Slashdot Mirror
Fring Calls Skype 'Cowards'; Skype Responds
An anonymous reader writes "It seems that Skype and Fring are not getting along so well today. First, Fring made a claim that Skype was blocking Fring and in a subsequent blog post, called Skype 'cowards': 'Now that Fring expanded capacity to support the huge demand for video calling for all users, Skype has blocked us from doing so. They are afraid of open mobile communication. Cowards.' Skype has responded, stating that Fring's misuse of Skype software was damaging their brand and reputation: 'There is no truth to Fring's claims that Skype has blocked it. Fring made the decision to remove Skype functionality on its own.'
Well I tend to believe Skype on this one. About the not-blocking. I can even see why they want to protect their brand and especially continued service for their customers. As a Skype user I actually am happy they do so. Nah, no complaints about skype from me so far. Calling your the company whoms api's you have been using for years a coward is not done in my book btw. Just keep to the license and everything should be fine. Al least, that is my experience with Skype. Your mileage may vary though.
+1 for Skype here. Just think about the cost of the servers (datacenter) doing the "video transcoding" between Skype and the mobile formats and see why it would be too expensive for a company like fring (with no revenue) to keep supporting Skype's video call. I think they must have realised that they would run out of money, and thus shut down Skype support, and tried to blame Skype for it.
-picks up phone-
"Hello sir, this is Skype calling"
-hangs up-
If skype would just make a fully featured android client then we wouldn't have to resort to fring or nimbuzz or anything else. Come on skype. I don't care about the finger pointing, just want my functionality back!
If only there were a way the public could verify these claims... has anyone ever thought of developing software that exposes its source codes so that users can explore and improve their programs?
Skype’s client does not offer many of the new iOS4 features that Fring is quick to jump on, namely video calling, background operation, and even push notifications which have been around for a long time. One could argue that Fring’s client allows Skype users to use these features with Skype, which is something that users want. Skype is notoriously slow at adopting new features such as these, and is also slow at their geographical expansion. You still cannot get a Canadian Skype-In number, but there are a host of Canadian VOIP services offering phone numbers for example.
Basically, sounds like the vanilla Skype client is not ready to adopt this technology on their iPhone apps, but Fring already has, using Skype's API. This makes Skype's devs look bad, obviously, if a third party's app is surpassing their native app on their native API. Sounds like a lot of code-dick measuring as far as I'm concerned. Unfortunately, Skype still wins if Fring violated any licensing agreements (which it seems like Skype is implying)
that's teh shizzle bizzle
I have no idea what Fring is, but I'll just read the summary which will surely define it.... no, well then, there must at least be a link to it.....no, of course not. I don't know what I was thinking.
"They deserved the block, and we didn't block them anyway" sounds like an odd denial.
Mind you, I think Fring is going about it wrongly and nobody who seriously wants an open standard and a sensible platform should even glance at Skype. Work with XMPP or the Wave protocol or something.
If it wasn't for this article, I wouldn't have a clue who this Fring mob are. If anything, I think they're trying to break Skype brand by spreading these stories about how the big guy is hurting the little dudes...
Excellent article, explained very clearly. Congratulations on the quality of your website. Greetings from Turkey.
Someone is embarrassing themselves over the iPhone and for once it's not Apple.
Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
The things Skype has done lately demonstrate that Skype can be added to the list of "companies that dont care about their customers anymore".
By not releasing an Android client (for anyone other than Verizon customers) or a better iPhone client, all they are doing is driving customers to their competitors.
Although maybe some of this business model comes from top people put in place during the time Skype was controlled by eBay.
Let that be a lesson to all, that those who base their business model around a third party are doomed to fail... In Fring's business plan, I'm sure one of the single points of failure is the fact that at any time, Skype can choose to put them out of business by adding one or two lines of iptables filter rules to their firewall.
They should do what skype does, not attempt to piggy-back on skype. It doesn't work, because eventually your business will actually grow, and then what happens is skype becomes your competitor, rather than your friend. Once this happens, it becomes in their best interest to remove you from the equation.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but Skype says that Fring cut the functionality themselves and Skype haven't blocked them? Isn't that testable? Like setting up Fring and some sniffing program and see if they handshake?
I don't have the required technical expertise in that field myself, but if someone could check it out I think it would be interesting.
If you read the Robert Miller, Skype's VP of Legal, post, you will surely notice, that they deny technically blocking fring, but don't deny leagally threatening them if they continue to provide skype connectivity. Which is exactly what fring has written in it's press release. The rest about fring damaging their brand reputation is peanuts compared to what they have done themselves with this move. With prompt response skype has generated enough spin, through which they were able to confuse some pinheads, which now resort to nothing more than blind faith when choosing sides. #$%&!
It is clear from the few posts on Fring's website that what they mean when they say Skype has blocked them is not that they implemented a technical measure to stop Fring from connecting but that they (likely through a C&D or something) threatened Fring that they would take legal action if they did not remove the functionality. So it is pretty clear that Skype did in fact block Fring, just through the legal system rather than by denying connectivity directly.
