Skype for Windows 4.0 Beta 3 Hotfix Introduces New Audio Codec

This morning Skype released a hotfix upgrade for Skype for Windows 4.0 beta 3 bringing in several new features but most significant is the introduction of a new "super wideband Audio codec; from the Skype Garage blog post linked above:

This is our second in-house built audio codec especially designed for calls over the internet with superb quality. The Super Wideband Audio codec will help you most on lousy network conditions and when you have lower bandwidth available, although it also improves quality in normal conditions too.

In the Skype 4.x Discussion Public Chat Raul Liive goes on to say: "it's superior over SVOPC in every usage area, but it comes best out in the low bw or loose internet conenction cases". However, the legacy SVOPC codec remains available to address backward compatibility requirements.

Other new features include;

• MySpaceIM with Skype (functionality carried over from 3.8)
• Option to disable uPnP and Nat-PMP
• eBay browser highlighter bundled
• Added Philips SPC 1330 NC as High Quality Video camera

along with an improvement in the Instant Messaging layout and numerous bug fixes listed in the release notes.

As I am at CES where my laptop still has the last released version 3.8 of Skype for Windows in order to access features such as Public Chat creation, I will not be able to try this hotfix out until I return home this weekend (where my desktop has the 4.0 beta 3). But if you have a PC running the beta version, it's definitely worth checking out this hotfix. I am curious to see if they also fixed the "flashing technical call info" problem.

Obviously feedback about :"hidden mysteries" should go back to Skype's forum for reporting issues; however, if you have experience with the new codec, tell us about it in the Comments.

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Skype for Mac 2.8 Beta Launches

At MacWorld's Showstoppers event this evening Skype announced Skype for Mac 2.8 beta, with two major new features as well as several minor ones.
Screen Sharing
The most impressive feature is a form of basic screen sharing. Either a segment of your screen or the full screen is converted into a virtual webcam such that the screen can be viewed in any Skype client via the Skype video channel. While only a Mac can currently be a source for this screen sharing it can be viewed on any Windows, Mac or Linux client as video.
Skype for Mac's screen sharing feature is sufficient to support discussion issues as a complement to a voice and/or chat conversation; it is NOT by any means a replacement for fully featured desktop or application sharing offerings such as Yugma, InnerPass or IBM's Lotus Sametime Unyte. It's "just" screen sharing. In fact, it is one of two options on the Skype for Mac's "Share" button, the other being file sharing/transfer.
Below is an example of a full screen image of a shared MacBook screen as seen in a detached Skype video window on my Windows laptop.

Skype Access
The second major feature, Skype Access, provides WiFi access for your MacBook or MacBook Pro via any Boingo access point. While I'm told it has been tested at many of the over 100,000 Boingo hotspots worldwide, I could not get it to work at a local Canadian Starbucks listed as a Boingo hotspot location. But then, this is still beta (and the problem may be with Boingo's interface with Bell Mobility).
More importantly is to look at the "use case" for Skype Access. Cost for using Skype Access over Boingo is US$0.22/€0.16/C$0.23 per minute using Skype credits.
Within a user's home country, Skype Access is probably more expensive than local alternatives; this is certainly the case in Canada. However, I can see the value if I am outside the home country and wanting to make Skype/SkypeOut calls, check email or do some web browsing at airports, restaurants, coffee shops and other Boingo hotspots as an alternative to much higher cost roaming wireless calls (for instance roaming U.S. to Canada on Rogers runs at $1.75 per minute) or $40 per day Internet access charges at some European hotels.
With unlimited use Boingo subscriptions at $21.95/month for North America or $59/month Global, Skype Access is more appropriate for the occasional traveler as opposed to the hardened road warrior.
It reminds me of the use case for PamFax where you can send faxes directly from, say, your hotel room for about $0.20 per page while avoiding a hotel's much higher $1.00/page charge for faxing. One other common feature between Skype Access and PamFax: both use Skype credits as the primary currency.
Other features in Skype for Mac 2.8 beta:

• Skype for Mac 2.8 continues the use of a "drawer" attached to a Skype chat window; from the list of active chat sessions shown in the drawer you can select which session you want to view. But now there are three levels of prioritization available for those chat sessions. In addition chats can be sorted by name or date/time.
• The process for adding contacts to a chat session now simply involves clicking the "Add a Contact" button and entering the added contact's name.
• Your Contacts' Mood Messages can be tracked via a "Mood Message" chat session. While this can currently only be initiated on Skype for Mac 2.8, your mood message chat session will show up as a chat session on, say, a Windows client logged into the same account. Neat for keeping up-to-date on mood message changes, especially when a mood message provides location or reference URL information; it provides a Twitter-like experience.
• Add notes to contacts: when you go into a Contact's profile there is a separate tab for entering personal notes about that contact.

Dan York, with a lot more Skype for Mac experience than I have had (I just acquired a MacBook ten days ago), has provided a much more detailed review of all the new features He has also produced an excellent You Tube video for his Emerging Tech Talk series:

Skype for Mac 2.8 beta can be downloaded here January 6. Full Release Notes

Skype Posts: Share Skype Blog, Skype Garage Blog

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Access Your Skype Contacts via Truphone

Over the past few years we have seen the evolution of several conversation communities, some simply employing instant messaging; others employing both instant messaging and voice. Skype is the primary example with its support of IM, voice and video as well as auxiliary features such as file sharing (and, as announced tonight, basic screen sharing) but we are also seeing these services diffuse into Google, via GTalk's voice and chat capability, MSN Live via Live Messenger, and, in spite of its trying to define who they are, Yahoo.

Truphone is a mobile voice calling service that I have used for a couple of years from a Nokia N95-1; it became critical in a situation I encountered in Germany two years ago. I have liked both the quality of the voice calls as well as the user interface, especially its use of the device's native address book for initiating a call. While they have had some hiccups with their recent product launches, Truphone has become the leader in providing low cost calling from the iPhone while breaking the carrier barrier via Apple's App Store. I will soon be reporting on Truphone Anywhere for BlackBerry. Now, under recently appointed CEO Geraldine Wilson, Truphone is making a move to grow their user base rapidly by leveraging the user bases of other services.

