With the popularity of mobile chat services such as WhatsApp for text and Snapchat for pictures, Skype has wisely cornered the video-messaging market. Following an extensive beta testing phase that kicked off in February, the company has now officially launched the full version of the application.
According to TechHive, the transition from beta to the complete program means that subscribers will no longer be limited to a maximum of 20 free video messages. As of Monday, users can send as many video messages as they want, completely free of charge. The only requirement is that the video clips must be under three minutes in length, and that both the sender and receiver must have their own Skype accounts. There is no need for both members to be simultaneously online.
The new Skype service will be available on an extensive list of platforms, namely Mac OS X, Android, Blackberry, iOS, Windows 8 and even the conventional Windows desktop.
Interestingly enough, Windows Phone is not currently supported by the app; an omission that has many industry analysts baffled. After all, Microsoft owns the popular VoIP service, and it's odd that they would add the functionality to competing handsets before one of their own.
This is not the first time that Windows Phone has been sidelined by Skype, however. Skype for Windows Phone was only released in April 2012; nearly a year after the tech giant acquired the Estonian-based company. In contrast, Android and iOS-compatible versions of the program have been available for several years.
For those interested in learning the ins and outs of the new Skype messaging service, the company has released a comprehensive how-to video on their YouTube page, shown below.