Skype filled for its IPO recently and the WSJ had a nice summary of the numbers associated with Skype.
The issue with Skype obviously is how do you make big bucks on a low cost service. You have to do that by having a massive consumer base.
In telecom we use to talk about the race to zero... that voice services will eventually become free through the commidifaction of sending voice as data packets and competitive market forces (which increase exponentially when voice is seen as a data transmission).
Anyhoo... all the techno mumbo jumbo aside... the big problem for skype is that most people like to move about while they are on the phone and don't like being tethered to their computer.
I think if Skype takes off, it will do so in the mobile world where users use skype on their smartphones to avoid cellular charges.
The biggest barrier however is that at some point Skype is going to have to start publicizing itself as more than just a PC / Smartphone app for making phone calls. Right now what does Skype stand for? It almost has an anti-brand.... which most free services tend to develop. Their brand is less about something and is defined more by under cutting traditional providers.
But if low-cost alternative alone were enough to ignite consumers passion then Hyundai would be the leading auto manufacturer.
Nope, I think for Skype to truly become a cash cow, aside from playing heavily in the mobile space, it has to define itself to its customers.
Check out what they've done with LG... VERY cool....
While Skype has done an amazing job of remaining interesting to the technology crowd, it still has yet to catch the interest of mainstream society. It's still seen as a PC application to avoid long distance charges. And that's not surprising... mainstream consumers tend to understand hardware devices, not software.
I hope when they go IPO they throw some marketing dollars to revamp the Skype proposition and put some effort in to articulating to mainstream consumers why the Skype train is one they need to climb on board.
The issue with Skype obviously is how do you make big bucks on a low cost service. You have to do that by having a massive consumer base.
In telecom we use to talk about the race to zero... that voice services will eventually become free through the commidifaction of sending voice as data packets and competitive market forces (which increase exponentially when voice is seen as a data transmission).
Anyhoo... all the techno mumbo jumbo aside... the big problem for skype is that most people like to move about while they are on the phone and don't like being tethered to their computer.
I think if Skype takes off, it will do so in the mobile world where users use skype on their smartphones to avoid cellular charges.
The biggest barrier however is that at some point Skype is going to have to start publicizing itself as more than just a PC / Smartphone app for making phone calls. Right now what does Skype stand for? It almost has an anti-brand.... which most free services tend to develop. Their brand is less about something and is defined more by under cutting traditional providers.
But if low-cost alternative alone were enough to ignite consumers passion then Hyundai would be the leading auto manufacturer.
Nope, I think for Skype to truly become a cash cow, aside from playing heavily in the mobile space, it has to define itself to its customers.
Check out what they've done with LG... VERY cool....
While Skype has done an amazing job of remaining interesting to the technology crowd, it still has yet to catch the interest of mainstream society. It's still seen as a PC application to avoid long distance charges. And that's not surprising... mainstream consumers tend to understand hardware devices, not software.
I hope when they go IPO they throw some marketing dollars to revamp the Skype proposition and put some effort in to articulating to mainstream consumers why the Skype train is one they need to climb on board.
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