Goodnight Skypecasts
At Skype, our aim is to offer products that delight people and enable the world’s conversations. Part of our vision means coming up with new ways for our community of more than 338 million registered users to stay in touch.
Skypecasts is one of the many features that we’ve developed to enable these conversations. What we’ve learned by watching how the product is used and through user feedback is that Skypecasts is not quite measuring up to our high standards and expectations for connecting and delighting our users.
As a result, we have made the decision to retire Skypecasts from active service for the immediate future, effective 12 noon BST on Monday, 1st September 2008.
This decision is consistent with Skype’s efforts to prioritise resources towards the products and areas of innovation that that will have the biggest impact on the Skype community.
Philosophically, we continue to believe in the concept of Skypecasts – group communication on a specific topic of interest. As such, we will look for ways to reintroduce this functionality in a way that lives up to both our and our community’s high standards.
To those people who regularly enjoy hosting and taking part in Skypecasts, we apologise for the inconvenience and hope we’ll be able to release a new and improved Skypecasts product in the not too distant future. We’ll be sure to let you know when that day arrives.
Here is my 2 cents. Some of it you won’t like and some you will.
Firstly, I don’t know about the rest of you but I haven’t payed a cent to participate in skypecasts. Therein lies the issue. Skype can pull this service at any time and for any reason. There is no argument.
That is not to say I agree with the decision.
The reasons are:
1. The whole thing stinks of something bigger. I’m not going to get into the whole free speech thing or business model thing, but….. honestly, give me some credit for having neurons. 6 days notice? Please..
2. Attention SKYPE MANAGEMENT:
Whether you like it or not, you have, via your actions (being continuing ‘inferior’ skypecasts) assumed a responsibility, albeit moral only, to the skype community.
I think this fact is sad in some ways, but a large number of people RELY on this medium for a number of reasons. The most serious reasons involve life itself. I wish I was kidding
Lastly, (And this is the part readers will not like), Please consider this in context. It sucks but honestly, did you think cool free stuff lasts forever?)
Cheers
Spida
Nothing much I can say that hasn’t been said. I’ve just got to say it really sounds like a “Bad call”. Skype is too big a part of my life to be able to cast it off, in many ways I need the services offered however I can’t continue recommending it to others if features such as Skypecasts are removed.
This may be falling on deaf ears as this is happening way to fast and the reasoning quite vague for this to just be made on a whim. I’m guessing something bad has happened and Skype needs to forgo the service now. I’m going to miss this service though, I hope it is replaced in a reasonable amount of time as this should be up there on the list of Skype’s priorities.
Goodnight Skypecasts, your going to be missed.
–John, aka: Blackthorn23
How sad!True,there were things to complain about casts but we learned to cope with them by time,and discovered that is worth to forgive them,as the biig door of the world has opened free for everybody ..I am glad and grateful i was here,i opened the door and sometimes i found wonderfull and amaising people.I want to believe that i become a better person as i had learned many things ,sometimes only through listening.. many times i had met people who nicely touched my heart..i’ve made precious friends!
Please!Do not stop now!Have a quick come back as soon as possible PLEASE GO ON!
happy
“This decision is consistent with Skype’s efforts to prioritise resources towards the products and areas of innovation that that will have the biggest impact on the Skype community.”
Does this mean Skype will be going open source soon?
John Kennedy
Global Voices Online
Global Voices Advocacy
Goodnight SkypeCasts by Peter Parkes.
Well, after reading Peter’s announcement, it was a surprise to me, to learn of the decision to shut down SkypeCasts. It was mentioned in one of the daily English Learning Casts I was visiting online just now.
While I do agree with Peter’s comments…..
[Skypecasts is not quite measuring up to our high standards and expectations for connecting and delighting our users] …..
I personally feel that the number of delighted users, who are setting an acceptable high standard and expectation, should not be penalized by Skype removing the SkypeCast service.
I am a part of a global “English Online Community” group, who are currently setting up SkypeCast free community services for our 700+ Skype users, who are expressing interest in using SkypeCast events to develop their English skills.
It certainly does not please me to see poor quality SkypeCast events related to obscene language and images in public view.
Maybe, high quality measures need to be put into place to improve the expectations of SkypeCasts?
What measures could be introduced to improve the situation to allow SkypeCasts to continue and develop into what Skype expects?