This evening at the MacWorld Showstoppers event Truphone announced an enhanced Truphone for iPhone providing connectivity to these four conversation communities. Supporting both instant messaging and voice conversations, voice calls to, say, Skype contacts are free provided they go over a WiFi connection. Calls to these communities can also be made over a carrier's 3G network, usually at the cost of a local call. In addition Truphone is providing access to Twitter as one additional messaging service accessible via Truphone's iPhone application.

In my interview this evening with new Truphone CEO Geraldine Wilson, she pointed out:

• Using Skype as an example, Truphone's enhancements set up an appropriate Skype client on a Truphone gateway and complete the call to the Skype contact, taking advantage of Skype's peer-to-peer architecture such that there are no resulting termination charges.
• By introducing instant messaging, Truphone is recognizing the key role IM is taking on in IP-based conversations where a conversation may start over a chat session and migrate to a voice session if deemed appropriate.
• Truphone sees the introduction of these enhancements as a key to building the Truphone user community; Truphone generates revenue through offering low cost calling to/from the landline and mobile PSTN network.
• Truphone is looking at adding BlackBerry and Android to their supported platforms for this service over the next few months. Key here are devices that support an application store in order to make user access to these services simple and trivial.
• To avoid high roaming charges it is recommended that Truphone for iPhone be used either over a WiFi connection anywhere worldwide but only over a user's home country 3G carrier.
• These new features go live on next Monday, January 12.

Some outstanding questions:

• Given that the Truphone application needs to be active for conversations, how will this work when other applications are open? Currently if I have Truphone as the open application on my iPhone, I can receive free Truphone calls and my presence will be indicated to other Truphone for iPhone users if I am in their "Favorites" tab. However, if I am in another iPhone application, I cannot receive "free" Truphone calls over WiFi; nor is my presence indicated to others. I look forward to seeing how the enhanced Truphone handles Instant Messaging when Truphone is not the "open" application on the iPhone. This is where BlackBerry's full multi-tasking capability is a major advantage over the iPhone.
• Calling Skype contacts involves providing your SkypeID and password. What security is in place to maintain the confidentiality of this information. What other security aspects are compromised as a result of placing the calls via a connection to a gateway that supports the caller's Skype client.
• What is Skype's reaction to having Truphone siphon off what could otherwise potentially be SkypeOut revenues while leveraging the Skype user base and using the "free" aspect of Skype? We know Skype is working to launch mobile phone applications, probably this week at CES. With iSkoot and the Skypephone on 3's networks, as we learned at last year's eComm 2008 iSkoot presentation, a portion of carrier revenues are shared between Skype and iSkoot.

A major step forward in making low cost calls worldwide, Truphone's moves once again emphasize that WiFi is becoming an ever growing alternative connection option to making wireless calls. At the same time it will be interesting to see how the business model plays out in a world where the cost of voice calling continues to move towards zero.

GigaOm: Truphone Brings Skype to iPhone and iPod Touch

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OnState Virtual PBX: Taking On and Managing All Callers

OnState's Virtual PBX incorporates Skype as a contributor to lower cost, yet more productive, small business communications management activities.

A mainstay for communications in any office with at least a few employees is the need to accept incoming calls, determine who is calling, what is their general need and getting the call to the right employee. In the interest of effective and productive customer and supplier relations, calls need an automated way to reach sales personnel, customer care, accounting or technical support or "the boss". Preferably this call management should be handled without any human intervention; over the past twenty or more years this has resulted in the evolution of increasingly effective Private Branch Exchange ("PBX") offerings from telecomm equipment suppliers. And it traditionally required a reasonably demanding capital expense, from $15,000 up.

The basic functions of a PBX include:

• Receiving and answering a call from an external caller
• Offering a menu of options to determine to whom the call should be connected
• Transferring the call in response to answers provided either by entering alphanumeric or dialpad information or by using speech recognition.
• Accepting, recording and managing voice mails if nobody is available to take a call
• Ability to make a subsequent call transfer if deemed necessary

However, IP-based communications technology along with web 2.0 tools provide opportunities for enhancing the PBX to build more productive and effective business processes when it comes to managing relationships with both suppliers and customers. For instance:

• An individual agent portal for overall conversation management
• Intelligent call queuing would permit an "occupied" employee to either put a caller into a queue for answering when available or transfer a caller to another employee with the skills to handle the call
• Chat sessions can be offered as either an alternative or complement to voice conversations
• Building a searchable call archive integrated into an email system such as GMail.
• Making call transfer destinations independent of the recipient's geographical location, whether "in the office", at a home office or out "on the road".
• Reducing and minimizing the costs associated with various PBX services.

Building on its Call Center experience OnState has launched its Virtual PBX which provides all this functionality as well as:

• Receives calls via Skype, SkypeIn as well as Local DID numbers and toll free numbers in over 20 countries
• Call transfer to employees, agents and other designated recipients on their Skype-enabled PC, landline phones or mobile independent of geographical location
• An extension-based agent/employee/representative portal for managing incoming calls, including call waiting notification, queuing and redirection
• Integration into GMail, Zimbra and Salesforce.com

A few weeks ago, OnState CEO Pat Kelly was our guest on a SquawkBox conference call where he provided more details about OnState's Virtual PBX, including a sharable slide show presentation accessible as a Google document.

Bottom line; for as little as $15 per month per seat and no capital investment, small to medium enterprises and organizations as well can establish an enhanced PBX capability to facilitate both more productive business processes as well as more cost effective communications.

Definitely a business model disruptor.

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SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry: Pragmatic Cable, Internet and Wireless Convergence onto a Smartphone

In my early 50's youth when I was delivering afternoon newspapers in somewhat remote Saskatoon, Saskatchewan I always tried to be at one customer's home at 4:30. Why? At that time the only television viewable came via high rooftop antennae from transmitters far away (~400 miles) near Minot, North Dakota. If atmospheric conditions were favorable my customer would let me watch half an hour of a kid's program (probably Howdy Doody); most of the time we got to watch it masked by a snowy blizzard of faint reception. Getting any type of television reception at that time and location was, at best, a challenge and an adventure.

Fast forward 55 years to this past week's 2009 New Years day afternoon. While riding as a passenger in our car, we sped along Ontario's main 401 freeway as I watched the CBC Sports color telecast of the third period of the NHL Winter Hockey Classic (live from Wrigley Field) on my BlackBerry Bold. It was one more test to carry out during the public beta of SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry.

I viewed all the action in full color; equally as impressive was the quality of the stereo sound (which "swells" out well beyond the device). The only frame freezing probably occurred as my BlackBerry switched between cell tower sites. Otherwise I was experiencing a crisp picture with sharp colors and clear sound coming from my home cable TV box. Talk about convergence - a Rogers cable TV signal being transmitted back out over Rogers High Speed Internet to a BlackBerry Bold via Rogers 3G wireless.

I have provided the detailed basic requirements for using SlingPlayer for BlackBerry Mobile on my recent Web Worker Daily post: "A New BlackBerry Experience Goes Beta: SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry" along with a history of SlingMedia's hardware and software products. Note especially that it requires a version 4.5 firmware upgrade of any BlackBerry 8x20. While it works via a WiFi connection on all supported devices, over a 3G HSDPA network (Rogers, AT&T and T-Mobile in North America) it only works currently on the BlackBerry Bold.

Over the past 15 months I have been using SlingPlayer Mobile for Symbian on a Nokia N95-1 over WiFi connections. It has been a consistently reliable experience over that period; it also provided me with some benchmarks for testing the BlackBerry version's user interface and video/audio quality. Here are some of the experiences I have had with SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry on my BlackBerry Bold 9000 over the past few days of beta trials:

• a rock concert on HDNet where percussion, guitar chords and voice cover a wide audio frequency range
• a rebroadcast of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas eve concert on PBS where over 200 voices, soloists and the orchestra provide an excellent source for testing the clarity of audio as well as the resolution of the video
• several sports events, including fast moving football and hockey action as a test for shadowing and pixelation
• Oprah Winfrey making Skype High Quality Video calls

In all cases the experience on the Bold took full advantage of the Bold's processor power, network speed, native stereo audio and its widely acclaimed "stunning" color display. Simply stated, I became immersed in the programs I was watching to the point where the experience was transparent to the underlying technology. My only negative was more physiological than technical: I found full "playing surface" views of sports events could cause a bit of dizziness due to focusing on all the action within the Bold's display size; holding the device further away from my eyes addressed this issue.

While I had some excellent viewing and listening experiences, a few comments:

• instead of a full visual representation of the cable box remote control, the remote control buttons are represented on a menu bar across the bottom of the screen. Note that in addition to the icons on the menu bar, one can "fast-track" to an item using the keyboard (for instance, M=Menu, O=Power On/Off, etc.)
• scrolling across any of the three menu bars is done via the BlackBerry's trackball.
• audio comes out by default over the Bold's speakers without the need to click on the "speaker" button
• the "Favorites" menu bar picks up your "Favorites" channels stored via SlingPlayer for Windows¹
• changing channels may cause a video freeze up for 10-20 seconds; this is an issue SlingMedia is trying to minimize.
• no apparent viewing experience difference whether using either a WiFi or 3G connection
• needs a bar to display volume level when using the BlackBerry's volume +/- buttons
• switches readily between a full screen video and a display that incorporates one of three menu bars
• needs to "reconnect" if you switch to another BlackBerry application while viewing (SlingPlayer application remains open in background but disconnects from the source); the "reconnect" time is 5 to 15 seconds.
• battery life on the Bold for continuous reception of a broadcast via WiFi is about 2-1/2 to 3 hours.; it's probably shorter on other 8xx0 models.
• I have also been able to get SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry beta working on a BlackBerry 8820 over WiFi where, once again, it provided an excellent true reproduction of the video signal within the limitations of the 8820's video and audio hardware.
• it can also be used to operate the PVR on my cable TV set-top box.
• latency: at midnight New Year's Eve, SlingPlayer for BlackBerry Mobile rang in the new year seven seconds after the broadcast version directly connected to a cable service.
• you can almost read those real time scoreboard bars that appear across the top of the screen during football and hockey broadcasts.

And, for now for those not able to take advantage of SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry due to its current specifications:

• it works over a GSM/EDGE connection on unsupported BlackBerry 8xx0 devices; however, SlingMedia does not guarantee the resulting performance. This is really an application for 3G or faster wireless networks only; an attempt to connect my Bold in a rural area where there was only EDGE wireless failed.
• once SlingMedia releases this HSDPA version of SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry they will look at doing a version that runs over Verizon's, Bell Mobility's and Telus's 3G EV-DO network

A suggestion for RIM: SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry demonstrates the full potential of the Bold's and 8900 Curve's 480x320/360 video display. Let's hope that newer versions of their firmware can achieve the same level of high quality video on the YouTube player and other video applications supported by these devices.

If you have both a SlingBox and one of the supported BlackBerries, upgrade your firmware (where necessary) and give SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry a try (U.S., Canada, U.K.). Sling Media is now looking for feedback from its targeted user public.

With over 500 channels to choose from, at any location worldwide where I can find a WiFi or (unlimited data plan) 3G HSDPA connection, television broadcast viewing has come a long way from having, in a fixed location, a single channel available only when atmospheric conditions permit.

SlingPlayer for BlackBerry has significant potential for business road warriors; in addition to the entertainment aspect, it also provides immediate access to "breaking news" and business broadcasts from taxis, airports, coffee shops, restaurants (mind your etiquette, however). For those states considering legislation prohibiting texting while driving, they may also want to include viewing videos as a potential distraction.

