Tech

Zoom shares drop 6% as Facebook rolls out free video calls for up to 50 people

Key Points
  • Zoom closed down 6% after Facebook announced additions to its video streaming service. 
  • Zoom shares had started out strong Friday morning after the Nasdaq announced the video conferencing company is joining the Nasdaq 100 next week. 
  • Zoom has been on a tear since stay-at-home mandates were implemented to slow the Covid-19 pandemic.

In this article

Zoom falls after Facebook announces new group chat feature
VIDEO0:5200:52
Zoom falls after Facebook announces new group chat feature

Zoom shares closed 6% lower Friday after Facebook announced it was rolling out new video chatting features. 

Some investors particularly view Facebook's new Messenger Room, which allows users to host video calls of up to 50 people, as a threat to Zoom. 

Zoom has been on a tear since stay-at-home mandates were implemented to slow the Covid-19 pandemic. Zoom CEO Eric Yuan announced earlier this week that the company's number of daily users grew 50% in the past month to 300 million from 200 million. The company reported about 10 million daily users in December. 

"Clearly the Zoom platform is providing an incredibly valuable service to our global users during this challenging time," Yuan said. 

Zoom's stock started off strong Friday morning after the Nasdaq announced the video conferencing company is joining the Nasdaq 100 next week and two days after it reported a surge in active users. Shares were up about 3% when Facebook made its announcement.

When it joins the Nasdaq 100 on April 30, Zoom will also enter the Invesco QQQ Trust, the second-most highly traded ETF in the U.S. Zoom will replace Willis Towers Watson in the index, Nasdaq said. 

Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube.

Zoom upgrades security features as backlash mounts
VIDEO2:1202:12
Zoom upgrades security features as backlash mounts