Comments on: Is Skype showing signs of maturity? http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/ Trusted Insights and Conversations on the Next Wave of Technology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 03:26:30 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 By: GigaOM » Attention Wal-Mart customers, Skype now in aisle voice http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97423 GigaOM » Attention Wal-Mart customers, Skype now in aisle voice Mon, 14 May 2007 09:00:49 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97423 <p>[...] mainstream retail push is coming at a time when the service is showing signs of maturity. In first quarter of 2007, there “was the marginal 1% increase in the Skype-to-Skype usage to [...]</p> [...] mainstream retail push is coming at a time when the service is showing signs of maturity. In first quarter of 2007, there “was the marginal 1% increase in the Skype-to-Skype usage to [...]

]]> By: Tricky2d http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97419 Tricky2d Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:28:13 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97419 <p>Skype has one of the best voice/video to voice/video out there. The problem is with software like Asterisk getting easier to setup and configure you will start seeing typicaly consumers setting up their own VOIP systems. Then using cheap SIP proxies to call outbound makes Skype less needed. If Skype could keep the free outbound calling and only charging for inbound. I think if they tied in with Asterisk/Voip software they could probably could gain more profits.</p> <p>T2d</p> Skype has one of the best voice/video to voice/video out there. The problem is with software like Asterisk getting easier to setup and configure you will start seeing typicaly consumers setting up their own VOIP systems. Then using cheap SIP proxies to call outbound makes Skype less needed. If Skype could keep the free outbound calling and only charging for inbound. I think if they tied in with Asterisk/Voip software they could probably could gain more profits.

T2d

]]> By: Jan Geirnaert, alias tropicaljantie global Skype Ranter http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97421 Jan Geirnaert, alias tropicaljantie global Skype Ranter Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:14:46 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97421 <p>I got a bit more spicy personal comments. See "Is Skype dying or already dead ? Despite all the marketing hype and “oh see the great financial results” Will Skype do and say anything to get the 2.4 billion usd bonus followed by “faster than confetti dissipation” ?" on www.skype-watch.com (now also www.voip-watch.com) or www.skype-gadgets.om. direct url : http://webtown.typepad.com/webtown/2007/04/is_skype_dying_.html</p> I got a bit more spicy personal comments. See “Is Skype dying or already dead ? Despite all the marketing hype and “oh see the great financial results” Will Skype do and say anything to get the 2.4 billion usd bonus followed by “faster than confetti dissipation” ?” on http://www.skype-watch.com (now also http://www.voip-watch.com) or http://www.skype-gadgets.om. direct url : http://webtown.typepad.com/webtown/2007/04/is_skype_dying_.html

]]> By: VOIPBLOG.IT » I links di domenica 22 aprile http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97417 VOIPBLOG.IT » I links di domenica 22 aprile Sun, 22 Apr 2007 02:24:48 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97417 <p>[...] I numeri di Skype non convincono Crescono del 14% gli utenti registrati, ma il volume di chiamate è piatto (1.1%) così come i minuti di traffico SkypeOut (tags: skype business ebay) [...]</p> [...] I numeri di Skype non convincono Crescono del 14% gli utenti registrati, ma il volume di chiamate è piatto (1.1%) così come i minuti di traffico SkypeOut (tags: skype business ebay) [...]

]]> By: Barlow Keener http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97415 Barlow Keener Sat, 21 Apr 2007 14:14:26 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97415 <p>There are two reasons I can think of that Skype sees the users increasing without the minutes. Chat: Most of my Skype friends use Skype almost exclusively for chat. It is an excellent chat tool and a click away from a call. Chat produces no additional minutes. Mobil application: The second reason is that if users are counted as downloads, you can download Skype onto your PDA or Smartphone and use it for chat - which is what I use it for on my phone - or for calls (although the application freezes on my Smartphone when I try to make a call). So a single user may have multiple downloads, again increasing the "number" of users.</p> There are two reasons I can think of that Skype sees the users increasing without the minutes. Chat: Most of my Skype friends use Skype almost exclusively for chat. It is an excellent chat tool and a click away from a call. Chat produces no additional minutes. Mobil application: The second reason is that if users are counted as downloads, you can download Skype onto your PDA or Smartphone and use it for chat – which is what I use it for on my phone – or for calls (although the application freezes on my Smartphone when I try to make a call). So a single user may have multiple downloads, again increasing the “number” of users.

