Group FaceTime video calls could arrive with iOS 11

One of the marquee features of iOS 11 could be group FaceTime calls.

According to Israeli website The Verifier, Apple is reportedly working on an update to FaceTime, which will allow up to five people to simultaneously video chat with each other.

Users will also be able to start group FaceTime calls directly through group chats in iMessage, the report says.

Group video chats would be a welcome addition to FaceTime, thought iOS 11 will certainly not arrive until the fall when the iPhone 8 (or "iPhone X") is expected to make its debut.

Since its release in 2010, FaceTime has helped make two-way video calls as ubiquitous as voice calls. Skype may have popularized video calling on desktop in the early 2000s, but it's FaceTime and its push into pop culture that has helped mainstream the technology. (Like that time Selena Gomez stopped a concert to FaceTime a fan or that time Jennifer Lawrence surprised students on FaceTime to encourage them to vote.)

But while FaceTime is arguably the smoothest and easiest video chat platform, competing apps and services have surpassed it. Skype added group video chats last year, and the teen-friendly Houseparty also supports video chats with up to five people at once.

An update to FaceTime that adds group video calls will be a big deal for most people, but for some it'll just be catchup.