Looks like Skype, now owned by Microsoft, is serious about bringing video calling over to Windows Phone. In a job advertisement put out by the company, they are looking to hire someone
"...for building and optimizing the Skype Video Engine solution for Microsoft Windows and Windows Phone platforms."
Video engine? That little bit should confirm our suspicions. Going further, it looks like they are planning on plenty of updates to keep that baby humming a long:
"You will be working with a small team of highly skilled development and testing professionals to deliver a new release of the Video Engine every 2 months."
Of course it should come as no real surprise that Microsoft and Skype would do this--we know "Mango" evidenlty allows front-facing cameras and since Microsoft now owns Skype, deep integration into the desktop, Xbox, embedded devices and of course Windows Phone should be expected. But, we're at least glad that Skype looks to have already started down this route and are looking for more help, hopefully to speed things up now that the aquisition has gone through.
Here's hoping to full video calling over Skype in late 2011 on our 4G Windows Phone, amirite?
Source: Skype Careers; Thanks, Juan A., for the tip!
Comments
On a totally unrelated note, will the Web Developers for SPE PLEASE fix the google plus one tag. It's annoying always seeing the /g:plusone> tag on the page...Yes, my OCD kicked in enough for me to register and me to make this my first comment.....But it's been weeks now! :)
It's showing fine for me.
It shows correctly once in a blue moon.Infact, it shows /g:plusone> in my Opera browser at home, but at work on the Mac (still Opera) it's working fine.Weird.
My problem is with IE9. Just checked Chrome and FF and they show correctly.
Ooo looking forward to this, even if I don't live in America with 4G it'll still be just as good :)
If they are advertising this job only now - it's not going to be a quick release. Remember that they will have to rewrite the "video engine" in C# from scratch.
Nah, read the job description. This is for *one* position that is part of the "Microsoft Platforms Team".They're not gonna have 1 guy programming their video engine for all of MS's platforms...
It is clear that that person won't be the only one - what I meant is that it will take a while to do it (for any number of programmers).
Microsoft bought skype, and as u might know, Wp7 SO is not entirely made in .Net. Furthermore, video processing have to be made in native code. And then, u can simply wrap the API out in C#. And Wp7 kernell and stuff is just Windows so, the code for skype is goin' to work almost perfectly, I guess.Regards!
Video processing does not HAVE to be in native code; and WP7 runs on top of Windows CE, not desktop Windows - there are important differences.
1st. I never said it runs on Desktop Windows, but its still they platform, and its the same architecture, so it will be easier.2nd. Video processing in managed runs very slowly and not in real time. Microsoft CAN do that stuff natively without any problems. At least the hard processing routines. Have u ever used a library wrapped in .Net or Java? it works good, eventho they have to marshal all the data thought the managed env. Doing so in managed might consume more processing time, which means consuming more battery.
A couple of things...1. Why is everybody here doing that -1 0 +1 +2 stuff? Is that an standard now?? If +1 means "I like it" does +2 mean is super cool?? Ok just asking... 2. Why doesn't this happen at Microsoft Research? 3. They have 222.72B US$ Mkt/Cap at Nasdaq and now it turns out that all they needed was "one" developer to join the team, it's funny, just one... They can conquer the world with that money... But, it happens that they need first one more developer to join the team... Just curious about that.4. If anyone plans to do video processing on C# gotta be crazy, maybe that person should try to read more about Marshal someday.
On what basis do you conclude that there is support for FFCs in 7.5? I would say just the opposite:• The "Sea Ray" that is supposedly a WP N9 knockoff is conspicuous in not having the latter's FFC.• The Fujitsu phone is known not to.• The two leaked HTC phones don't.• The Acer, which is admittedly low end, doesn't.All that is left is the Samsung GSII knockoff, and we haven't seen anything either way. Thus, I'd say it's 80% certain that there is *no* FFC support in the 2nd gen. phones.
I'm not sure any of what you wrote supports your statement that it is 80% certain that there is no FFC support. You've only shown that there are no phones announced so far which have this feature. I could make the same statement that because none of the announced phones are purple then there is no support for purple phones.I believe that there was some discussion on the forum a while back stating there is reference in the code for front facing cameras. If that is true then the lack of new phones with a front facing camera only indicates that no manufacturers have taken advantage of the capability.
You're joking, right?If there was support for FFCs then the Sea Ray, which by all accounts is basically an N9 -- which has a camera -- with WP7 swapped in for Meego would have a camera. Why would Nokia go out of their way to *take it out*?!?Certainly, FFC support is coming, but just like there is code to suggest that WiFi tethering is "in there" somewhere, a registry snippet mentioning a second camera does not support make. Bottom line, if I can't buy a phone with WP7.5 on it and a working FFC, I'd say that means it isn't supported. Thus far, there is absolutely no reason to suspect that I will. The 20% uncertainly comes from the little hints like you suggest.Given that fact, and the fact that we are less than a month away from Mango dropping on new hardware, I'd say the likelihood of FFC support is looking very low.
No joke. The fact that a company did not implement something does not mean it is not supported. Apparently Mango supports a 13 megapixel camera yet there are phones coming out without one. Even if you are correct that it is not supported, what you have shown so far does not prove it at all.
There was a video of Microsoft themselves showing off the newest Mango phones. The latest Samsung device Steve Guggenheimer held up to the camera CLEARLY had a front facing camera. Here's a link to the story ran on this very website: http://www.wpcentral.com/microsoft-reveals-new-samsung-mango-device
It does indeed, but that phone is probably a prototype and the final version may vary.I would love for the truth to fall in that 20%, but I remain pretty convinced that this fall's WP handsets will not have working FFCs. If they do, they may be "special cases" like the DLNA support in LG's phones.Anyway, here's hoping.(PS If only the Sammy has one, then I'll probably *not* be getting the Nokia, which is what I really wanted.)
Man, the button to switch between front and rear is even in the new beta emulator. http://www.phonearena.com/image.php?m=Articles.Images&f=name&id=42592&na...Enough with the negativity already...
I think Microsoft has to be careful with Front Facing Cameras, since no current windows phones have them. Any Skype integration would have to be released along with some next-gen windows phones, ALL of which would have a FFC built in. Unfortunately, it seems as though not all of the next gen phones will have FFCs, and even the ones that do might not have software optimized for it. In any case, Skype integration could also bring voice chat, which would work on current phones. That would be a great feature to have.
Yes, and think of doing one side video conference. Remember that the download speed will be always better than the upload one. So, gettin the video stream from ur friend its gonna be easier and faster that sending yours too, or at least it´d be a really, really bad quality. And its not a phone thing. its an mobile operator issue, at least in Spain.But yes, i´d be really cool to have a FFC, you can make awesome and fancy apps :)
Skype offers more than just Video chat. So current phones could at least do voice, IM, etc...
I have had a FFC on every phone I own for years and never ever used it, I dont know about the USA but networks in the UK charge way too much for video calls. And for that reason I will never miss having one in my Omnia 7.
YEAH YEAH I LOVE IT AND KNEW IT WILL COME SOON. HURRY AND HOPE new windows phone 7 will have front face camera soon! i want it now!!! iphone facetime is a joke since it launched. I been using skype and glad microsoft bought them out. That will blow away apple iphone facetime ****