Update on Sessions AI Video Conferencing
And a possible alternative - Meet Hour
Some have asked me to do a follow up on what has happened to the beleaguered AI video conferencing startup, Sessions. Sessions was a bit hit with AppSumo customers, and most people were justifiably upset when they suddenly announced cashflow problems. A fundraiser was started but it was apparently not enough, and the Sessions team has been quiet, sparking concerns that the app has gone completely dark.
I conversed with Sessions CEO Radu Negulescu on LinkedIn today. He has been focusing his energies entirely on getting funding for Sessions and then rehiring a team to run it. The bad news: He has no team anymore. It’s just him. He hopes to have some positive news in about two weeks (so I’ll say give it two months). I did tell him it did not look good that he hasn’t posted an update recently, so hopefully he will listen to my advice and be more communicative. It could just be that he’s overwhelmed.
I also suggested to him that AppSumo should buy Session, and apparently there have been some talks but nothing was resolved on that front. I also suggested this to AppSumo in their online community today to try to egg things on a bit.
AppSumo provides the following information when asked about Sessions, noting that Sessions is seeking investors:
Though Sessions is currently operational and we wish this partner the best, we are not confident that you’ll receive continued access to the product.
As part of our We Got Your Back Guarantee (https://help.appsumo.com/article/698-purchase-protection-policy), we’d like to offer you 100% AppSumo credit refund for your Sessions purchase. If accepted, these credits will be available immediately and never expire.
Please note: if you choose this option, your Sessions license will be revoked and you will no longer have access to the tool, even if they turn things around.
Write back to confirm if you would like to receive a credit refund, & we’ll get it processed. We recommend downloading any data you have stored with Sessions directly.
If you bought a Sessions license, is it time to try to get a refund? Well, if you are in a rush you might, or you might just hold off for a few more weeks. (You might also check in with AppSumo to find out how long you have to get a refund, if you are even eligible.) Note that once you get the refund, you will lose your Sessions license.
I am going to hold out a little longer in hopes that Sessions gets some investment or is bought.
An Alternative? Meet Hour
Another alternative has just shown up on AppSumo, called Meet Hour (affiliate link). I will do a more thorough review in the future, perhaps. With a discounted price of $39 for Tier one for the rest of this week, Meet Hour is worth checking out.
My main use for Sessions was recurring classes where I did not want to have to create a new room link each time, because that is confusing to my students…and while I have some other video conferencing tools, they aren’t set up for static links for recurring meetings. I was hoping Meet Hour might be a replacement, but…maybe…
My first impressions: Meet Hour has a lot of nice little bells and whistles and has a clean, easy to use interface. They have been around since 2020. You can integrate with two online donation payment services to run donation-based webinars. That in and of itself is a unique and useful option I want to take advantage of. There are sound emojis, embedded polls, voice commands, and a whiteboard option.
Meet Hour is getting some bad reviews on AppSumo though. Some of the initial negative reviews are perhaps a little harsh. One bad review I saw was based on not finding the proper recording settings, thinking they were forced to use Dropbox. You can store recordings directly on Meet Hour, but you have to configure this first before launching the app and it’s a little tricky to find. Otherwise, the default is set to Dropbox. This is definitely a user interface issue, but once you have it set right, the recording works just fine (I tested it).
Meet Hour also has AI transcripts on their road map, but they aren’t working yet from what I can tell.
The biggest problem with Meet Hour is the very obtrusive logo that shows up on the upper left-hand corner of the app and the recordings, except for Tier 3. I am not inclined to want to spend ten times as much just to remove the logo but that logo is very problematic for my recorded classes. So I’d like to upgrade but money is tight.
If it were not for that damn logo, I’d be a lot more enthusiastic. Off AppSumo, the logo is also only removable for monthly paying customers if they subscribe at the Enterprise level, which means Meet Hour is likely inadvertently chasing off customers because of it. This is not a recipe for long-term viability. Their marketing department needs to get a clue.1
Overall, Sessions was far better than Meet Hour, so for now I am holding off on trying to obtain a Sessions refund from AppSumo.
Meet Hour, if you have the $389 to spend for a full Tier 3, is perhaps worth it. If they went under after a year, you will have spent $32/month on it, which is actually not too bad. In that sense, it’s a pretty good deal. But I really, really, really want Sessions to be rescued. Crossing fingers.
UPDATE 10/24/24: Meet Hour responded to my comments re: their logo on AppSumo, and here is what they said:
We understand your feedback on the logo. It’s there to represent the Meet Hour brand, but we do recognize that the size may not be ideal for all users. In our upcoming UI redesign, we’ll address these concerns. In the meantime, you can remove the Meet Hour logo and use your own branding by setting up a branded conference, which is available even in Tier 1. With Tier 3, you can completely remove all Meet Hour branding from the conference and recordings. There are also many customization options available in the UI, like changing the background color. For more details, you can check our articles and tutorials or reach out to our live chat support for assistance.
Thank you for the investigative reporting, it's good to hear something as opposed to the radio silence. I also managed to get a short reply from Radu to some emails I'd sent encouraging him to stay the course and keep seeking funding. Sessions is too good to let it disintegrate into the ether. I've never run a giant software company, but it feels like the monthly operational investment Radu suggested in his payroll/status of Sessions video could potentially be minimized. The platform could be re-stablized and growth could be slowed to allow rebuilding of trust in the marketplace. Like you, I'm a Sessions fan and plan to hold out a little longer to see if Radu can find an investor. I also think this would be a great tool for AppSumo to buy - it's basically built out. Even if they were an anonymous investor behind the scenes and didn't roll it into the AppSumo tool box . . . with Noah's marketing skills they could build it up and make it a powerhouse in the marketplace.
Stephanie, they may say that Sessions is still working but my copies do not work. We have had to return to Teams which makes me sad. Thanks for keeping us up to date. We all really liked Sessions and were broadening use until it collapsed.