Google G Suite Shows Uptick In Business Users As Meet Use Explodes

Alphabet Inc.’s GOOGL GOOG Google G Suite had more than 6 million paying users in March, boosted by millions of work at home employees.

What Happened

Google G Suite recorded a sharp uptick in paying business users from 5 million in February to 6 million in March.

The G Suite comprises software for businesses, schools, and governments. On Tuesday, a Google executive, Javier Soltero, revealed the numbers to CNBC.

Alphabet disclosed a breakdown of revenue numbers across Cloud, G Suite and YouTube for the first time in February. Alphabet’s income mainstay remains advertising, which accounted for 83% of its revenue as of 2019. Expansion in G Suite user numbers could help the company broaden its revenue base. 

In an interview with CNBC, Soltero remarked, “The business of G Suite is growing at an incredibly healthy and, frankly for me, surprising rate.”

Soltero joined Google in October after working for Microsoft Corporation MSFT, where he had been the corporate vice president for the Office product group.

Why It Matters

According to CIODIVE, an information and enterprise technology publication, Microsoft had 87.5% of the email and authoring market (formerly office suite market) share as of 2018, but as of 2019, Google held 10.4% of the market.

Google Meet, which is a video-calling-service, has seen use increase sharply as millions of people work from home due to the COVID-19 epidemic.

Meet has seen user number increase 25 times since January.

Google has ramped up the features of Meet, which can support up to 250 participants in one call and handle live streaming to 10,000 viewers from a single domain.

These features are normally provided to users of G Suite enterprise but are being provided free of charge till September 30.

Meet’s competitors include Zoom Video Communications Inc. ZM, Cisco Systems Inc.’s CSCO Webex and Microsoft’s Teams, which have also seen an explosion in use since the pandemic necessitated lockdowns began.

Meet has also made inroads in virus stricken New York City’s public schools where the use of Zoom has been banned. The schools comprise 1.1 million students.

Price Action

On Tuesday, Alphabet class A shares traded 0.12% higher at $1,184 in the after-hours session. The shares had closed the regular session 0.053% lower at $1,182.56.

The company’s class C shares traded 0.29% higher at $1,190 in the after-hours session. The shares had closed the regular session 0.035% lower at $1,186.51.