Gumzo Video Conferencing is Africa’s first web-based video conferencing platform, launched in May 2020 and designed specifically for the African user by Usiku Games, a Kenyan mobile gaming company.
The name Gumzo is a Swahili word interpreted in English as “chatting” and the platform was created after a realization of the increased adoption of video conferencing during the lockdown period caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic.
According to Jay Shapiro, CEO Usiku Games, “Africa is a mobile phone first continent and so you have to have a platform that works on mobile devices [that are] older, less memory and that’s why we built a download app that is web-based and is accessible on all smartphones or PC or tablets to try and reach as many people as we can.”
Mr. Shapiro also disclosed that 50% of the company proceeds are donated to non-profits like Pwani Youth Network, Team Pankaj, and the Mombasa Red Cross that are actively involved in the Kenyan corona response initiatives.
Users do not require to download any application as the platform is accessible on any internet browser and mobile device or computer connected to the internet with similar features of other video conferencing apps like screen sharing.
New user subscription is free with a cost of US$1 per week to host meetings on the paid accounts, which costs significantly less than what is offered on the popular Zoom platform.