Microsoft starts testing the web version of Skype

Video chat will be implemented without plug-ins for all major browsers.

Today, a post about the launch of the Skype for Web project (Skype for the Web) appeared on the Skype blog. This implementation will use the WebRTC standard, which in the future will allow to communicate without installing plug-ins directly from the browser.

Web Real-Time Communication is a project with source code from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The standard will provide an opportunity to organize the transfer of streaming data between browsers or other applications supporting it using point-to-point technology. This means the potential for audio and video calls, as well as file sharing.

The standard is supported for Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Opera. (By the way, in the Firefox beta you can already call from the browser to the browser for the Firefox Hello service from Mozilla .)
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Thus, the previous assumptions that Microsoft is preparing Skype for compatibility with WebRTC are confirmed: the corresponding vacancies appeared on the company's website earlier.

As is often the case in such cases, the project is not ready and is still in the beta stage, which not everyone can use, but only a small group of people. The lucky ones will be able to try it on Skype.com , for which meanwhile they will have to download the WebRTC plugin for Internet Exporer.

To use, you must have access to the project, Internet Explorer 10 and higher or the latest versions of Chrome and Firefox. In Mac OS, the novelty works in Safari 6 and higher, but it can consume a lot of battery power.

Of course, in the future, the service will be compatible with other browsers, and in the coming months all users will be able to access the project gradually. For now we have to wait a bit.

Skype for Web means more competition for the Google Hangouts video chat service, which requires the installation of a plug-in and is a step backwards from the free XMPP protocol. Hundreds of millions of people speak Skype over 2 billion minutes a month from a variety of supported platforms: computers, mobile phones and tablets, smart TV, game consoles and other devices. However, it is too early to make any assumptions.

Microsoft bought the most popular voice and video program on May 10, 2011 for $ 8.5 billion. The deal was completed in the fall of the same year, and Skype, with all its technologies, became one of the divisions of the Redmond giant. In the spring of 2013, a service with a long history of Windows Live Messenger was closed in favor of the new acquisition.

Based on VentureBeat .