Update: SlingMedia announced at MacWorld that they are targeting to release a SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone this calendar quarter.

(I would have put up a screen capture; however, the video does not make it to the BlackBerry screen capture programs I employ, including PC desktop programs.)

¹SlingMedia's remotely stored "Favorites" feature will be supported by a future version of SlingPlayer for Mac.

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PamConsult Has a "Fantastic Year"

Amidst all the macro economic turmoil of 2008, there are businesses that have stuck to their knitting and had a quite successful year. Pioneer Skype Partner PamConsult recently reported on their 2008 achievements where they have both built out their product line and provided consulting services that have resulted in a stronger development team and enhanced product offerings.

PamConsult comprises two business divisions: Scendix for software product offerings, such as their widely accepted Pamela utility for Skype (the first Skype Extra going back to 2005) and PamFax, and PamConsult for development consulting where, for instance, they developed Skype for Salesforce.com under a contract with Skype. Some highlights:

• A major accomplishment has been the ongoing growth of PamFax. During the year they built out the infrastructure to provide the robustness and scalability such that PamFax now supports over 130,000 registered users. They have announced plans for a fax-in service as well as Mac support in 2009.
• Pamela has now had over 5 million downloads; early in 2009 they expect to release version 4.5; mcePhone, their Skype integration tool for Windows Media Center, will soon see version 3.
• Finally, PamConsult continues to provide eBay offerings, including the eBay Skype tabs licensed to eBay Germany, eBay France and eBay UK. At last year's eBay Live event, PamConsult won an eBay Star Developer award for their Jaast for Wii, which brings eBay to your TV via Nintendo's Wii console.

It will be interesting to see how PamConsult's Skype partnership evolves in 2009 as the new executive team introduces a comprehensive technology roadmap and revamped partnering programs.

Other posts:

• Radio Free Asia: A Skype Facilitated Broadcasting Service
• PamFax: Adding Click-to-Fax

Product Information and downloads:

• Pamela
• PamFax
• mcePhone for Skype
  

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RIM Demonstrates Ongoing Support for Older BlackBerries

While ZDNet has named BlackBerry Bold the most influential biztech product of 2008, RIM has not been neglecting the millions of owners of older 8xx0 series BlackBerries. Earlier this week their BlackBerry Connection Newsletter announced that version 4.5 upgrades to all 8xx0 Series BlackBerries (using BIS servers via carriers) are now available.

Why upgrade? To bring along, where practical and feasible, several features now found on the newer Bold, Storm, and 8900 Curve such as:

• HTML email
  
• View and edit email MS Word and MS PowerPoint attachments.
• Download, save and edit files from the Internet
• Enhanced video support for both recording and streaming: required to run Qik.Com and the forthcoming SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry.
• Record and Send a Voice Note which can be sent via email or MMS
• Improved music management

Note that:

• These updates only apply to BlackBerry Internet Server (BIS) users; BES users need to upgrade through their BES host enterprise.
• Updates are carrier specific; early in the process you are asked for your PIN and taken to download files specific to your carrier.
• Updates may also require an update of the BlackBerry Desktop Manager
• MS Excel spreadsheet viewing and editing did not make the cut; they are only available for newer BlackBerry Bold, Storm and 8900 Curve.

Over the past few days I have successfully upgraded a Pearl 8100, a Pearl 8110 and an 8820. Provided you have BlackBerry Desktop Manager (preferably 4.7) installed on a Windows PC, it's a three to five click process (depending on whether you just follow the basic steps or want to change some parameters) to do the upgrade. While your BlackBerry data and applications are preserved after the upgrade, you may need to log into some services or applications again. The final step "Connecting to the Device" may take five to ten minutes - be patient.

One key feature is not in the list above but the new firmware includes new default fonts which are significantly more easily readable. Also, on the Pearls, there are changes to make using the SureType keyboard much easier, especially when it comes to suggested "word completion".

Definitely worth the upgrade - and required for video streaming applications.

A detailed description of the BlackBerry firmware upgrade process can be found at CrackBerry.com.

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The Skype - Oprah Feedback Loop - It Works in Strange Ways

This afternoon I came across this article by reporter Chris O'Brien in today's San Jose Mercury News: "Video Chat has entered the mainstream". It appears that the worlds of Oprah viewers and Silicon Valley geeks and reporters have more than six degrees of separation. The story starts out by talking about an email he received from his mother:

Seemingly out of nowhere, this note from her landed in my inbox: "Have you heard of Skype? Apparently you can use it to do free video calls on the computer."

My mother, who lives just outside Kansas City, tends to be a reliable barometer for when a technology is gaining adoption outside the hermetically sealed bubble that is Silicon Valley. Well, my mom, and Oprah. As one of only a handful of people on the planet who don't watch Oprah's show every day, I had missed the fact that she's recently begun using Skype to make regular video calls with her audience.

Chris goes on to report on a brief interview with Skype President Josh Silverman whom he quotes with:

And Skype has a new version in beta that will make video calling much more central to the service, according to Skype President Josh Silverman.

.... And in its new release, Skype users will be able to enlarge the video to fill the entire screen without degrading the picture quality.

Well we now know what Chris is giving his mother for Christmas. For his benefit, listed below are previous Skype Journal posts on both Skype High Quality Video and our reporting last March on Oprah's use of Skype Video.

• Skype Sponsors Oprah's "A New Earth" Web Event
• Three Big Milestones in Skype's Fifth Year
• High Quality Video: What's the Benchmark?
• High Quality Video: Definitely a Winner for Skype
• Expanding the High Quality Video Experience and Observations
• To Be Restored: Camera Flexibility for Video Hackers
• Installing a Logitech High Quality Video Camera: The Experience.

Chris, keep up with Skype Journal and you won't be learning about how Skype is used from your mother.

By the way, how did I know to follow up on Chris's interview with Skype President Josh Silverman last Wednesday? He set it up via Twitter messages with Skype PR. They had found that Twitter provided the most "immediate" asynchronous communications mode as compared to, say, email exchanges. Also speaks for the device independence of Twitter.

