[TBacker]

More chicken and egg paradox I'm afraid. Developers won't develop for a platform that hasn't taken off yet because not enough developers have developed for it.

That and the world seems to be convinced that RIM = suckage and unhip. Righting that giant ship with all of the negative inertia is going to be slow.

As previous posters have stated, the only way to motivate major app developers to adopt an unproven, brand new platform is for RIM to throw seed money at them.

[SyChO_X]

we already have a video call system on the pb. its called 'realportal'. looks not bad, but havent try to make a connection yet.

its in bb world already.

[anthonybaker]

And skype in the PlayBook brower doesn't work right ? Does anyone know why that is ? If it on skypes end maybe we can convince a fix and if iits rims end maybe they could do an update to support it ?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[marikesh]

we already have a video call system on the pb. its called 'realportal'. looks not bad, but havent try to make a connection yet.

its in bb world already.

I just looked that app up. It is actually called ReelPortal and can be found here:

https://appworld.blackberry.com/webs.../23646?lang=en

This looks promising actually. A cross platform video conferencing app.

[kb5zht]

I am not too alarmed.

He said that they wait to see how successful a tablet is before they develop for it. Good business move. That in mind, consider this- the xoom running honeycomb is flipping. With Motorola considering cutting back production, and the bb playbook sold half as many tablets on the first day that the xoom did in its first month, we can safely conclude that if skype truley uses nothing more than the success of a tablet as the basis for its decision than we will see skypr before the end of the year.

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[brucep1]

Long email sent explaining that it is not fair that only the iToy users get Skype when there is a vast number of BlackBerry consumers out there who all want Skype.

LOL I can see the meeting now. The CEO of Skype stands up and says, "it is not fair, We MUST develop for everyone!"

Sorry, businesses don't care what's fair.

[Darlaten]

That's horrible news for me and, dare I say, for the Playbook as well.

EDIT: This will teach me to believe the images that RIM showed at their conference on the Playbook where they had a Skype app available. Yes, its a placeholder and a demo - it also, in light of this news, was misleading.

[anon(257429)]

I am not too alarmed.

He said that they wait to see how successful a tablet is before they develop for it. Good business move. That in mind, consider this- the xoom running honeycomb is flipping. With Motorola considering cutting back production, and the bb playbook sold half as many tablets on the first day that the xoom did in its first month, we can safely conclude that if skype truley uses nothing more than the success of a tablet as the basis for its decision than we will see skypr before the end of the year.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Its not based on the sale(s) of the "Xoom" but the introduction of Android 3.0, which is on more than one tablet. Remember the Xoom is being sold worldwide and Moto has yet to release numbers on what was sold and/or stated anything about cutting back production.

[s219]

As far as I'm concerned, Skype's response is reasonable, and inline with the types of business decisions developers need to make. Give it time. If the PB succeeds, they will develop for it.

On the other hand, annoying Skype execs with e-mails which do not impact the core business decision is probably not a great idea. I have been on the other end of mass e-mails from a forum "market in a teapot" before, and it really just wastes time. What talks is device/platform market share and/or $$. So if you want to resort to an e-mail campaign, send your feedback to RIM. They have developer relations people whose job is outreach. They can properly court Skype, and can sweeten the deal to make Skype's business decision easier, or at least properly facilitate it as the market grows.

[catsol]

for the time being I'm using https://plus.im (until there's a solution)
Works for me.

[semicoln]

This is a problem RIM needs to take the the Microsoft windows phone 7 approach with and throw some money at the developer.

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[andgee]

Surely its politics and as Tbacker mentions if a product does not have enough potential customers and may not in the future then whats the point investing time and money.

For those that say who needs Skype, many many people use skype and love the video chat service even if it is now and then. Maybe not all would pay for the service but its certainly a application that my wife and many others would consider to be required if they make a purchase. I would also even if buying for myself think twice if skype is not available on the playbook. As it would not go down well with the Wife and would limit its hand on value with family and friends.

I think like others mention it would need Blackberry to make it worth Skypes while. That or provide alternatives which are free at least for the minimum service and widespread around the world such as msn or yahoo.

