Changes to the Zoom Service Provided at the University of Tokyo

The University of Tokyo provides Zoom to members who have a UTokyo Account as a web conferencing system that can be used widely for university activities. We began providing Zoom in 2020, but in light of the significant changes to Zoom’s features and licensing structure over the past several years, we have decided to review how the service is provided to our members. This page describes the specific changes.

In particular, “Change 3” is a very important change that includes the deletion of cloud recording data. Before the date on which Change 3 takes effect (October 1, 2026), please be sure to organize the cloud recordings you need and back up any videos you will continue to need. Deleted cloud recordings cannot be restored.

Change 1: Expanded features for “faculty or staff members employed by the university”

From August 1, 2026, the following features will be added for “faculty or staff members employed by the university”¹, in addition to the features currently available. No application for an additional license or individual payment is required.

• You can create meetings with up to 500 participants (previously 300).
• You can create webinars with up to 500 participants.
• You can enable the “Translated Captions” feature² in the meetings and webinars you create.

To check whether you qualify as a “faculty or staff member employed by the university,” view your UTokyo Account user information.

If you are a student or a "faculty/staff member not employed by the University" and wish to use the features above

Students and those who qualify as "faculty/staff members not employed by the University" can continue to use the same features as before. You can create meetings with up to 300 participants. You cannot create webinars. You cannot enable the "Translated Captions" feature for meetings and webinars you create. However, you can serve as a co-host or alternative host in meetings and webinars created by "faculty or staff member employed by the university." If you wish to use the additional features, please consult a "faculty or staff member employed by the university" associated with you. We ask that "faculty or staff members employed by the university" give due consideration when they receive such requests.

Change 2: Reduction of additional license offerings

We have assigned additional licenses to faculty and staff requiring large meetings (maximum capacity of 500 or 1,000 participants) or webinars (maximum capacity of 1,000 or 3,000 participants), we have assigned additional licenses upon application. However, as of July 31, 2026, we will discontinue the provision of the following additional licenses.

• Large meetings with up to 500 participants
• Webinars with up to 1,000 or 3,000 participants

Please note that applications for these additional licenses will be accepted until noon on Friday, July 24, 2026. For meetings and webinars scheduled to take place by Friday, July 31, 2026, we ask for your cooperation in applying by the strict deadline.

If you wish to hold a webinar with more than 500 participants

If you wish to hold a webinar with more than 500 participants, additional licenses cannot be provided, so please consider an alternative method. For example, you can stream the webinar simultaneously on YouTube Live (detailed instructions will be provided separately). At present, Webex Webinars is also an option.

If you need to hold a large meeting with up to 1,000 participants

For large meetings with up to 1,000 participants, we will continue to accept applications for additional licenses. However, because the number we can provide is limited, this is restricted to cases where there is an unavoidable need, such as classes. We will also ask for grounds indicating that a capacity of 500 is expected to be insufficient, such as the number of students who took similar classes in the past.

Change 3: Cloud recordings will be retained for up to three years

The volume of cloud recording data stored at the University of Tokyo has been increasing year after year, and the associated cost burden can no longer be ignored. Recorded data has been stored indefinitely until now, and the volume used is expected to keep growing. We also presume that a large amount of recorded data continues to be stored even though it is no longer needed³. Against this background, we have determined that reducing the volume used is necessary for sustainable operation, and we have decided to delete cloud recordings.

From October 1, 2026, the retention period for cloud recordings will be uniformly set to up to three years, and cloud recordings that are three years old will be deleted on the day they reach three years.

• On October 1, 2026, we will delete all cloud recordings created up to September 2023. Those affected will also be notified separately by email (in preparation).
• After that, cloud recordings that reach three years from their creation date will be automatically deleted every day.

Deleted cloud recordings cannot be restored. Before they are deleted, please be sure to organize the cloud recordings you need such as by obtaining backups. Examples of specific methods (such as moving recordings to a YouTube channel) will be provided separately.

Contact

For questions and consultations, please contact the utelecon Support Desk.

Footnotes

1. This applies to those who have a direct employment relationship with the University of Tokyo, regardless of whether they are full-time or part-time, or employed for an indefinite or fixed term. ↩

2. When the “Translated Captions” feature is enabled, participants in a meeting or webinar can display machine-translated captions. No special license is required for individual participants. ↩

3. The volume of stored cloud recording data is approaching 100 TB for the university as a whole, and its usage trends are largely the same as those found in the analysis conducted in December 2023. This still suggests that a large amount of data continues to be stored even though it is no longer needed. ↩