A final question: will we be seeing a new version of Skype High Quality Video (or better) introduced at CES in January?

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Bold Twittering: When is a SmartPhone Truly a Mobile Microcomputer?

If I ever had any doubt about the value of Twitter as a commercial social networking tool, it evaporated this weekend as a result of following some Tweets on the subject of smartphones that appeared this weekend. They certainly provide an independent perspective on issues that I'm sure others are wondering about:

Mark Evans acquired an iPod Touch back in August after deciding he did not need an iPhone; as a result of his recent employment status change, he is now debating the merits of having a smartphone - in particular, an iPhone

Luca Filigheddu has just gone through the process of evaluating the BlackBerry Bold and iPhone over the past few weeks. Saturday he sent me a Twitter direct message to say that he had acquired a BlackBerry Bold; after he had had a few hours experience Saturday I see this on his Twitter feed:And when I came home yesterday evening I see that my acquaintance Olivier Chaine has put up this Tweet (earlier yesterday I had suggested, in response to his request for smartphone Twitter client recommendations, that he look at Slandr.Net as a mobile platform Twitter client):

First I would suggest that the mini-computer industry died many years ago, to be replaced by the microcomputer era, especially server banks. Trust me, I spent a major part of my career relying on mini-computers. I think I would need a backpack to be mobile with a mini-computer.

So I'll assume Mark is really looking to have a mobile microcomputer or PC experience on a smartphone. Having had several months' experience with both an iPhone and a BlackBerry Bold, here are my criteria for a mobile microcomputer or, more aptly, a "Laptop for the Hip or Purse":

• Minimum 480 x 320 graphics display.
• Full QWERTY keyboard.
• Web browser capable of supporting PC-type browsing.
• Supports "Cut & Paste" (of significant value more often than one would initially imagine until it's not available)
• View and edit MS Office documents (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) with potential to add document creation.
• Supports video recording and MMS
• Background processing (especially after experiencing both Truphone for BlackBerry and Truphone for iPhone)
• Supports true Instant Messaging in background while running other applications
• A very high speed processor (>500 MHz)
• Runs applications such as Qik.com, SlingPlayer Mobile and iSkoot (for voice and chat conversations with Skype contacts).
• Bluetooth stereo audio support.
• Removable battery
• Equipped for memory upgrades through a removable memory card.
• Supports both Both WiFi and 3G wireless protocols

A great set of specifications but the key question here is: "How does it change the user experience?". In particular does it eliminate the "urge" to turn on, or always carry, a laptop to keep up-to-date with real time activities?

As I have mentioned elsewhere, after a month's experience with the BlackBerry Bold, I found I had lost that tugging "urge" to turn on my laptop for keeping current with real time (and often mission critical) information. This change did not just involve email and web browsing but also Instant Messaging, Twitter and attached document editing.. RIM would do well to position Bold as a "Laptop for the Hip or Purse", bypassing all the technical comparisons and moving on to succinctly promoting Bold based on the actual user experience.

I like my iPhone for many of its personal information delivery features; it gives me a feel for what is appealing about the iPhone. I can find Toronto Transit streetcar times, do unit conversions, find the nearest Tim Horton's or Starbucks; it has lots of great information delivery features. On the media side it's definitely an extension of the iPod although it does not have the full audio performance of the Bold.

However, a mobile microcomputer the iPhone is NOT! Yes it uses a modified Mac OS; it uses Safari browser; it has an iPod variant.

However, I find myself turning to my Bold much more often than my iPhone for real two way interactivity. Just as important as the keyboard is the ability to track instant messaging sessions, whether on iSkoot (for Skype chat), Palringo or BlackBerry Messenger in background while carrying out other activities. On the subject of low cost international calling I find I can make much more use of Truphone for BlackBerry than Truphone for iPhone (that's the subject of a future post).

I am encountering more and more acquaintances who have no use for a touch keyboard; certainly my typing error rate is much worse on the iPhone. For this reason alone I consider the iPhone to be a very good one-way information delivery device whereas BlackBerry is a true two-way communications device.

As for applications, suffice it to say that over the next six months, where feasible, business savvy developers will publish applications running on both devices. For instance, The Hockey News has just released mobile applications for both the BlackBerry and iPhone. I mentioned Truphone above; Mobile Google apps are another example.

Keeping up with iTunes music via BlackBerry MediaSync is a trivial operation. Frankly from some video and audio streaming experiences I have had, BlackBerry Bold provides superior stereo audio performance even without earbuds or a headset.

Bottom line: when I leave my home office or hotel room with my Bold, I no longer have to take my laptop to keep current.

Yes, at the moment, the iPhone browser a superior user experience but rest assured RIM is not ignoring the issue. At this point the Bold's browser issues have sometimes been frustrating but they not been an inhibition to my browsing activities in any major way - I still get the information I am seeking. The critical parameter here is the 480 pixel display width, which is sufficient to view most websites and weblogs without the need for horizontal scrolling via a ribbon bar. When RIM releases carrier-specific versions of their upgraded operating system - including browser enhancements, the Bold will live up to its full potential as "A Laptop for the Hip or Purse".

(As for pricing on Rogers, both the Bold and iPhone are C$199 with a three year contract.)

In future posts I'll cover in more detail some of the issues mentioned above, including my Truphone evaluation on each device, some very amazing real time video and audio experiences, the range of third party applications available on each device and why both background processing and WiFi is becoming critical to any smartphone.

And, Mark, if you're looking for a mobile microcomputer, I would suggest serious consideration of the BlackBerry Bold. As a final determinant, have a look at the Bold's display - it's been universally acclaimed as "stunning"; I can only agree.

In closing, can we expect Skype to include BlackBerry as one of their supported platforms for Skype for Mobile? Or will iSkoot improve on their user interface to take advantage of some new BlackBerry developer tools? (Most Skype executives I meet are sporting a BlackBerry - it's supported by eBay IT.)

