Mobile Skype finally gets group video calls

Group video on your smartphone - hoorah! Photo: Skype

Group video on your smartphone – hoorah! Photo: Skype

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of its free video calls, Skype is giving everyone a present: group video calls on mobile devices.

It was only six years ago that Skype video calling premiered on mobile phones, setting one-to-one video calls free from the laptop or desktop.

Now, you’ll be able to group video chat via Skype on Android, iPhone, iPad and Windows 10 Mobile. Here’s a cute video Skype created to celebrate.

Skype’s undergone quite a bit of growth in the last ten years, with over 750 million people downloading the mobile apps to their pocket computers. You can connect with other Skype users on the web (Skype.com, Outlook.com), gaming consoles (Xbox), and even collaborate via Skype in owner Microsoft’s Office Web Apps.

Skype’s video options have grown as well, with video messaging, real-time speech and instant message translation, not to mention group video calling, which has seen ten times the amount of users in a little under two years.

The new free feature should show up in an update to your Skype mobile app on the platform of your choice within the next few weeks, but you can also get a sneak preview if you fill out a little web form for the team.

Skype’s also put out an infographic with all the things people have done with video calling via the service, including connecting with a submarine at the bottom of the ocean, teaching doctors to perform surgery, and keeping families connected during natural disasters. What have you done with it?

What do you use Skype video calling for?

What do you use Skype video calling for?

Via: TechCrunch