Skype Will Never Beat Facebook

When a friend starts a post with a "you will think I'm nuts …" I know he's a real buddy of mine. Luca asks today How Can Skype Become The Next Facebook? I'd have to say no way! My reasons are supported by some of the reasons he provides in his post and some of my own beliefs. What's really provoked his train of thought is Skype's botched "status" update. I say botched as on 432 people I'm seeing just a handful of status updates a day (Yeah.. windows doesn't have it yet etc…). There's no question that status updates can create conversations (as I saw when I installed the beta along with a group of others). My Twitter Status updates also include automated updates eg bookmarks, blog posts, Calls etc. So for Skype to make them really useful they must open up so you can feed other services or data into their system. Saying update Twitter from Skype isn't useful if the "mega aggregator of all the status updates you are following is Twitter".  Skype should have incorporated Twitter. Which could be interesting in itself. The best way to grow sometimes is to infect others. While Phweet has not yet infected the twitter apps… Skype could easily infect Twitter. It could also create a simple Twitter app. So could GoogleTalk. So why should I point out the obvious? Let's turn to the Skype profile. As Luca points out it is no Facebook profile. In many ways it is a good simple profile. It's one up from a number based callerID providing a picture and name and then it reveals (if you put it in) all the other information you need to connect when the other person is not on Skype. The big issue for me is one profile or identity doesn't work in all places at all times. Just like we may resist taking work calls at home or dating calls at work one identity will not suit all conversations. Rather than embrace the Skype profile… Skype should be embracing other profiles. Thus providing choice over CallerID.  Note this is a design feature of Phweet. It is profile agnostic. Now two points in a row that may sound like heresy! Open up your communications platform. Actually this is an appeal to insert your communications platform into the flow of others. Although I'm not sure that Skype's Identity layer will allow this or make it easy. (I think impossible). Luca also wants SkypeMail. He doesn't need it if they infect Twitter as Twitter could provide the mail infrastructure. Although I'd still create a SkypeMail. In fact I'd think Skype could do it using Google! (oops!). Point here is we want talk, text and post! post is the asynchronous approach. Still one of the main reasons Skype cannot become a social network is it's intrusive nature. There's a reason not many talk on Facebook or the conversations take place "out of network".  In fact I believe many of these networks are going the wrong way about communication. If communications are leaving the network anyways then make it easier not harder to make your directory a part of the conversation. If the conversation escalates on Skype or Phweet or another conferencing solution, these directory services are much better off if they remain accessible and continue to manage elements of the data exchange. For example sharing pictures is probably more valuable into Facebook while talking with a friend than sharing them one to one. Yet Skype could easily create a Facebook app. Or a MySpace app for a minuscule outlay. Skype is intrusive because any friend can "Ring"; as the caller and not the receiver is in charge. The result is the majority of users only accept calls from approved buddies and that creates a real hurdle for making new connections. It's further thwarted by the need to get permission before you can chat in many cases. I'd note that the traditional phone system and Twitter don't work like this. (Although on Twitter you have to change your settings to "all @replies"). Many people don't like Skype because it is intrusive and they have little control over interruptions. Skype's second problem for future communications is it is not sharable. It doesn't generate URL's. There's no way seemingly that you can join my call or I can broadcast what I am talking about. Similarly records of calls are no better than the traditional telephone system. In other words others can't ask to join if they don't know the call is in progress. (Again an option that Phweet creates). Then if Skype considers my strategy for plugging in to major social networks their plug-in architecture solves the problem. Overall I'm not saying Skype can't strengthen their strategy or involvement in the social networking space. I've proven above they have opportunities. Equally, I believe they have failed to leverage eBay related opportunities. It does require them to become a different type of player. Skype's no longer really infectious. It's just a tool. Yet escalating to voice and video remains really valuable. More importantly being in the "status" stream and integrating with it will be central to communications. Skype like Facebook is making a play for the Status update. The real question is will Twitter be able to hold on to it… lose it etc. If you ask me…  Big companies should start using Twitter Status.  Afterall it is open and what's the risk if you need a status strategy anyways. Twitter also needs to enable this by providing a proper authentication process. Until then "security" gets in the way.

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