Skype Meetings Simplifies Confuses
It was too good to last. Microsoft had it all nicely organized.
There was Skype – the consumer app that everyone knew and Skype for Business (SfB).
Lync was a great name, but for those unfamiliar with Lync the quickest description was “Like Skype, but for business.”
Now there’s Skype Meetings. It’s the consumer branded service aimed at business users. It even requires a business email address. You can’t use this service with a consumer email address or an email address already associated with Office 365 (I tried).
It is the consumer Skype brand for business users, but should not to be confused with Skype for Business. It should not be confused with consumer Skype either even though it basically offers the same features.
The branding has confused the client (me), but the client is confusing too.
It’s a web based service. That makes sense since Skype is now available as a web service (Skype Online), but it requires an installer. That’s where I stopped. I think the installer adds browser plugins. I find it odd because I have two Skype clients (Skype and SfB), Chrome, and Edge on my PC. Why do I need plugins? Plus I can use Skype Online without plugins.
From what I gather only the host needs to do the install. I wonder if a host can use a Chromebook?
I am confused by Skype for Meetings. Although I didn’t actually try it, I’m sure it works great as Skype and SfB both do. It doesn’t add new functionality over Skype or SfB. In fact, it does less. Perhaps that’s the goal – the other clients do too much and this is part of the de-unify communications movement. I can kind of see that – that not everyone wants a client, buddy lists, and invites from sexxyGrl69. Though it seems easier to just extend one of the existing brands/clients/apps to accommodate meetings without the client. Why create a new front-door and registration?
By Dave Michels
Dave is an independent analyst and founder of TalkingPointz which is focused on enterprise communications. In addition to this (free and paid) content on TalkingPointz, he contributes to industry sites, can be found at major industry events, and provides advisory services to vendors and financial analysts.