UMass Amherst faculty, staff, and students can use the regular university Zoom license for meetings with up to 300 participants.

For larger events, Zoom Webinars can support up to 500 attendees in a "listen only" mode (a limited number of 1000 seat capacity licenses are also available). During webinars, only the host and panelists can use their microphones and cameras or share their screens. Polling and Q&A features are available in addition to registration and post-webinar reporting.

In addition to Zoom Webinars, a limited number of Zoom Large Meeting licenses are also available. A Zoom Large Meeting license increases the capacity of your meeting to 1000 participants while keeping the same features and settings as a standard meeting.

Meeting vs. Webinar Features

Webinars are different from regular Zoom meetings. In Zoom Webinars:

• Hosts can assign video panelists
• Hosts must specifically turn on audio/video for attendees
• Attendees cannot share their screens unless they are promoted to 'panelist'
• Breakout rooms are not available
• Question & Answer (Q&A) tool is available

For more information, see the Zoom Help Center's Meeting and Webinar Comparison.
 

Request a Webinar or Large Meeting License 

• Zoom webinar licenses are available to UMass Amherst faculty, staff, departments, and organizations at no cost by request. 
• Use the IT Service Portal to place your webinar license request at least 14 days before your scheduled event. The license will be applied approximately 14 days prior to the event (weekends and holidays will be the next business day).
• After the conclusion of the event, you will retain the webinar functionality for 48 hours to download any cloud recordings and obtain webinar reports.
• Per event webinar licenses are available at no additional cost, but are subject to availability.

Request a Zoom Webinar or Large Meeting License
 

Purchase a Webinar Subscription

Departments that need a dedicated webinar license can request purchasing information from UMass Amherst IT. Dedicated webinar licenses are available in a number of audience capacities beyond the 500 seat capacity. These licenses are sold as a 12-month subscription. Please email it@umass.edu for purchasing and pricing information. 

Purchase a Zoom Webinar Subscription