Advertising in Skype
Today we announce something new – the launch of advertising in Skype, which will appear in the Home tab in Skype starting this week.
The Skype experience is our first priority, which is why we we’ve taken a lot of time working through and testing what kind of advertising would work best in the Skype environment. In fact, some of you may have seen some test ads from our friends at Rdio in the last month or two. As we roll out ads on a wider basis, we expect to continue to test and learn a lot more, and make any necessary adjustments along the way.
We believe that advertising, when done in the right way, will help us continue to invest in developing great products.
Here’s the detail of what we’re doing:
- We’re working with some great advertisers, including Groupon, Universal Pictures, and Visa.
- Ads will appear in the US, UK and Germany and advertising sales for Skype are initially focused in those markets.
- You may only see ads occasionally. Our initial plan is to show an ad from one brand per day in each of the markets where advertising is being sold.
- The ads will appear in the Home tab in Skype for Windows, and we may experiment with ads in other areas as well.
- The ads won’t interrupt your Skype experience. You won’t suddenly see annoying pop-up ads or flashy banner ads in middle of conversations.
- We may use non-personally identifiable demographic data (e.g. location, gender and age) to target ads, which helps ensure that you see relevant ads. For example, if you’re in the US, we don’t want to show you ads for a product that is only available in the UK.
- You can opt out of allowing Skype to share this non-personally identifiable demographic data with advertisers from the Privacy tab in Tools ▸ Options.
Here’s an example of what the ads will look like:
Ad in the Home tab in Skype for Windows.
The Skype experience is paramount and we are committed to learning as we go, continuing to evolve the offer for advertisers and to developing great products that enable you to connect whenever you’re apart.
jrgifford_ commented Monday, Mar 7
This is going to be the only time I'm going to say this: THANK YOU FOR HAVING AN OUTDATED LINUX CLIENT.
OK. With that out of the way, I'd say that you've got the best advertising scheme that I've ever seen, and I hope that you'll use this money to make us a decent Linux Client.
slipp3d commented Monday, Mar 7
That sounds like a fine idea ... is this going to help push along development of the software?
ioioi211 commented Monday, Mar 7
Maybe you guys could update the Linux version so we could see your ads... maybe even just get it out of beta...
davidg7777 commented Monday, Mar 7
It was only a matter of time. For those of us who pay for your service you should keep the ads off.
admiralatrus commented Monday, Mar 7
Gee, ads into our IM software. That worked so well for the others.
Will we at least be able to pay you a couple bucks to make them go away forever like on the average smartphone app? After all, you're all about the user experience.
sindrealmost commented Monday, Mar 7
Right, I don't mind you serving up ads too those who are free users and not paying for their service. But I have a subscription and pay you money for your service, I do not wish to be bombarded by ads. Admittedly I rarely use the desktop client, more often than not I am on one form of mobile device or other.
But please for us who pay for your service, no ads.
spamfighter666 commented Monday, Mar 7
Naysayer: Et tu, Skype? Sad to see you go this route. I have been an upgraded pay-for-play user for years, and hope you don't impose 'great' advertisers on me.
spamfighter666 commented Monday, Mar 7
"You can opt out of allowing Skype to share this non-personally identifiable demographic data with advertisers from the Privacy tab in Tools ▸ Options"
where will this appear in the Skype for Mac product?
gaycheckml commented Monday, Mar 7
Will these ads be on all Skype users or just those who don't have a subscription?
grantperry commented Monday, Mar 7
This sounds great. It would be interesting if you could try the gmail model where the content of the message is used to provide relevant ads.
I would love to start advertising on Skype so look forward to hearing more.
laurent.raufaste commented Monday, Mar 7
Nice way to kill your business. After a crappy 5.0 UI for Mac, you add another MSN-like feature to your client.
I will start looking at SIP alternatives fron now.
theblackpie commented Monday, Mar 7
Advertising sucks! Comon! I thought you guys were different, I guess its not long till we'll have to "Listen to this short message, before you call initiates." You guys are killing your own buisness doing this.
qtrans_asbjoern commented Monday, Mar 7
I take it that anyone with a subscription will not be shown these ads - otherwise you have a serious problem. I am not a subscriber - yet - but if I were, I would be seriously annoyed to be shown ads as a paying customer.
