Facebook & Skype Team Up
Posted: Friday 08 July, 2011
Emilie Legrand
After much speculation and some not-so-secret rumours, Facebook's founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerburg finally announced on Wednesday that his company had decided to team up with Skype.
This is a smart strategic move on Facebook's part. Previously, users have only been able to instant chat on Facebook using a text box which has always been popular but the new format will enable users to video chat to other users face-to-face.
As well as explaining the union, Zuckerburg also highlighted that Facebook has seen an increase in users with one in nine people in the world now having a Facebook account. Both Skype and Facebook are hoping that the merger will lead to a continued increase in users as well as more revenue from advertisers.
It was mentioned that the new feature is set to roll out across Facebook mobile apps as a matter of priority – an important point considering a large percentage of Facebook users access their accounts via their mobile phones.
I think it's a great move for both Facebook and Skype and with family and friends jotted around the globe, I am looking forward to logging on and testing it out for myself.