I suggest to first, introduce a better control over the poor quality. Maybe only allow hosts who have an accredited and/or approved Skype Account, where the Host has provided Skype with positive Skype user identification (ID) and/or also to be a credit account user of Skype (paying Skype customer)?
This idea I have suggested, is aimed to have the Host a known Skype user and not some unknown Skype Spam User who may be more likely to fall short of Skype’s expectations?
Whatever ideas come out of all this, we do need SkypeCasts to develop higher standards, I totally agree with Peter on that subject.
I love using SkypeCast, I certainly hope Skype reconsiders dropping the service for now and focuses on a solution rather than closure.
Regards,
Steve (New Zealand)
So what are skypes expectation and who are the great moral decison makers ? This sounds strangely orwellian. “Ministry of Truth” is finally here.
It was fun while it lasted, catch y’all on the flip side
Hi all,
as a guy who likes to cast, I have to say it looks to my like a conspiracy. Why shutting the popular Skypecasts down, and leaving Skype as another stupid non sense messenger. We have thousands of it, and skype it staying now in one line with MSN or Yahoo messenger. The advantage is wasted by the decision of skype, destroyed on pupose for no reason. SO we all know other plattforms are available right now, others will be build up by competitors. So lets say good bye skype, was a nice time……but the fish in this case stinks from the head, what means from the managment which made this decision.
The judgement of the users will be clear as I think.
Bye Bye Skype, I wIll uninstall you at the 1st of September !!!
Skypecasts has been the only true medium of free speech. this is the place where anyone can say anything, good or bad. It reflects the state of the world and gives us a medium to really know what is going on. It is the medium of the free people in the world. What you did is mute all of us. this is a bad move. To be honest, i knew that the politians will some day shut this down.
If freedom is really what you preach, then reconsider.
Shame on skype for buckling down. Shame on you.
This sounds like a good move! Hopefully now you’ll concentrate on getting the Linux client up to scratch and making a native 64 bit version!
We have been reading the Bible with our friends all over the world through “Skypecasts” and not happy about this news.
We are looking for alternative service for us to keep reading the Bible together and please let me know if you know any.
Thank you,
Andrew
http://www.iBible.com
NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
I love skypecast!!! I love to enter a room with people of all the parts of the world and talk with them about random topics, make jokes with them, get fun or just practise english.
If it is not so popular as you expected: why it’s usage is a problem for your infracstrutures? I can’t understand it.
ó.ò
Oh my God that sucks man !! I hate this…. what will we do if we want to learn something or to meet new people ?? it’s bad !! Why will you enter to skype then how will you meet new people ?? oh God !!!!! Skype rocks but after this he will be
RAISE YOUR FISTS……….FOR ANGERFISTSTTTTTTTT
im not happy with your dissition to close skypycast.ive built up my own skype family who i like very much,and are some of the nicest people ive ever met.
i have had some good laughs with nice people and had some not so good laughs with more people,but at the end of the day its made me think what freinds are all about …………..so plz reconcider your dissition to close skype.
………..I DONT WANT TO LOOSE CONTACT WITH MY GOOD FRIENDS…………….
This is stupid, in fact it is pathetic. There is obviously some other reason behind the closing of Skypecsats becasue it works well enough for most peoples satisfaction now and is a widely used product. As a software developer, I know for a fact that they could continue to offer the service while simultaneously developing it. I suspect that this very short-sighted decision has nothing to do with Skype’s “philosophy” and more to do with a work to profit ratio. I for one will no longer use Skype as a poduct after Sept. 1, and I was seriously considering using it for phone service as well..
P.S. Im sure Infinitive_space actually works for Skype and was just posting his transparently lame comment posing as a real user. Notice how it is the first comment on the board and THE ONLY ONE in support of closing Skypecasts? What a dork.
I have met some of my best new friends via skypecasts. Despite some glitches, I think it’s one of the best services available on the web. If not for skype and skypecasts, I wouldn’t have so many new and good friends in countries around the world, we’d never have met to begin with. A year after I’ve met many of them, I can’t imagine what it would be like if I hadn’t. I truly hope if skype is working on something new, that it comes out the day after skypecasts are ended, because the potential to meet new people, and communicate with others around the world would be lost.
I’m very sorry to hear this news. I am a meditation teacher and president of a volunteer, nonprofit company that teaches an easy and inexpensive mental technique for dissolving stress and improving life. I was in the process of setting up a weekly chat that would have helped publicized my service. There aren’t very many places on the Web where that is possible!
