| Skype aims to Steal Google's Thunder |
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| Written by Administrator | |
| Thursday, 25 August 2005 | |
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As a direct response to the launch of Google Talk, the
search giant's break into Internet telephony, Skype, a
Luxembourg based company, said Wednesday that it would
make its Web software more widely available and easier
to use. Skype are the biggest operator in the in field of internet based messaging and voice communications and a new competitor joining MSN, Vonage, and Yahoo will be most unwelcome. Skype are making two news tools available - SkypeWeb and SkypeNet which will enable Web developers to build Skype voice and instant messaging communications into their sites. "This is a basically a strategy to open up Skype more and more," Janus Friis, co-founder said "It is the latest phase of an initiative begun last year to provide third parties with access to Skype software. The more choices our users have, the more they're likely to use Skype." The most likely users of the new codes would be developers, bloggers and portals - they'll be able to embed the Skype provided (free of charge) codes into their sites to give one click contact for users. Internet based communications to replace regular telephone voice services are in dynamic growth. Vonage in planning a public offering to raise $600 million for expansion and Google is set to raise $4 billion although that isn't necessarily connected to this project. Google has become the dominant brand on the Internet and, whilst it's new in this field, it's past record of catching and passing rivals will be worrying for the existing players - Skype's leading position will be seen as under serious threat. Vonage, the leading US Internet based 'phone company, had nothing to say about Google - it provides discounted local and long-distance phone services to about 800,000 households. Skype must continue to innovate, said Mark Main, an analyst with Ovum, and they need to convert more registered users into active customers. "My view is that Skype's regular user base is not that high," Main said. "I would imagine that more people use Google than use Skype in a day." He felt Google would catch Skype within two years. Kat James for Skype said it did not reveal active weekly user numbers but the service often has about three million users online. Friis said Skype's concentration would keep it ahead - it has an advantage with technology over Google - Google Talk won't, at least for the time being, be able to interact with regular land and cellular 'phone lines as Skype can -t's very much PC (Windows XP) only. Reuben Dunn |
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