I would like to see the chart picture in original size...

I had heard rumors that there had been a developers conference, but I thought it was under strict NDA. Does Skype approve of the release of this information to the general public?

A couple of things look interesting;
- Web presence (client side)
- Release 1.6 "Community Release" ( you read it here first! )

Enhanced Video says to me that video isn't ready yet, and nothing else strikes me as particularly exciting.
I suppose if "partner builds", means the partners can integrate new features at a sub-cutaneous level, then it might be useful. But I doubt it means that.

Is it only my problem to have more than five concurrent participants in a conference....?

If "dynamic content" means advertising I will become an ex-Skype user very quickly.

It's good to see an insight to the roadmap. I'm looking forward to more discussion and openness on this subject so that the Skype partner network can commit to developments that compliment the Skype solution and not find having the rug pulled from underneath as been the case in the past.

Yet another good move in the right direction for partner support.

Hi, Muppetmaster. This was an open meeting in a public space with many bloggers. I wasn't the only one taking pictures either. In fact, there was a lawyer from Skype in the room who didn't advise anyone that this was private or secret or anything. And I'm not under an NDA. Hope that helps. - Phil

The Skype events for developers are under NDA. I have no understanding why you would publish this on a website that is called SkypeJournal.

Sorry guys, this is over the top. You misused the trust.

Dick, three issues: First, were the Skype people trying to do the right thing and how does this matter? Second, did I breach a trust? Third, when they disclose news, should I behave differently than other reporters? (in short: yes, no, no)

First, I think this disclosure is a marvelous sign of changes quietly happening at Skype. Folks from bizdev showed up, in person, to meet potential partners. They came with an inviting and open attitude. While they could have done it better, they were clearly trying to do the right thing. Aside from the roadmap, that's the story. The idea of sharing Skype's short term direction - even in draft form - is new. And news. It's a kind of organizational maturity you see in companies like Microsoft, Oracle, and Cisco; an understanding that information about intent fuels your business ecology. They are doing more of this and getting better at it along the way. That's how I lead the story and I believe that's more important than the working papers.

Second, about trust: I've never breached a trust with Skype personnel or any confidential source.

This event wasn't under NDA. The Skype staff wasn't properly trained or prepped for this kind of public forum. It was at a public conference, the organizers were there, the slide wasn't marked as confidential or proprietary, the staff in the room clearly had access to the document and felt no qualms about showing it to reporters. They had an attorney present. I wasn't the only one there with a big red press stripe on my badge. I was even called by name and publication by the MC, who was also a reporter.

Just to be clear on their intent: it wasn't like they saw it was a mistake and quickly flipped by the slide; they intended for this public audience full of developers and bloggers and press to see and understand this document and kept it on screen for at least half an hour.

Was this the wrong thing for them to do from their company's perspective? Maybe, but that's on them. They had at least a day to prepare and this was what they chose to present. If this was inconsistent with your prior experience with Skype, well, that's what makes it news.

To the last point, in a room full of cameras and press, should I let someone else break the story in their blog or magazine?

I paid my way to VON to report for everyone who reads Skype Journal, including Skype staff. If you couldn't attend the world's biggest VoIP conference, I was there to share my view into news surfacing at this event.

Under other circumstances I might hold news that comes up in a public forum. Was someone's life, health or constitutional rights at risk? No.

We have other obligations. Dick, Skype's president told the VON audience in a conference call that very day that there were more than 400 registered developers in their program. And I'm sure there are many more in the queue. Do you think Skype has shared this roadmap, in *any* form, with more than 50 of them? As a reporter, I'm covering a beat and serving my readers, my publisher, and the public. Developers like yourself need this information to keep out of harm's way, to coordinate your own marketing and product plans, to discover effective ways to add value. This was newsworthy.

I may be wrong, and am open to discussion about this, but I believe I've served Skype and its stakeholders well. Given the situation, how else might you have acted?

Dick,

Many things were wrong with this meeting. It was an open meeting with many bloggers, and facilitated by Pulver Media on questions. Both groups know us and pulver the rest of the bloggers and some media in the room. There was no trust broken here.

On judgement I think there is a great opportunity here for Skype to talk more effectively about their plans. These features hardly helped developers and weren't explained. If this had been a roadmap to 2008 month by month I would have told them to take it down and involved myself more in the session. Mistakes do get made. This page was not up for 30 seconds rather at least 30 minutes.

The responsibility sits with the managers that created the meeting and the forum. They were way out of their depth.

Concurrently, if Skype had wanted to coordinate any messaging from this session with Skype Journal they had two representative there. I made inquiries before the event and was effectively brushed off. As always we are willing to make it a success for all of us. The bottom line is I expect better. Skype was a hard sell on Tuesday.... believe me.

Its nice to see the road map, but it would be better if the developers concentrated on the items people really needed and asked about the most. This new added functionalitly is all very well, but we need what we need! CALL TRANSFER!

We need it urgently, before we need video based calls e.t.c and allt he little niggly updates on other items. sure we want you to patch the security and call quality issues, but yo are doing well with that, but everyone in the forums is DESPERATE for call transfer!

Please, please, please add it to the roadmap so we know when its coming and if possible it would be better before some of the other features!!

Well,
Skype 1.4 just released, but NO login by alias... :-(

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Keep up the great work on your blog. Best wishes WaltDe