Blackberry are going to find a lot of those who look at buying Playbooks/Ipads will expect after forking out 400 odd pounds dollars whatever that they expect certain functions and Apps available. If its not then they will buy/use the alternative.

Its no good saying the other person should get a playbook so can use bb Videochat it just wont happen as the other person for a start maybe using a traditional PC!

[Intosh]

Strange. I received an email from the same guy saying they are actively working on it and are very excited about the opportunity to serve their fans on the new platform.

I still have the email... let me just work on "producing it" for your viewing pleasure.


"will soon be launching our iPad app, followed by Android for Honeycomb. The investment in a new platform is pretty significant for us, and we generally prefer to see if the product is going to be a success in the market before we develop software."

Smells BS. The passage above gave it away.

[Daniel Ratcliffe]

Unfortunately, people think RIM are dead, and the big companies also probably wouldn't accept to develop even if RIM threw �9'999'999'999'999'999'999'999 at Skype to develop for it. Most of the big companies want RIM to die, which is sad due to the stability of the platform, and sending spam emails every single day will just make the big companies more likely to say "Due to constant spam from RIM fanboys, we now refuse to EVER publish our app for BlackBerry devices, and any already in circulation will be pulled. You want it still? Go buy another platform and let RIM die". Let the PlayBook sales, mindset, and marketshare do the talking.

If it's a worthwhile platform to develop for, then with a sweet enough deal from RIM, they will consider it. Windows is up-and-coming, so they're willing to give it a chance. RIM's platform has been out years, and they think it has seen its peak, so they need to see tons of mindshare and tons of money to even consider it.

Disclaimer: I plan to own a PlayBook and plan to continue using BlackBerry devices for the foreseeable future.

[BaconMunch]

RIM should have been in bed with Skype instead of Microsoft.

Proper Skype implementation with dual camera video-chat and true multi-tasking is a system seller. For Skype, it is a $5-$10 app that people would pay for.
Bing..is the ugly child that you'll eventually warm up to.

[Daniel Ratcliffe]

I'd pay for Skype, **** yeah. Maybe offer a free chat-only and a premium one with video chat and everything.

[stubbornswiss]

Having Skype on the PlayBook would have been a deal maker for RIM.

Not only is it widely used by individuals, but also more and more by companies, for business video conferencing. This would truly have made the PB stand out as a professional grade device.

I hate to say it, but I think RIM missed it on this one.

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[Rudee66]

Having Skype on the PlayBook would have been a deal breaker for RIM.

Not only is it widely used by individuals, but also more and more by companies, for business video conferencing. This would truly have made the PB stand out as a professional grade device.

I hate to say it, but I think RIM missed it on this one.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Having Skype would of been a deal "maker" not a deal "breaker". Got that backwards bro.

[kbz1960]

What is the difference between using skype and the likes of windows live, yahoo etc. that all can video chat or call as you call it?

[stubbornswiss]

Having Skype would of been a deal "maker" not a deal "breaker". Got that backwards bro.

I stand corrected. Thanks!

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[dcscott]

The top 7 reasons I purchased the PB were:

Skype
Netflix
Sling
Pandora
Email
VPN
Bluetooth music to my stereo
Store and play videos

So far I've got two out 7 working (email & videos). I'm thankful I bought my PB from a company with a 30 day return policy.

[mssg131187]

Many people I know were waiting to use Skype on PB, including me. Do you think they will have another app like google video chat or something like 'talkatime' which is available for Apple? To make voip calls?

[jr4941]

I'm bummed about this one. I wonder how these companies gauge demand? I wish there was an easier way to tell RIM and other companies what are the greatest request we have!

[calcareer]

I have been using another cross platform video chat application that is easy to set up and use.

I am curious to see what you guys think of this. It is called Reel Portal and there is a Playbook App already in Appworld for this.
More information is available in this thread:

http://forums.crackberry.com/f243/vi...-skype-612682/

[ummie4]

Why doesn't RIM pay Skype to develop the app. I think Skype is just as much of a Business app as a personal app. A new PB commercial with "the hand" zipping through a bunch of apps, opens up Skype and starts a video conference!!

Tell me that wouldn't make sales spike.