Skype Ends Desktop API Support Affecting Cloud Video Providers

I thought this was an interesting change made by Skype in January. I see little mention of it on the Web. Blue Jeans has Skype still listed as a endpoint but their knowledge base refers to using the browser instead. See screenshot.

This poses an interesting question assuming that Skype is a dominate consumer video platform, if domination is the path to interoperability what happens when the dominate player changes their API and no one else can play? A while back Kevin Kieller from nojitter.com suggested the path to interoperability is through market domination but I am not sure this is what customers had in mind. Maybe the reason I see little traffic on the topic is because it had little to no affect on what company's are doing although I am betting it was used as a selling point.

If you’re a Blue Jeans or other cloud video MCU customer has it affected you?

http://www.nojitter.com/post/232200411/market-dominance-as-a-path-to-interoperability

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VoIPNorm

3 comments:

  1. As part of the merger of Skype and Lync technologies, Microsoft announced two new approaches at the Lync Conference 2014 in Las Vegas.
    1. They are producing a Javascript-based API called "JLync", which will provide an integrated browser-based API to the ecosystem, and
    2. An as-yet-unreleased video interoperability server.

    Both of these were announced in the LyncConf keynote address.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Dan, not sure either of those things help partners in comparison to what they used to do for cloud MCU services but both are notable releases all the same.

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  2. I believe the "video interop server" (which will be in the next release of Lync server) is about bridging H.323 and Lync calls.

    Microsoft still has to shake out what they're going to do with WebRTC interop (which in the long run might be even more important than Lync /Skype/h.323 interop)

    You've got Google, Vidyo and a few others backing VP8 CODEC for WebRTC and Cisco backing H.264...and then Microsoft with their own proprietary version of WebRTC.

    Is WebRTC a ratified standard yet? -Nope Does have the potential to make a lot of impact? -I wouldn't bet against it...time will tell.

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