Skype to enable free video calls on Apple devices

INTERNET

December 30, 2010|By Casey Newton, Chronicle Staff Writer

Kathy DeLine (center) of Hudson, Mich., keeps in touch with husband John via Skype while he serves in Afghanistan. She is holding newborn Megan; children Allyson, 6, and Joshua, 5, are at her side.
Credit: Lad Strayer / (Adrian, Mich.) Daily Telegram

Far-flung loved ones who want to share their holiday revels with friends and family will have a new option this week thanks to Skype.

The Internet calling company, which opened a 90,000-square-foot office in Palo Alto this year, said Wednesday that it will enable free video calling on its popular app for iPhone and iPod Touch. Video calling, which officials said is the app's most-requested feature by far, became available via a free update in the iTunes Store.

"New Year's Eve is one of the few true global events," said Neil Stevens, general manager of consumer business for Skype. "When people are far apart, it's really nice to let them share a moment."

After updating the iPhone app, which has been downloaded more than 30 million times, users will be able to make video calls to other Skype users on iPhones, iPod Touches, desktop versions of Skype for Mac and PC, and even the iPad. (IPad users will be able to see the person calling them, although the device itself does not have a camera to enable two-way video calls.)

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The move allows Skype, which is based in Luxembourg, to compete directly with other companies in the mobile video-calling arena, including Qik in Redwood City and Tango in Palo Alto. The market for video calls grew rapidly in 2010 when Apple added a front-facing camera to the iPhone and let users make free video calls over Wi-Fi using its FaceTime software.

Video calls accounted for about 40 percent of all Skype-to-Skype traffic in the first half of 2010, and that was before the latest iPhone was released.

The company's importance to its 560 million worldwide users was readily apparent last week when millions were unable to reach the service. A cluster of servers became overloaded, leading to a cascade of failures within the service that left it unusable for 24 hours.

Stevens said the failure was the result of a bug that has since been fixed. The flood of new video calls that Skype anticipates will not overwhelm the company's servers, he said.

"We have a high degree of confidence that we've addressed the issue," he said.