]]> By: John Thacker http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97413 John Thacker Sat, 21 Apr 2007 06:38:16 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97413 <p><em>Skype has achieved incredible penetration - 196 million versus a global broadband subscriber base of close to 300 million.</em></p> <p>Skype Journal says that at any point in time Skype’s user base is about 60% so that makes Skype’s active user base at around 118 million or about 40% of the total broadband users.</p> <p>Hmm. I'm trying to decide if I can possibly believe those numbers, even granting that Skype is much less popular in the NANPA area than elsewhere, due to our cheaper telephone tariffs and different rate structure. Even granting that, it's just that practically everyone I know has broadband, but practically none of them are regular Skype users. I guess it's possible that a lot of people use Skype and I don't know about it.</p> <p>Is it possible that the account figures are total Skype accounts for individuals, but the broadband subscriber numbers are per-household? That would mean that Skype accounts would be a smaller percentage of individuals with broadband access, since many households have more than one person.</p> Skype has achieved incredible penetration – 196 million versus a global broadband subscriber base of close to 300 million.

Skype Journal says that at any point in time Skype’s user base is about 60% so that makes Skype’s active user base at around 118 million or about 40% of the total broadband users.

Hmm. I’m trying to decide if I can possibly believe those numbers, even granting that Skype is much less popular in the NANPA area than elsewhere, due to our cheaper telephone tariffs and different rate structure. Even granting that, it’s just that practically everyone I know has broadband, but practically none of them are regular Skype users. I guess it’s possible that a lot of people use Skype and I don’t know about it.

Is it possible that the account figures are total Skype accounts for individuals, but the broadband subscriber numbers are per-household? That would mean that Skype accounts would be a smaller percentage of individuals with broadband access, since many households have more than one person.

]]> By: Janko Roettgers http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97411 Janko Roettgers Sat, 21 Apr 2007 04:09:33 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97411 <p>I'm not really sure the 1% increase of Skype to Skype minutes is significant either way. You could also make a point in saying that Skype is becoming a more significant IM player - after all, these 25 million new users have to use the client for something, right?</p> <p>I would be way more concerned if the number of simultaneously logged in users was flat. Maybe it actually is, but we don't know that, so this is all just speculation ...</p> I’m not really sure the 1% increase of Skype to Skype minutes is significant either way. You could also make a point in saying that Skype is becoming a more significant IM player – after all, these 25 million new users have to use the client for something, right?

I would be way more concerned if the number of simultaneously logged in users was flat. Maybe it actually is, but we don’t know that, so this is all just speculation …

]]> By: Jesse Kopelman http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97409 Jesse Kopelman Sat, 21 Apr 2007 01:58:10 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97409 <p>What PC-based VoIP needs is better bluetooth headsets. The thing that often stops me from using Skype is that my headset is synced to my mobile. It is such a pain in the ass to switch it to my PC. Unless I know the call is going to be really long, I'd rather just eat some bucket minutes than go to the trouble of turning of disabling phone bluetooth, syncing headset to PC, and then reversing the whole process when I'm done. There are a select few headsets that can easily switch between two or more devices. Alternatively, if there were a version of Skype for Windows Mobile that didn't eat the battery in 30 min, that would be a good option too.</p> What PC-based VoIP needs is better bluetooth headsets. The thing that often stops me from using Skype is that my headset is synced to my mobile. It is such a pain in the ass to switch it to my PC. Unless I know the call is going to be really long, I’d rather just eat some bucket minutes than go to the trouble of turning of disabling phone bluetooth, syncing headset to PC, and then reversing the whole process when I’m done. There are a select few headsets that can easily switch between two or more devices. Alternatively, if there were a version of Skype for Windows Mobile that didn’t eat the battery in 30 min, that would be a good option too.

]]> By: LUC http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97407 LUC Fri, 20 Apr 2007 22:53:46 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97407 <p>I have always been confused by Skype's stats : their reference is the number of times their soft is downloaded, right? Then here is my silly question : what of update downloads? does each of them count as 1 more installed user? tks</p> I have always been confused by Skype’s stats : their reference is the number of times their soft is downloaded, right? Then here is my silly question : what of update downloads? does each of them count as 1 more installed user? tks

]]> By: Peter Brockmann http://gigaom.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97405 Peter Brockmann Fri, 20 Apr 2007 21:57:08 +0000 http://gigaom.wordpress.com/2007/04/20/is-skype-showing-signs-of-maturity/#comment-97405 <p>Om: you bet Skype is slowing, which is why they're starting to consider packaging up their technologies for enterprise deployments.</p> Om: you bet Skype is slowing, which is why they’re starting to consider packaging up their technologies for enterprise deployments.

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