1. Service = Any setting, configuration, and discussion are well treated, and provided by Higheredlab. We are happy to have the servers always running smoothly, the load balancing is working fine. Never had an issue about the server performance.
2. Support = Higheredlab support team help me to set up the brand until satisfying our meets and requirements. Any maintenance schedule is always told to us in advance. We have good communication via WhatsApp group for fast response and some more detail conversation in emails
3. Updates = In periodical terms, we are given updates, not from BigBlueButton itself only, but also from a specific dashboard that is updated by Higheredlab.
4. Alternative apps = Actually we tried Zoom and Google Meet at least to compare with BigBlueButton, but since my product is Teaching and Learning App, we choose BigBlueButton as the best platform in many perspectives: customizability, more suitable for learning platform, core features are not different with other platform. For the cost, it’s a bit different concept with Zoom, because in Zoom or Google Meet, we buy licenses per user, but in BigBlueButton we host a server that can utilize as many users as we want in the capable servers, so this will remove the restriction of users. In terms of performance, it’s pretty good too, we can choose the best location if we select the Premium package, naturally it should be the closest location to the country.
5. We recommend Higheredlab to be the vendor of BigBlueButton service, along with the above categories thoughts I mentioned, in overall, it is the stability and long term cooperation, we have worked with Higheredlab more than 1 year and everything is working fine.

I am not sure if this will be of interest, but I too do maths tutoring - in the UK. I spent ages looking for a really good VC system a couple of years before covid as a means of covering sessions during bad weather and holidays.

I looked at all the offerings - I can't even recall the various options - but I looked in depth at about 7 providers and software settling on BigBlueButton about 18 months before Covid hit. I tell you this as background for the following ...

Nothing but nothing comes close to BBB for educational use, and every time I have to use Zoom I hate it - it is awful. How it got so popular is beyond me but there it is.

BigBlueButton is REALLY not a good idea for self install if you are not strongly technically inclined. I spent 20 years in the IT industry before going back to my maths roots - and it was never an easy thing to install. Worse still is that upgrading cane be a pain too. Its not the base install - it is getting a reliable working Turn server that snafu'd me very time. Then there is the time required to keep up-to-date with all the upgrades, improvements etc - and with the whole increased issues surrounding security issues these days that has become almost a full time distraction from tutoring.

About 2 years ago I started using HigherEdLab.com to provide the BigBlueButton service. I can''t recommend them enough. I literally had to make one change to my working BigBlueButton installation to link my existing frontend to their servers - it just worked. Since then I have returned my server to my physical control - I just prefer to have everything in my physical control - but I still use HigherEdLab.com as a support contractor.

They now manage any upgrade processes and as part of that agreement they give me access to their Turn server. For me it is the perfect compromise.

Now Covid has pretty much passed as an issue - not one of my tutees has even requested a return to 'in person' sessions, although I suspect I have lost a couple of new prospects because I am not doing so. On the plus side I have picked up tutees from referrals from existing and past tutees from family members or friends scatters about. One is ~ a 500 mile round trip away and the other a 2 hour flight (Greece as it happens). So on balance no real losses. I am not going back to pre covid working thanks to BigBlueButton.

I am sure once you get used to BigBlueButton there is no way you would ever go back to Zoom.

As a final comment - I want to thank the BigBlueButton devs - you guys are just awesome doing this project. I tell everyone who has even the slightest interest in VC systems they should look at this ... hopefully they listen.