Skype is pretty much the coolest program out there so I don't think I'm going to agree with Fring at all. Just like I prefer DubLi over eBay. Ain't gonna listen...
Sounds to me like Skype are doing to Fring what the land-based networks/ISPs did to Skype when it started up.
America, Home of the Brave.
Hail Eris! All Hail Discordia!
Truth arises more readily from error than from confusion. -Francis Bacon
There is no goddess but goddess, and she is your goddess!
The api license cannot be based on normal copyright like most other software licenses. You do not copy software of skype in ways that are bound by copyright based licenses. So instead they use the brand moniker: Ik you use the word "skype" or claim to use the "skype network" you use the brand name.
The one other possibility skype has is to technically block certain users, for which a user might find a workarround. Not a road you want to take first since blocking/banning customers is bad for business.
Here's the kicker.
"And the whole issue with charging for Skype Over 3G? I already pay you for a monthly subscription, now I will have to pay extra to use it on my iPhone over 3G? "
May it be on apple, android, rim, symbian, windows phone or whatever..
As we evolve our usage from voice to video calls, and it becomes the new mainstream, the operators
like to take advantage of this change which they believe justifies (or at least they hope) additional charges
on the consumers.
And Skype happily jump aboard, they are somewhat forced by the operators, but they are certainly also willing to play ball themselves, as it creates another revenue source for them. So we go from skypeout&skypein to becoming a regular feeder as a controller of the carrier.
Will the consumers allow this?
Do they have a choice?
Consumers want: low and flat rate on consumption and lots of use (although there is a saturation point)
Providers want: multiple, less transparent and flexible revenue streams and lots of users (with use that allows them to be cheap on infrastructure)
There are plenty of other factors, and the fact that the operators still have networks to expand and improve the quality of, and that increased usage by the newer applications when they hit mainstream, will lower the quality and force the operators to invest faster and more in network infrastructure ensures that not all ends meet right away.
Then also Skype are the bad guys, but why trust Fring? What is their business model?
Skype was the parasite on the operators.. Is Fring the parasite on Skype?
Anyways, battle it out, just end up with a flat low rate all you can eat buffet for the consumers of transmissions at a usable level of quality. You are a utility company, stop countering your consumers needs please, because you will loose as incumbents. Water will always find a way, given time.. Thank you.
If Skype was open, this wouldn't be an issue. My worry is that Skype is making OSS people lazy. They see SIP as a truly viable alternative even though it isn't. We need firewall piercing encrypted voice and video chats now! Not this NAT unaware (thanks IETF you guys are idiots) bullshit we get with SIP. Even if the solution uses SIP, just make it easy to deploy!
I don't need the gateway to the legacy telco world. I just want a cross platform system which works on Windows, Linux and Android (and maybe the iPhone) which allows free calls and video and can be used by a grandma.
What should I be using?
Fring's press release only *claims* that Skype blocked Fring (probably through the legal system, but in that case they should have been more clear with that). We do not see any actual C&D to remove any functionality whatsoever. (If you do find one, let me know.)
Skype's position clearly states otherwise.
"In this case, however, there is no truth to Fring’s claims that Skype has blocked it. Fring made the decision to remove Skype functionality on its own."
It's one company's word against another, yes, but since Fring is the accuser, it is in their burden to prove what they are saying. Let's see the legal documents, not a flowery press release (one that suspiciously advertises their own service as an alternative). If Fring doesn't provide that, it just reinforces the possibility that they are lying, as Skype has already shown that there is a clear motive for them to drop Skype support.
Pet peeve: Profane people propagating perfunctory pedantry.
I just wish all those services would switch to a new cross-compatible standard that everyone uses. Apple's seems to want to push FaceTime as the only standard and has opened up the specs for everyone to use.
Close MSN, ICQ, Skype, Jabber, etc, etc. Everyone switch to one standard so that IM can finally be like email and like the Web: open to everyone, no matter the OS/Browser/etc.
When I read this... I could not help but to laugh. It sounds like two young children fighting over lost candy.
Fring: "You did it!"
Skype: "No... You did it!
Fring and Skype: "I'm telling on you!"
and the whole world knows the saga of Fring and Skype.
Hail Eris! All Hail Discordia!
I don't see how this remark is germane to the fnord discussion at hand.
I find verizon totally unusable as a provider because of their customer "support", and their rates are significantly higher (about 25-30%) than my current t-mobile plan. I hate verizon wireless with the burning passion of a thousand suns.
Skype is fantastic though, especially for international calls. Anywhere in the world, you can call a US phone number, with unlimited minutes, for like $3-4 a month. Right on.
"All these years believing you're the signified monkey, only to find out you're just a big hunk of nobody cares."
Answering a question posed by another comment is not "offtopic".
Fring is bullshit ripoff tech and Skype is piloted by a bunch of blind fag hags.
They're both useless wastes and to make it worse, when you buy any Skype service, THEY STILL SHOVE ADS DOWN YOUR THROAT.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.