Update: Luca published a post this afternoon, A Bold New Experience, and asks about his Tweet above: "Why Did I Say That?"

1) Always on Experience: the BB is offering me a realtime always-on experience never found in any device I used before
2) Multitasking - It lets you receive IMs while writing an email or making a phone call, for example
3) Stunning display
4) Wide availability of apps
5) Crazy speed
6) Great usability

Other posts:

• Om Malik: Review: BlackBerry Bold is Beautiful
• Web Worker Daily: BlackBerry Bold: Upgrading Your Mobile Experience.
  

Full disclosure: the author has been holder of a minuscule number of RIM shares since 1998.

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Pat Phelan Finds How Popular Skype Is, Really!

Today Ireland's favorite communications entrepreneur, Pat Phelan, put up a post: "How Popular is Skype, really?" Shows the potential for both Skype and its (prospective) partners, should the new executive team be able to execute on a restructured Skype and a viable partner program. And it shows the relative magnitude of the challenge that Truphone, Jajah and Rebtel are up against as they try to grow their business.

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How Skype Will Grow in 2009

Guest Post by Hudson Barton, The Borderless Communicator

2008 is turning out to be a great year for Skype growth (real users), nearly matching the record year of 2006. In my view, the patterns of Skype growth are affected by:

1. The popularity (name recognition) of the software itself... in comparison to communications alternatives.
2. The capability of computers and mobile communication devices.
3. The quality and capability of the software for multi-modal communication... in comparison to communications alternatives.
4. The state of the world economy
5. The availability of broadband

So for 2009 here is how things are shaping up.

• Skype has no discernible marketing program. It never has. Skype relies almost entirely upon word-of-mouth. If Skype were to introduce a marketing program, the opportunity for growth could be significant. There seems to be zero prospect for such a marketing plan.
  
• The power of computers will grow marginally. The capability of mobile devices, especially smartphones, will grow hugely. The latter is a real opportunity for Skype if it can develop quality software for the most popular platforms such as the iPhone, BlackBerry and Nokia N- and E-series. On the other hand, if the world economy sinks, then few people will be buying those new computers and mobile devices. Overall, this is not going to affect 2009 growth significantly.
  
• The overall quality and capability of Skype client software will improve marginally. Aside from bringing out client software for mobile platforms, upcoming improvements in the client (especially video and audio) will affect Skype growth only on the margins.
  
• Because Skype/Skype calling is free, and both SkypeIn and SkypeOut are very inexpensive, it is reasonable to assume that a poor economy is good for Skype in terms of its market share of communications. However, the overall market for communications may well decline in a bad economy. So while a declining economy is not good for Skype, it is less bad than for Skype's competitors.
  
• The availability of broadband is a very important factor in the growth of Skype's "real users".

Summary: Skype growth (as measured by "real users") will continue on its current trajectory (averaging around 830,000 new "real users" per month). That is a huge number by anyone's standard. As in prior years, growth will be strong in the first quarter, slack in the second and third quarters, and strong in the fourth quarter.

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Truphone Breaks the Carrier Barrier

Truphone's announcements last week overcame a significant carrier resistance barrier to using VoIP-enabled services to reduce international calling costs. The key secret here was that it required the combination of Truphone's iPhone and iPod Touch applications along with the Apple Application program that leverages Apple's established carrier relationships to break this barrier.On Friday I was finally able to complete provisioning of Truphone on my iPhone. It happened at this time for three reasons:

• The association of my original Truphone number and account with a Nokia N95 handset and the "416" number I eventually transferred to my iPhone whose acquisition as an upgrade on my carrier account minimize my iPhone costs over the term of the three year contract.
• The original iPhone application only supported outbound calling; I would have lost the Truphone inbound calling feature I had on the N95.
• For this reason I left Truphone on my N95 (using a deactivated SIM and my home office WiFi access point) pending the arrival of a Truphone for iPhone application and service that supported both inbound and outbound calling.

Recall also that the original Truphone for iPhone only allowed calls over WiFi access points with no ability to pass them through the underlying 3G wireless carrier. Truphone's two announcements last week addressed three issues:

• Truphone for iPhone now supports both inbound and outbound calling
• Truphone added the Truphone Anywhere service such that Truphone for iPhone calls could be made over the underlying 3G carrier as well as over WiFi.
• Truphone for iPod Touch (2nd generation) invoked the Truphone Anywhere service allowing calls to be made from iPod Touch to any PSTN number.

Over the course of the past week it has become possible to make low cost international calls from any iPhone or iPod Touch mobile device worldwide. Truphone has demonstrated how the underlying service provider can can eliminate the need to have a multitude of individual "carrier-service provider agreements" with the 79 carriers currently offering the iPhone worldwide. Yet carriers still benefit through increased local minutes used to provide the connection to/from Truphone calls. To quote from Ted Wallingford's "Heartburn Chuckle: The telecom industry can blame itself":

The Carriers

The carriers are firms like AT&T, Windstream, Verizon, BT, and so on. Their obsession with the billing unit (the almighty minute) has made them helpless to see the possibilities of a software-rich, application-based global ecosystem. Consequently, the most successful apps to arrive on the carriers’ networks, the ones most embraced by the public, overwhelmingly have one purpose: to steal billable minutes from the carriers. The innovation disappeared and the scrappy new players in the market, the ones with the power to transform the public’s thinking about telecom, instead got stuck doing the same old thing the big telecoms do to put bread on the table: bill minutes. [Author's italics]

For instance, Canadians can now use Truphone for iPhone as their international calling service over Rogers without the need to subscribe to one of Rogers international calling plans but perhaps with an increase in their monthly "local" voice plan minutes. In this case, there is no cost for the actual application and you establish international call credits through a Truphone account. When Rogers' iPhone customers travel to Europe, calling back to North America can be handled at a much lower cost through hotel, cafe and airport WiFi services, such as Boingo or iPass. (True roaming calls from outside the "home country" over a 3G carrier will still be expensive; Andy's post linked here suggests RebelSIM provides a solution.)

