Skype News & Articles

Put the fun and games aside. This week we looked at social media in the enterprise as more of a necessity than a trend. 

Skype (news, site) didn't have the best 2009, but recent moves suggest the VoIP platform is aiming to make an impressive comeback. In addition to filing for an IPO, both a notable partnership and a new CEO are paving the way for success. 

Lots of potential acquisitions are in the news this morning. First we heard rumors of Six Apart making deals in Japan, and now word on the street is that Cisco (news, site) is prepping to purchase Skype for a pretty penny.

Yesterday, Google added yet another feature to the Gmail arsenal. The VoIP addition is different from the voice and video chat already available within Gmail's chat feature in that it isn't limited to chat users. Gmailers can now call any type of phone directly from their browser. 

This week, Google continues to provide apps that will help SMBs. In this case their new Gmail and Google Voice Integration is not yet available in Google Apps, but it really only seems a matter of time before it is -- so watch out Skype. Meanwhile, Panda shows security is still a SMB problem.

While many organizations are seeking to ban popular social networking tools (Facebook, Twitter) from the workplace, others are busy building a case for them. Let's take a look at the pros of using social networking tools as part of your enterprise collaboration strategy.

Apparently Google isn't the only one headed for the big screen. Recent times highlighted Skype's (news, site) interest in planting its popular video-calling service in your television set. 

A Danish VoIP technology company called  Vopium just banked US $16.5 million in funding, and has a specific aim to  gatecrash Skype's party. 

VoIP has been a pretty hot topic lately, with Skype adding group video chat and recent Google moves hinting at mobile video conferencing, but what about the smaller guy? Paltalk, a lesser-known VoIP service, lets you do all the fun video chat stuff you like for free. 

Even with falling euro values, times are still tough in the SMB space. But this week there are a number of hosted options, including one for SharePoint 2010, that might help. Confirming the in-roads hosted and cloud computing is making, Rackspace is taking its services to Europe.

Google took out its checkbook again. This time the search giant aims to purchase a real-time voice and video processing software company called Global IP Solutions. The US$ 68.2 million dollar deal reportedly won't affect GIPS customers, but it may mean some highly interesting things for Google's future offerings.  

Skype (news, site) 5.0 Beta is here, and along with it is the ability to video conference with more than two people. Hallelujah. 

Goober Networks (news, site), a Unified Communications solutions provider, has a new beta out that includes multi-protocol IM, VoIP to landlines and cellphones and 4-way video conferencing calls to both PC and Mac desktops. (goober says the final public release of goober 3.0 will feature 6-way video conferencing).

This week the mobile enterprise offers us new and improved ways to stay in touch on the go, whether it be from our chair, our feet or speeding down the highway. And no, we don't mean the internet super highway.

While there has been anecdotal evidence that SMBs are beginning to spend on IT again, this week a number of reports show that it’s actually happening, although not in the areas you might expect. CRM is a big winner, with British SMBs taking to hosted CRMs rather than on-premise options