Talk with Friends, Family, and Coworkers for Business or Pleasure; Group Calls Support up to 200 People
Tokyo, Japan , LINE Corporation today announced the addition of a new group call feature to the latest version of the LINE app (iPhone and Android v.5.11, and Windows Desktop v.4.5), enabling users to participate in voice calls within their group or multiple person chats.*1
*1 The service will first be released to countries and regions outside of Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, and Indonesia and will be expanded to these countries following after. Additionally, the service will be expanded to Mac version of LINE.
LINE was released in June 2011 as a group communications service available across multiple devices and network carriers, enabling users around the world to easily keep in touch with friends, family, and coworkers. It launched its free voice call service in October of the same year, and video calls in September 2013, all in an effort to improve the lines of communication between people.
Today, with the release of LINE 5.11 for iPhone and Android, LINE now includes support for voice calls within groups or multiple person chats. The group call feature is also supported on LINE Windows desktop version (v.4.5.)
The feature offers free voice chats with up to 200 people. Calls can be initiated from within group chats or multiple person chats, and a notification message will be sent to all of the users participating in the chat. The number of people currently participating in the call can also be confirmed from within the chat. An icon is displayed above the user icon of the person currently speaking at the time, enabling users to easily communicate with each other.*2
*2: The latest version of LINE (5.11) is required to participate in group calls. Users with an older version of the app will receive a notification to update to the latest version.
The group call feature can be utilized for no charge as long as the user has the LINE app installed *3, allowing easy communication with a worldwide community of users. The service is perfect for catching up with friends and family, and also for use at work for important conference calls. The possibilities are endless with this tool designed to eliminate the traditional barriers to effective group communication.
*3: Networks supported: Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G. Calls made over 3G and 4G may incur additional data transmission charges.
In addition to the new group call feature, the latest version of LINE also has a redesigned More screen. The layout of the menu icons in the user interface have been modified for increased visibility and an even greater user experience. The app will be released first for Android on March 3.
LINE Corporation will continue to develop new features and services and enhance existing ones in order to make it easier for users to communicate around the world.