Phil, Let's not forget that Kodak's new product is also a beta and got the "Skype Certified". What exactly does that mean? It didn't even work for me first time out of the box. The certification program needs work. It's also perfectly reasonable to expect a consistent set of rules and some transparency.

"I like it, but it will be a different product when it comes out-of-beta and adds online payments to the user experience."

Phil, could you clarify what you mean by online payments? Will Unyte become a paid product? Or is WebDialogs considering introducing something along the lines of a voice services marketplace (http://skype.com/company/news/2005/skype_voiceservices.html)?

I agree completely with your comments. In fact i was shocked to see that the BETA Webdialogs product is ALREADY certified!

THIS CAN'T BE! This shows the certification process is not based on serious procedures and rules!

They could introduce a "temporary certification" for beta products, but even this is not advisable.

Really ... Skype needs urgently a Quality Management Program. They (Skype) look more and more as full grown amateurs!

WebDialogs said that they will operate Unyte as a paid service after it comes out of beta. We don't know yet (they probably don't know themselves) what you'll pay for and how much. Free for an entry version and fee for a premium? 30 day free trial? Free to consume a session but fee to host one? Subscription for a period (months, years) or by the session? They may also choose to defer charges to build up a user base.

Another area where Skype needs to get a handle on their certification is the management of Windows Audio when certifying handset hardware. These devices need to support the automatic switching of the Windows audio devices between, say, a Linksys CIT200 and Windows Media Player such that the WMP is disabled when a call is started but re-enabled at the end of a call. Apparently the RTX DualPhone is the only one to support this feature to date (excluding products of unknown status introduced last week at CES).

phil,
thanks for clarifying
much appreciated
gabe

It seems like some response on behalf of WebDialogs is required. Here it comes:

About the Beta: Unyte was in closed Beta since it was announced on December-31st on Skype-night in London. We made a lot changes and fixes based on the feedback from it and now we want even more people to kick the tires. We call it Beta to encourage users to provide us feedback and to emphasize that Unyte as the product was never used before in production environment (unlike the sharing component that is used in it that has been actively used in our WebInterpoint product for four years). Unyte is stable and it works as advertised, and that’s why it was certified by Skype in the first place. The certification process was thorough and not speedy at all.

About the Button: All things equal, this is what really makes the user experience of Unyte good. Did we do something special to make it pass the certification? Yes, we worked hard to make it to work in the way users would expect it to work: consistent with Skype interface, not intruding Skype functionality, with option to disable it. It was Skype’s choice whether to allow it or not and they decided to allow it, because they saw value in it for their users and their market.

Enjoy using Unyte and please, do provide us with your feedback at:
http://skype.unyte.net/skype/en-us/help.html?ac=feedback

In my previous posting I meant Nov-30th off course (not Dec-31st) for the date of Skype-night and start of our closed beta. Sense of time eluded me for a minute :)

How about the just get a handle on customer service, billing, and voucher problems first.

WP