David Spector
NSR Meditation/USA
http://www.nsrusa.org
Skypecasts were becoming as rough as 27 megs then UHF CB so it was time to change to plan B. My only suggestion is that you get your finger out really quick because the other VOIP’s are going to have a field-day.
Get it back ASAP or lose your biggest referers, the users.
As a UK account holder – I think Skype’s thought process is dam stupid.You could appoint moderators etc. This is a cutting edge way of people communicating. You need to keep it as a brand. I hold 2 telephone accounts with Skype and have just renewed them before I heard about Skype comming off.
I won’t renew.
Think again
R L UK
SKYPECASTALTERNATIVES.COM
is still not working. It may take another day or two or three. Please keep checking. I will try and serve the community first by putting up links to alternatives to skypecast and to other sites trying to do the same as me.
Email me at
shonangreg [at] gmail [dot] com
with suggestions or submissions or links.
Do a search for
skypecastalternatives
or
alternatives to skypecasts
or
alternatives to skypecast
to find the sites similar to mine.
To other webmasters. use the search keywords above to bring traffic to your site and cross-link with me.
Greg
shonangreg [at] gmail [dot] com
SKYPECASTALTERNATIVES.COM
“We’ll be sure to let you know when that day arrives (ie skypecasts continue).” Peter Parkes
Skypecasts were good for the world – a lot of bad things said, but now people will understand and know each other a lot less – was there a religious or political agenda behind this? Otherwise, it is quite hard to understand.
I am heartbroken for the loss of Skypecasts. My husband and I have made numerous friends via this medium. We also use this form of communication within World of Warcraft, and have found that it is much clearer to use than the ingame chat option. Without Skypecast, it will be that much harder to host a conference call to support many of our guild members on the game. Please reconsider, although this will more than likely fall on deaf ears. Having seen the responses of many, I must also agree with the majority. It would be a mistake to remove this from such a wonderful way of communication with the world.
Whindd
just another good luck charm
I’m indeed shocked by the sudden news that you want to terminate the skypecast service, while you didn’t give any reasonable reason at all to justify the action. Why do you want to do that???
There are so many internet chatting programs such as MSN, Yahoo. But when it comes to it, I’d say that Skype is the best largely due to the unique skypecast which enables lots of ppls who are not in each other’s contactlists to join and talk about a shared interested topic and becoming friends later.
Although there are some ppls who are trying to do something bad via skypecast, comparing to its pros, I think it’s really minor.
Please do not terminate it as so many current skypeusers like it very much. Or if you have a new function which is better than skypecast on the way, why don’t you terminate skypecast when the new function is fulled finished and ready to be out.
Anyway, I don’t know if you really care what we said. But I’m sure if you terminate it for no particular reason at all, the Skype company will lose its credit to a lot of users and me and lots of skypeusers will just turn to other chatting programs and abondon skype as well.
Thank you for reading!
This is a wrong decision.
Just when I for one had seen and finally convinced my bosses that skypecasts have a business value (we were starting plans to include skypecasts in our marketing model) you retire them?! Insane.
Skypecasts have kept me entertained for hours while I worked on projects in my relative isolation as a programmer/engineer. The diversity and spontenaiety of a skypecast is what attracted me to skype in the first place.
I am deeply disappointed. If it is a matter of resources and quality, then contact people like myself. I can dedicate a server to skype if skype can dedicate such a great free service to me. Many of us at one point or another ran IRC servers, BBS nodes (really old school) or even jabber servers for their local community.
How many would be willing to run a skype server/supernode for the global skype community?!
It is sad news, although I would agree that the Skypecast technology was definitely not up to scratch. However, why can’t they work on it and leave the existing Skypecast system running?
An alternative is Paltalk: http://www.paltalk.com although not exactly the same as only one person can speak at a time.
Hopefully, Skypecasts will return soon or there is better alternative software made available soon.
Regards,
Ryan
http://www.operation513.com
Highly questionable decision. It’s all been said above, so I won’t carry on; but will highlight two points:
1) The short notice is UNACCEPTABLE. A lot of people on this service work very hard on their Skypecasts to help build the community that YOU are half-heartedly praising. You just pulled the rug out from under them and have sent them scrambling to find alternatives. Not very gracious and absolutely INEXCUSABLE behavior.
