND GET-TOGETHER
WITH FRIENDS ALL CONNECTED WITH
A DEVICE, A WI-FI CONNECTION AND
ALSO WITH ONE PLATFORM SUDDENLY
BOOMING IN POPULARITY.
NBC’S JO LING KENT HAS OUR
SUNDAY SPOTLIGHT.
SUNDAY SPOTLIGHT. >> Reporter: AS CITIES GO INTO
QUARANTINE AND SCHOOLS SHUT DOWN
ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO HELP FIGHT
THE SPREAD OF THE CORONAVIRUS,
OUR HOUSES AND APARTMENTS ARE
BECOMING A NEW KIND OF HOME
WAYS.
WAYS. VIDEO CONFERENCES HAS BECOME THE
GATHERING PLACE FOR THOSE OF US
CRAVING A SOCIAL CONNECTION.
A PLACE FOR BIRTHDAY PARTIES
WHEN WE CAN’T GET TOGETHER.
>> HAPPY BIRTHDAY.
>> HAPPY BIRTHDAY.
>> A WELCOME WINDOW INTO
WEDDINGS AND CELEBRATIONS WE
SUDDENLY CAN’T ATTEND.
EVEN A ROOM WHERE FUTURE DOCTORS
FIND OUT WHERE THEY MATCHED FOR
RESIDENCY.
RESIDENCY. AT THE CENTER OF THIS NEW
REALITY IS ZOOM, A NUN-YEAR-OLD
VIDEO CONFERENCING PLATFORM THAT
WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT FOR
BUSINESS MEETINGS.
BUSINESS MEETINGS. THIS MONTH IT’S BEEN DOWNLOADED
ALMOST 2.5 MILLION TIMES IN THE
U.S. ALONE.
U.S. ALONE. MORE THAN FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM,
SNAPCHAT AND TIKTOK THIS WEEK.
>> HEY, ERIC.
>> HI.
>> HI. >> Reporter: THE CEO FOUNDED
ZOOM AND NEVER IMAGINED HIS
VIDEO CONFERENCING STARTUP WOULD
BE THE SOURCE OF SO MUCH JOY IN
A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS.
IT’S BECOME A PART OF THE WAY WE
SOCIALIZE.
SOCIALIZE. WHAT DO YOU THINK ALL THIS SAYS
ABOUT WHERE WE ARE AS A SOCIETY
RIGHT NOW?
RIGHT NOW? >> I THINK AS A
COMMUNITY/SOCIETY IS TO BECOME
MUCH STRONGER AND AT ZOOM WE
KNOW IT’S MUCH BETTER THAN AUDIO
CONFERENCING BECAUSE WE CAN SEE
EACH OTHER.
EACH OTHER. >> Reporter: THAT HAS CATAPULTED
ZOOM INTO THE MAINSTREAM,
JOINING WELL-KNOWN COMPETITORS
LIKE FACETIME, SKYPE AND GOOGLE
HANGOUTS.
HANGOUTS. ITS FEATURES LIKE CHANGING THE
BACKGROUND ARE A HIT WITH
GENERATION Z.
GENERATION Z. >> IN THE FUTURE I TRULY BELIEVE
THE
THE VIDEO CONFERENCING LIKE ZOOM CAN
DELIVER A MUCH BETTER
EXPERIENCE.
EXPERIENCE. IF YOU ARE DRINKING COFFEE, WE
CAN DIGITIZE THE SMILE.
FROM MY SIDE I CAN EVEN ENJOY
THE SMELL AS WELL.
>> Reporter: IT’S NOT JUST ZOOM.
SKYPE SAYS CALLS BETWEEN ITS
USERS HAVE JUMPED 134%.
WITH SO MANY PEOPLE LOGGING ON
FROM HOME, ALL THIS VIDEO
CONFERENCING AND WORK IS ALSO
RAISING NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW
MUCH THE INTERNET CAN REALLY
HANDLE.
HANDLE. NETFLIX, YOUTUBE, AMAZON AND
APPLE RECENTLY DECIDED TO REDUCE
THE QUALITY OF THEIR STREAMING
SERVICES IN EUROPE TO HELP
HANDLE THE DEMAND.
A MOVE THAT HASN’T HAPPENED HERE
IN THE U.S. YET.
BUT THERE HAS BEEN A SURGE.
IN HARD-HIT SEATTLE, INTERNET
USAGE HAS SKYROCKETED 40% SINCE
THE CORONAVIRUS STARTED
SPREADING.
SPREADING. BUT FCC CHAIR DOESN’T THINK THE
SPIKE WILL BREAK THE INTERNET OR
SLOW IT DOWN.
IS THE INTERNET CAPABLE OF
HANDLING ALL OF THIS TRAFFIC AND
DEMAND?
DEMAND? >> THUS FAR IS APPEARS TO BE.
INSTEAD OF GOING FROM POINT TO
POINT AS THE OLD TELEPHONE
SYSTEM DID, THE INTERNET ROUTES
TRAFFIC ACCORDING TO THE PATH OF
LEAST RESISTANCE, SO TO SPEAK.
IF THERE’S CONGESTION IN ONE
PATH, THE INTERNET CAN SHIFT
THAT TRAFFIC TO ANOTHER PATH.
>> Reporter: THAT’S GOOD TO HEAR
AS WE DEPEND ON THE INTERNET TO
KEEP US TOGETHER WHILE WE’RE
APART.
APART. >> SO, JO, WE’RE ALL USING THESE
SERVICES RIGHT NOW.
WE’RE ALL USING THESE PLATFORMS.
I GUESS ONE QUESTION THAT’S
STILL OUT THERE IS SECURITY,
INTERNET SECURITY.
INTERNET SECURITY. IF YOU’RE CONDUCTING BUSINESS
MEETINGS.
MEETINGS. WHAT EXACTLY ARE CAUTIONS PEOPLE
SHOULD BE TAKING, WHAT CAN BE
DONE?
DONE? >> YEAH, WILLIE, YOU WANT TO
WATCH OUT FOR WEAK PASSWORDS,
UNSECURE WI-FI CONNECTIONS AND
PHISHING SCAMS.
PHISHING SCAMS. INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT HAS BEEN
BROADCAST INTO THESE VIDEO
CONFERENCES LIKE ON ZOOM.
THE BOTTOM LINE, IF YOUR WORK
PROVIDES A VIRTUAL PRIVATE
NETWORK, VPN, USE THAT.
WE DON’T KNOW WITH SO MANY
PEOPLE LOGGING IN FOR BIG
GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND BIG
BUSINESSES, IF THERE’S ENOUGH
BANDWIDTH AND IF THE SYSTEMS CAN
ALL HANDLE THIS.
THE BOTTOM LINE, WEON’T HAVE A
FULL PICTURE JUST YET.
>> ALL OF US IN THE NEWS
BUSINESS GETTING USED TO THESE