LinkedIn Explores Hosting Paid Events on Its Platform

LinkedIn is deciding whether it will let users charge for virtual events hosted on the social media job site, Bloomberg reported.

A test will incorporate a small group of users, and the company doesn’t know yet if it will be rolled out on a larger level or how much it would charge hosts, according to the report.

The move would mean more growth for LinkedIn Events, which has seen increased participation during the pandemic, with 21 million people attending one event last year, the report stated. The company is also looking into other features to make hosting easier.

LinkedIn began offering in-person and online events in 2018. The pandemic forced it to modify those plans. It then proceeded to add native video livestreaming to accommodate virtual event hosts, according to the report. And the company has offered hosts opportunities to advertise events.

“We continue to learn from member and customer feedback and test new ways to improve the experience,” LinkedIn said in a statement, per the report. “As part of this, we are exploring options for payment in the Events product based on feedback from event organizers.”

LinkedIn’s plans were hidden in a beta version of a forthcoming iPhone update, which refers to managing payments, selling tickets and generating earnings as a host, as well as mechanisms to buy tickets, the report stated.

In related news, video conferencing for meetings and events has been forecasted to drop as workers begin returning to offices, although reports of companies extending work-from-home policies due to the delta variant of COVID-19 might keep such platforms afloat longer.

Read more: Video Conference Service Zoom Expects Slowdown as Companies Return to Offices

Zoom, which posted its first billion-dollar quarter, could see lower numbers going forward, according to analysts, with shares of the company having fallen. The company has also seen pressure because of the rise of vaccinations leading to more businesses and schools reopening.