2) The question has been asked; why not allow the old Skypecasts to run until the new version can be introduced in tandem? Excellent idea, and I can’t understand why this wouldn’t be the case. I can’t help but wonder: Is the management at Skype just inept . . . or are you hiding something?
i am glad skypecasts are going to be shutdown. it means guys like ‘freedom is america’ wont be able to promote his hatred anymore. furthermore, he will probably kill himself now that there are no skypecasts, and that is priceless. we know skypecasts is his life.
judging by skypecasts performance over the past 2 years, its clear that skype had no interest in developing skypecasts. what kind of program stays in beta for 2yrs anyway. the reason why skypecasts is being closed is not because skype has high standards. anyone who has tried to get a hold of skypes customer service knows about its low standards. lets remember that skype is a business and their interest is to make money. there really isnt a point for them to keep skypecasts because it is not making them any money. skype wont lose any money by abandoning skypecasts. their number of customers are going to grow with or without skypecasts. and for all you guys who are telling your stories about making friends, lets be honest, do you really think skype cares if you have 100 or 0 friends (like freedom is america)?
Friends,
I would like to direct you to check out http://www.calliflower.com. Very similar functionality to a SkypeCast — we can accomodate hundreds of callers on a call — and it works fine from Skype. I’m on a call right now, with several folks on Skype (including Skype Journal’s Jim Courtney).
Alec Saunders,
CEO
Dear Skype: I must be honest and say that your decision is bitter-sweet. On the one hand I host a comedy cast (The PNut Show http://www.peternut.com/live/live.html) to spread some humor around the world. Something lacking in today’s society. Skype has been an excellent tool to do this and meet many others around the world had Skypecasts not been active. Skypecasts are a revolutionary idea which I would hate to see go. On the other hand MOST of the casts I must admit are absolute garbage. No quality programming or standards, some are enough to make me nauseous. I constantly report on these types and those who abuse the casts themselves. It is a shame that the same old story continues, “The few spoil it for the many.” When will mankind learn? I understand your decision and hope to see Skypecasts return with a more structured and savvy system in place. Thank you for providing this free service, for many of the poor in our world this is an only option.
Sincerely,
Tim Wall
President
peternut.com
Link Correction: http://www.peternut.com/live/live.html
“This decision is consistent with Skype’s efforts to prioritise resources towards the products and areas of innovation that that will have the biggest impact on the Skype community.”
Wrong this decision is consistent with a corporation that wants to rip apart communities. Nothing said global community like skypecasts. Now we are in the dark, with our contact lists set in stone.
We will migrate to competitors you clowns.
Dear Skype,
I have been hosting my own skypecast “Happy Talk” for the last couple of months. I have made many friends from this cast. I am saddened to hear that you will be closing down the skypecast rooms. I understand that there are many rooms that do not conform to the skypecast rules, and its not cost effective. However, I hope that in the very near future you bring back the skypecasts rooms, and that you pay the hosts that have good rooms. I created a website for all skype members to join, so that we can all keep in touch, until we can find a new alternative to the skypecast rooms. The website is http://floridavacantlandsales.ning.com/ and i will post where we will all be going for a new voice audio chat.
Thanks,
Ben Torres
well, it was fun while it lasted wasn’t it? I met some really incredible people here on Skype. I have often heard synics say “you cant make real friends on the internet.” I beg to differ. I have made some strong relationships here. I met people like Rhona, and Pojo, and Jade, and even Michelle the too hott girl. I even look upon you with fondness. There have been many laughs, and many arguments, MANY romances and tons of friendships formed. It has been an incredible social tool for me. I have made so many dear friends, and met some really freaky people. For me, it could not have been better. A lot of our American Soldiers are on skype now, so they can keep in touch with loved ones at home. God Bless you men and women in uniform, thank you for your service.
Every morning I looked forward to the Nice Guy from Kiwi Land, good ol’ Marcus himself. He had some good casts for a long time. Rhona and Pojo both had some great casts. I even held a couple meself, havin a pretty fair success rate. I remember my first cast was a superb lady from Canada, Candlelight1 I believe it was, she was such a sweet lady. That is what got me started. From there it snowballed into a full blown obsession. LOL I just couldnt wait to get finished with what ever it was I was doing during the day to get back with “the gang”. And what a motley crew we were too. Poor Amy T, a more gullible soul never existed, but you cannot help but love her. In short and finally, I have laughed many, many hours, and had a lot of fun here. I will miss the skype cast. May it rest in peace.