It was the second part of this announcement that is most significant. Previously VoIP-enabled services, such as 3's Skypephone, required working with individual carriers to establish the appropriate business and operating agreements. However, in one move, Truphone was able to leverage Apple's relationships with 79 carriers worldwide to bring about commitment free international calling. Apple, through its Application Program has become a disintermediator, facilitating a business model disruption, once again.

As for the iPhone for iPod Touch application; this is why the most successful carriers need to offer both wireless and broadband Internet services. Calls via WiFi access points, including one's broadband Internet service, go over the broadband connection and reduce carriers' needs to build out the capital-intensive wireless network infrastructure, including backhaul.

In a future post, once I've had some more Truphone for iPhone experience, I'll do a comparison of services available over Skype and over Truphone. But one obvious difference: Truphone is about voice conversations only; Skype is about voice and text conversations.

Related Post: Race to Provide Low Cost International Calling Heats Up

Tags: Truphone, iPhone, carriers, voip, Skypephone, iSkoot, international calling, service providers, WiFi

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Race to Provide Low Cost International Calling on Mobile Heats Up

Yesterday I wrote a post for GigaOm, Skype: Coming to a Cell Phone Near You, discussing how the announcement of two new beta versions of Skype on mobile devices gave a hint of Skype's future mobile strategy.

At the same time Truphone announced a new version of their iPhone application. Whereas the version released at the time of the Apple App Store launch back in July only supported outbound calling over WiFi access points, the new release not only supports inbound calling to your iPhone number but also makes outbound calls via the 3G carrier networks that offer the iPhone.

Innovation driven competition in delivering low cost international calling services appears to be heating up during these challenging economic times - at least for calls originating in your "home" calling country or area code(s). Here's a brief summary of what is evolving:

We've seen the evolution of two architectures for making VoIP-enabled calling from mobile devices; it's all a matter of where the calling party's Skype (or VoIP client) session is opened up - directly on the device or on a dedicated hosted server. This leads to two other considerations:

• Carrying the voice portion of the call from the mobile device into the network cloud, either via the carrier's robust and proven (GSM) voice channel or over via a WiFi access point
• The need to support Skype's instant messaging (chat and presence); this always occurs as a data activity

VoIP Client on the Mobile Device; VoIP over WiFi
Skype for Windows Mobile places the VoIP client directly onto the device. As a result the device must handle the "VoIP processing" to generate the packets that are transmitted over the supporting data network (either a carrier's 3G network or via a WiFi access point.) As mentioned previously, it places heavy demands on the device's resources, especially the processor (running at much lower speeds than on a PC) and the battery.
Truphone's original voice offering also runs on the device (usually a Nokia Smartphone). While both Skype for Windows Mobile and Truphone can run over either WiFi access points or a 3G network, it is strongly advised to use these only over WiFi access points to have a reliable, robust, high quality voice service. For instance, the Skype for Windows Mobile download page says:

• Log into Skype from any WiFi zone to make free calls and send instant messages to anyone else on Skype, anywhere in the world, any day of the week.
• WiFi connection or 3G/2G data connection (we cannot guarantee voice quality over 3G/2G. You may also be liable to additional data charges so please check with your operator before using)

Truphone's original iPhone outbound calling offering was also only available using the iPhone's WiFi capability; however, details of their architecture were never revealed.

Accessing VoIP via a Wireless Carrier
Over the past year we have seen the rise of several services that use the alternate architecture where a call is placed via a local access point to a hosted server that then opens up a Skype client. The server-based Skype client then completes the call as a Skype-to-Skype call.

While originally pioneered by iSkoot, a service using this architecture, such as Skype Lite beta, makes a call to a SIP Gateway server via a local point of presence while data about the call is concurrently sent via the underlying data network to a hosted Mobile Gateway. This dedicated gateway then sets up a Skype-to-Skype call between the SIP Gateway — now connected to your cell phone — and the destination Skype contact. Skype chat messages can also be exchanged concurrently over the data network. We are now seeing various offerings using this architecture:

• The highly successful Skypephone offered by 3 in nine countries.
• iSkoot providing service for a wide range of phones including BlackBerry, Nokia and T-Mobile's G-1.
• Truphone Anywhere: when Truphone found they could not offer a highly reliable service over 3G networks (largely due to device resource considerations), they launched Truphone Anywhere that allows Truphone calls to be made over a 2G (GSM/EDGE) or 3G (UMTS/HSPA) voice/data network as well as over WiFi access points.
• Skype for Mobile beta - Skype's first attempt to go beyond Skype for Windows Mobile onto other platforms such as Nokia N-Series and E-Series devices. This never got out of the beta phase; while you could use Skype chat anywhere, the voice service was only to be available in a limited number of countries (that did not overlap with countries where Skypephone was available).
• Skype Lite beta: building on the Skype for Mobile beta experience to a service that supports not only smartphones but also over 90 cell phones that support a Java client and include basic web browsing and data capability. According to the Skype Lite page it appears that Skype is working with carriers in ten countries to support this service.
• Truphone for iPhone 1.12 release announced yesterday: makes Truphone calls either over WiFi or any cellular network using an iPhone, building on their Truphone Anywhere experience.

Key features of these server-hosted VoIP client services:

• They are most cost effective when calling from your home country or local calling area. You could incur long distance or, when outside your home country, roaming charges that would run up quite quickly.
• An unlimited or high cap data plan minimizes costs associated with using these services.
• Only Skype provides a full Instant Messaging capability covering both chat and presence. Some Truphone offerings have shown support for SMS messaging.
• Calls to Skype or Truphone contacts are no additional cost beyond the "local" connection cost.
• Calls to the PSTN, such as SkypeOut calls, require Skype or Truphone subscriptions or credits.
  
• Calls to mobile numbers outside U.S. and Canada will still invoke the charges incurred in "caller pays" mobile services.

Why only the cost of a "local" call? Your cell phone makes a call to a local number which puts the call through to the service's SIP Gateway. At this point you connect into a Skype-to-Skype call for which there are no termination charges involved as a result of Skype's unique (and secure) peer-to-peer architecture. The same applies to Truphone where Truphone-to-Truphone calls are free.

