Skype has launched a new Mac client that adds one particularly interesting feature: desktop sharing.
The new Skype allows call or chat participants to share all or part of their desktops on demand, emulating the core service of Web-Ex and a pile of similar companies.
There’s some other interesting new features as well, Twitter like status messages, WiFi access and better usability, but it’s the screen sharing that is potentially the most disruptive. All of a sudden over 100 million users just got access to a free desktop sharing platform.
A lot of the Web-Ex style services do offer additional features, as does Web-Ex itself, so the comparison isn’t perhaps apples and apples, and some also offer free services as well, so the potential of undercutting existing services on price doesn’t come into play. The killer is simply having this service at hand, on demand, and without the usual hassle of having to set up a share beforehand. There’s also no need for an additional download outside of Skype itself which some services demand; and as I’ve discovered more than once some services are often Windows only where as this available to everyone…well eventually anyway, Windows users can view a Mac shared desktop over Skype now, even if they can’t share their own quite desktops yet.
It’s great to see the Mac version of Skype getting some attention; usually it lags well behind the Windows version for new features, and this continued push forward with improvements and great value ads can only bide the company well if and when eBay tries to sell it later this year.
Disruptive Techonlogy has a demo video that includes the desktop sharing as follows:
