Skype has updated its Internet calling software for Windows machines to version 5.0, which gives users the ability to keep track of Facebook friends and communities from within the application. The new release also lets Skype users participate in a free trial of the service provider’s group video-conferencing service, which automatically switches the video focus to the person speaking on a call.
According to Skype, video calling accounted for about 40 percent of all Skype-to-Skype minutes in the first half of 2010. “Group video calling is a beta feature, which means it is still a work in progress — but please go ahead and try it,” the Skype team advised in a blog. “Click on a contact, add more people to the conversation, click the video call button, and select ‘get group video’ from the pop-up message.”
Encouraging Quick Adoption
With Skype 5.0, users can directly access their Facebook phone books to call Facebook friends with mobile phones and landlines. Facebook friends that are also Skype contacts can initiate free Skype-to-Skype calls. Moreover, Skype users will be able to send SMS messages to Facebook friends as well as comment on and ‘like’ wall posts, just as they can do in Facebook itself.
Even better, with Skype 5.0, users will be able to exchange IM messages with friends who are offline. The messages will be delivered the next time the friend signs in to Skype. However, the new group video calling and offline IM features are only available when all participants are using Skype 5.0, which is why Skype is urging users to quickly adopt the new release.
Facebook integration is just the latest Skype move to make the Internet-based calling service ubiquitous across the electronic gadget universe. Earlier this month, the free software provider launched Skype for Android version 2.1…