This Skype Lite beta announcement portends that we could be seeing mobile Skype-to-Skype calling, along the lines of 3's popular Skypephone service in nine countries, become available to mobile customers having a much broader range of cell phones and in up to ten additional countries.

One other service that can be accessed from any phone is Mobivox. However, there you have to build up and manage your address book online such that VoxGirl can help you make your calls; it does not access your mobile phone address book. It's purely a voice service with no messaging component (other than using SMS to facilitate setting up calls under certain circumstances).

While we're getting a first step in driving down mobile costs for international calling, the next step needs to be finding a user-friendly way to drive out roaming costs. MaxRoam and Truphone's SIM4Travel are starting to offer some hope on this front; however, at the moment their costs for USA-Canada calls are much more than my Rogers roaming charge. The winners will feature not only lower costs but a very friendly user interface, interacting with the device address book, that also provides the most complete ranges of services in terms of coverage and complementary conversation modes, such as IM.

Skype 4.0 for Windows Beta 3 Available

We have just learned that Skype 4.0 for Windows Beta 3 is now available. Once we have had a chance to install and review it, there will be more to say. But for now:

• Skype 4.0 for Windows Beta 3 Download.
• Release Notes
• Raul Liive's Skype Blog Post

From the Release Notes (which also lists many bugfixes):

• feature: Abuse reporting - allow users to report unwanted contact requests and Spam
  
• feature: Call Quality Feedback button
  
• feature: Skype Prime payments support
  
• feature: Outlook Contacts
  
• feature: Custom Chrome
  
• feature: History
  
• feature: My Account in Client 2
  
• improvement: Options panel updated
  
• improvement: improved layout of profile area in group conversations
  
• improvement: Instant Messaging display
  
• improvement: Call Toolbar
  
• improvement: More visible button to switch between default and classic view
  
• improvement: Improved bandwidth allocation methods
  
• improvement: Changes to file sending design
  
• change: Getting Started Wizard improvements
  
• change: Extras Manager updated to version 2.0.0.65
  
• change: Removed AMR-WB audio codec

Remember this is a beta release and should not be used in "mission critical" situations where you require the full Skype 3.8 for Windows feature set. Check it out and provide your feedback to Beta Feedback, Skype Forums or the Jira public issue tracker or in comments to this post below.

Skype's Restructuring Makes Major Moves: New CxO Announcements

Over the past few months, announcements have been few and far between with respect to Skype product news. But at the same time I have often discussed Skype's restructuring moves; the first official disclosure of a restructuring was disclosed in our September interview with Skype's new President Josh Silverman. Well it appears that Josh has been busy doing interviews; today three top level appointments were announced:

Daniel Berg, previously Sun's London-based Chief Technology Officer for Global Sales and Services as well as Vice-President of Systems Engineering for EMEA, has been appointed as Skype's Chief Technology Officer, starting January 2, 2009. In a summary statement from Skype's blog post:

As CTO, Daniel Berg’s primary responsibility will be to drive innovation and ensure Skype continues to develop great software. With a mandate covering Skype’s full range of products, he will develop and maintain a global team of more than 300 staff.

Daniel has authored several books. But since he has not made any statements on his appointment yet, we could paraphrase a statement he made about his Sun activities last April in a post entitled "Travel, Talk, Repeat" on Sun's "Contrarion Minds" blog:

So he travels. A lot.

"I actually spend 25 percent of my working day, on average, in the air," says Berg, who is based in the U.K. "That's not going to the airport, not coming home from airport, that's in the air."

He knows this because he sticks to a time budget.

"I know I need to be spending this much time with customers and this much with organizational matters and this much with employee development, to make sure I'm staying focused and balanced," he explains.

His biggest challenge?

"Articulating the value Sun [Skype] has," Berg replies. "I know this has been said before, but I've been at Sun 15 years and this is the best lineup of technology, products, and offerings we've ever had. Yet when I go talk to customers, one of the first things they say is, 'Oh, I didn't know you guys did that.'"

So we'll be expecting Dan to become one of the more "public" faces of Skype. And that those air miles will keep on building up.

The second appointment is Christopher S. Dean as Chief Strategy Officer. From his LinkedIn profile, Christopher has a long history of working with startups, including periods on the venture capital side in Silicon Valley, most recently as co-founder of Texada Capital. At one point he and Skype's GM Audio and Video Jonathan Christensen were colleagues in a San Francisco-based venture capital firm called Sweetwater Partners, whose Internet traces seem to have disappeared. From the Skype blog post announcement:

Christopher S. Dean will focus on Skype’s strategy, including the development of partnerships and strategic alliances with other like-minded organisations and the acquisition of companies and technologies for Skype. His team will act as the incubator and strategic planning hub for new ideas and projects which support Skype’s technology vision and long term corporate goals.

It appears that Christopher will be based out of Skype's San Jose office; his responsibilities will be a key to driving Skype from a $500MM per year revenue business into the the multi-billion dollar revenues needed to justify eBay's initial investment in Skype. Why the "S."? I assume that Christopher is trying to avoid confusion with the U.K.'s Olympic Ice Dancing multiple Medallist Christopher Dean.

The final appointment, another key to ensuring Skype hires and maintains appropriately skilled and motivated employees, is the appointment of Anne Gillespie, whose long history of EMEA positions with Compaq and HP, brings the experience required to serve as head of Skype Human Resources.

There's still one more major executive move I am expecting - a Chief Marketing Officer who bring the badly needed messaging and market communications strategies and disciplines required for a business that's expected to attract sufficient usage to generate those multi-billion dollar sales.

And I'm sure Lee Dryburgh has no problem with my publicly inviting Dan and Christopher to register to join the rest of the Emerging Communications community at eComm 2009; after all Skype is a Platinum sponsor.

Best wishes for success, Dan, Christopher and Anne from Skype Journal.

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