Something for the Skype guys to think about! (If they still use there brain!!!)
“Every great MISTAKE has a halfway moment, a split second when it can be recalled and perhaps remedied.”
-Pearl S. Buck-
…
NOOOOOOOOO WE LOVE SKYPECASTS!!!!!!!
DO NOT END THEM!!!!!!!!
Hello to the cast community, if this news is correct then it does not surprise me in any way, but the truth of the matter is that Skype as a company have been treating the Skypecast Community with contempt for a long time now.
When the program was working well last year it was a great way to meet new and old friends in Skypecasts, but then it stated to go downhill, and no amount of reports sent to Skype have been met with any satisfactory response, as most of you know the audio has been so bad in the last 4 or 5 months that it has been impossible to hold a cast with more than 3 or 4 people in talking without the audio going to pot, instead of finding a way to correct this problem Skype has just sat on it and done nothing, to me this shows a complete disregard for the many good people who use casts, and that they don’t give a damn about thousands of people who come into casts to talk and listen to what others may have to communicate to each other.
This move I find to remove Skypecasts is very short sighted on behalf of a company that is running a communication business and it could come back to bite them in the backside so to speak, as I have said to many people although Skypecast are free, it is the free sweetie’s that get the customers into the shop, so without Skypecasts I can see their revenue drop and that will hurt them in the long term.
Anyway those of you who know me have met me in C&C and we had a good cast going, but due to the inaction of Skype not to improve matters I have not run it for some weeks now, for that I apologise, but I was not prepared to lower standards in the cast just because this company would not get off of it’s backside and get it running as it should be, I feel sorry for those who are relatively new to Skype because they did not get to see how it was when it was running well, maybe they will in the future, maybe not, still if those who know us feel lonely come and see us in the website where we will attempt to keep you all up to date as to what is happening: we will be looking for alternative sites to run the show and if they are successful goodbye to Skype.
So my final words are to those faceless executives who run this company, think again and keep this community together, if you cannot see what a great opportunity you have in the communications world to do so much good then maybe you would be better off sweeping the streets.
http://www.coffeenconversation.co.uk
Philosophically, we continue to believe in the concept of Skypecasts:
Yes ……..with money money money money…..puah :
Thank you for the confirmation Peter.Take care, good call.
Well skype this is the pits can’t believe that skypecasts is closing made some good friends on the casts hoped to meet more but doesn’t look likely end of an era
I can understand it that casts to be adjusted.
You want to money-make and with casts can no money be earned.
Others seits, know itself now all humans it live to care.
“This move I find to remove Skypecasts is very short sighted on behalf of a company that is running a communication business” – enough said.
I’m shocked and unhappy to hear that casts are ending. We do have people who misuse the service, however you will find people like that everywhere. I have, however, met more people who are decent and who like to discuss and debate with reason, and sometimes jokes and banter. I will miss Skype.
The quality of the sound has been reduced to such an inconsistent level that some of the casts are a pain. The quality of the casts, a while a go, was fantastic and fun was had by all.
I hope you resurrect Skypecasts, as I will miss it greatly. You have provided a brillant platform for free speech. I have heard every view point that can be voiced, and I’ve had the chance to question, reply and comment on every subject.
This has worked so well because it is a free service, I hope it continues to be so in it’s new version.
I thank you for the services you have supplied over these past years.
All hail Skypecasts!
I was expecting this (bad) news… is it a matter of money maybe? For quite sometime I’ve been thinking … they will make us pay for this.. let me tell you: I’m not subscribed to any group or whatever, but I’m ready to contribute, if this is the case, I’m not rich, but I enjoyed skype a lot and thank those people behind all this. So.. let us know, we will support you always.. thank you.
I will miss skypecast,its had its ups and downs but through it all I made really great friends from all over the world and I could not have done it without skypecast.I hope that the cast will be down only temperary and very shortly so that we all can make more friends in the future.Please bring back skypecast soon.
Without casts, I will head for an other service. Goodbye casts and goodbye Skype.
Your decision saddens me because you remove one of the few means of dialogue between nations. Indeed, I organize regular skypecasts the benefit of certain nations that can not organize their homes democratic forums.
Look on the upside: no more Mike Kennedy.
Fantastic news!! Now I just need Mebeam to shut down and I can get my life back.
No way!
I am sooooooooooooo sad that I can’t even post here.
What the h.e double “l” I’m going to do with my life.?