Skype Knows that Now is the Time to Release an iPad App
By: Hillel Fuld
According to the latest rumors circulating the interwebs, Skype is prepping its native iPad app for an upcoming release. With that, the VoIP leader joins Facebook as a technology giant that has yet to embrace the tablet king, but seems to have given in to the pressure.
The question is why now? Of course, no one knows the real answer, but something tells me the timing is not accidental, and Skype knew exactly what it was doing waiting till now to release the native iPad app.
Competition
Skype is not alone in the free calling VoIP space and there are many iPhone apps that enable users to talk for free. However, none of those apps can even be referred to as a Skype competitor, not to mention a Skype killer.
The solutions that could have possibly threatened Skype’s dominance come from other tech giants such as Google and Apple. Let’s start with the latter. Apple entered the free voice and video calling arena with its proprietary solution Facetime. At the original keynote, Jobs implied that Facetime, as a protocol would eventually be available to other platforms aside from iOS. That has yet to happen and we see no signs of it happening in the near future. As of now, Facetime is available on three iOS devices and only on Wifi. No 3G calling and no Facetiming between platforms. iOS5 might change the 3G part, but that is not yet confirmed.
Moving along, Google has released video calling on Gtalk to Android devices running 2.3 and up. Of course, that is all fine and nice until you take a look at just how many users actually have access to Android 2.3. Depending on the day, the percentage stands on 10% or less. See Google’s chart here.
So, Skype, along with its new owner (more on that below) took a good look at the free voice and video calling landscape and basically said “OK, we got this”. Now, after the iPad 2 was released with cameras and Google and Apple have taken their best shot at free voice and video calling, now is the perfect time for Skype to throw its hat into the ring and throw a knock-out punch to its competitors in the mobile space.
Microsoft’s Role
However, as jobs likes to say, there is one more thing. Or should I say 8.5 billion more things. Microsoft, as you probably heard recently acquired the VoIP giant, a move many believe signifies a substantial shift in Microsoft’s strategy. Between the new and impressive Windows Phone 7 mobile OS, Microsoft’s cooperation with RIM on Bing Maps and Search, as well as the software leader’s new partnership with the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer, Nokia, it seems Microsoft is everywhere. Everywhere that is, except for the iPad.
Microsoft clearly recognizes the potential of Apple’s mobile ecosystem and has already released multiple apps for iPhone such as Photosynth and others. You will notice that Photosynth does not support the iPad and based on a simple iTunes search, the only Microsoft app available for iPad is Bing. Of course, with iPad dominating the tablet space at over a 95% market share, that is unacceptable as far as Microsoft is concerned. What better way to get into the iPad game than releasing an app that will completely dominate one of the hottest app categories on the iPad, VoIP apps?
Lastly, the timing of this release is interesting as iOS5 is about to hit the shelves. That means better Skype notifications on iOS and a whole list of possible enhancements that the new Skype app can enjoy.
It is for these reasons I believe Skype, along with some good old-fashioned Redmond pressure is about to release its own native iPad app and take its 600 million active users by storm.
