Mountain View, California — In an attempt to popularize it newly launched social media service called Google+, the global search engine titan is rolling out a new feature that enables free phone calls to its users in the U.S. and Canada from inside Hangouts.
In the announcement on Google+, Google staffer Jarkko Oikarinen — who is also the inventor of Internet Relay Chat, said, “We are constantly listening to feedback so that we can make Hangouts even better for Google+ users, and we are excited by the really cool ways people are using the product. Today we are making it possible to make phone calls from inside a hangout, so you can dial people into the room from wherever they are at. (Helpful for party lines and conference calls alike.)”
Users of Google+ Hangouts with extras can now place phone calls from within the application. (Credit: Google)
Here is a novel feature in particular for Google+ users in Canada and U.S.: You can now make phone calls from a Hangout on Google’s social network. It is a great feature for when you want to, say, rope a non-Google+ user into a Google+-powered meeting or conference call.
In fact, this is the first-ever Internet chat function that has been adopted by Google+ page on Thursday to announce that outside phone calls can be placed from inside a Hangout. A Hangout is a virtual room that allows you to video chat with others.
At present, the feature is only available in the U.S. and Canada, what is more, the service is free! The feature can be found in Google+ Hangouts with Extras.
Google unleashed Hangouts with Extras back in September as part of a handful of Google+ feature announcements, which also included search. Other extras include: SketchPad and Google Docs support and Hangout naming.
To add some phone participant to a hangout, click “invite” at the top of the Hangouts with Extras window, then click the “phone” tab on the left of the window, and enter the phone number of the person you want to call. Then click “call now”.
Although it appears like a small feature; however, business use of hangouts for conference calls and meetings is an important use case for Google+ as a whole. And all those paying Google Apps customers will surely appreciate the added flexibility of phone-friendly hangouts as Google+ moves from an experimental social product to a mature and pervasive backbone for all Google’s web apps.
In addition, you does not need a Google account or even a computer to join the conversation. A Hangout group can now call in anyone with a phone to listen in. This could not only attract more people to Google+ and grow its user base, but also has potential to transform the way both party lines and conference calls are conducted–from holding meetings to making plans with friends and family.
The feature currently supports free calls to the U.S. and Canada, and is now available on the Hangouts with Extras page. Also, that means anyone can join a Google+ video chat even if they are not online. Just call them and they can join the Hangout session.