It didn’t, and while FaceTime still has a lot to offer, it has been about as much use as a chocolate teapot during the pandemic when it comes to supporting conversations between people on different platforms. This is a significant step, though it falls far, far short of what Steve Jobs promised in 2010 when he said FaceTime would become an “open industry standard.”

“FaceTime calls also extend beyond Apple devices with the ability to create a link from iPhone, iPad, or Mac, and share it through Messages, Calendar, Mail, or third-party apps,” the company said when announcing the improvement. What does this mean and what do you do? FaceTime's reach expandsĪpple has at last taken a step toward breaking FaceTime out of its walled garden by enabling Windows and Android users to join a FaceTime meeting using a web browser. Most business users will continue to use Zoom, Teams, and WebEx for video meetings, but once iOS 15 and macOS Monterey appear, it seems probable we'll see some meetings that use FaceTime.