Apart from that, well it's been obvious with all the annoying ads for Skype-related things that pop up all over the place (but luckily can be disabled) that you would introduce ads sooner or later, but that still makes this a sad day. You slowly seem to be loosing touch with your customers, which is not a good thing in the long run.
urania_arg commented Monday, Mar 7
Good to know--I'm never updating Skype again. If you prevent earlier (ad-free) versions from connecting, I'm switching to GTalk/Google Voice. Permanently.
jonnorris2 commented Monday, Mar 7
Will all users be seeing the ads? Seems a bit cheeky to also show adverts to those of us that purchase subscriptions / spend a decent amount of money on Skype calls.
stratus_t commented Monday, Mar 7
Well... I don't see any advertising in my Skype client.
Maybe because I'm using the LINUX version of Skype which doesn't have any update since ONE year ago!
You don't do your work and linux users don't need to worry with annoying advertising... ok I think it's fair enough!
slgeo1 commented Monday, Mar 7
Will there be a way to opt out from seeing the ads? Do paid accounts still see ads? I would strongly prefer to not see them.
hab136 commented Monday, Mar 7
Ah, NOW it makes sense why you've make Skype 5 take up so much screen real estate.
b4bose1 commented Monday, Mar 7
Now that you are charging for multi contacts conference calls, will this new advertising project eliminate the charge?
le_sloth commented Monday, Mar 7
I'm annoyed enough at the adverts for Skype Premium etc. - but this is ridiculous!
I have paid for Skype features for years, opted out of notifications, alerts and messages etc. but I am still going to get adverts??
Advertising like this has no effect on me other than to get in the way of my day. I pay therefore I should be able to opt-out.
noahharlan commented Monday, Mar 7
Personally, I think you should worry about getting your latest version back to being roughly as decent as the last version (on Mac) before you focus on pushing ads. The "new" version is such a colossal mess of UI and UX that my entire company has reverted back.
lackssocialskilzz commented Monday, Mar 7
Soooo... paying customers also get this served to them? Are they still images, or is it going to be those obnoxious, continuously moving Flash videos?
Because *nothing* is more annoying that the incessant fluttering about of a sales pitch that can't be avoided.
aioses commented Monday, Mar 7
And what if I pay with Skype credit?
And what if I have a monthly plan?
alexander_hanff commented Monday, Mar 7
Do you not think this is going to annoy those of us who pay for Skype? I can understand subsidising Skype for people only using VOIP but for people who pay for Skype Out and other services, it is going to be annoying.
As one of the latter, I know I will be looking for an alternative service now especially given that you have chosen to go the Opt-Out route on the sharing of personal data.
As a privacy advocate working on digital privacy issues and speaking at the EU Commission later this week, I will be using Skype as a clear example of the risks to privacy which exist in current digital markets.
I will be pursuing this issue further and am disappointed that you have chosen to go this route, both as a long term (4 years) paying customer and as a privacy advocate.
jauntercreekmedical commented Tuesday, Mar 8
What options will we have for not seeing the ads at all? If we are subscribers do we get to opt out?
nicolas.prieur commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Dear Mods,
First Impression: NOT COOL!
But then again I understand and am grateful that you are providing this service free of charge and need to make money out of it.
I just will not be updating
jamesmkwan commented Tuesday, Mar 8
To be honest, I'm glad that this is happening. I've been using Skype's servers for chat/voice (computer to computer) for a while, without paying for SkypeOut/etc. Advertising will help keep Skype in business.
richardhartley2 commented Tuesday, Mar 8
I believe this is a huge mistake which will alienate many Skype users, including those who are paying for premium features.
Hopefully these ads won't steal passwords and contacts or spread malware as the ads on meebo do regularly.
monkeybugz commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Hey skype, remember when twitter updated their mobile application to include adds? The public hated it and still does. This is a very similar move on your part. I hope it goes well.
cjp3400 commented Tuesday, Mar 8
If I'm paying for a premium service, which I am, I do not expect to see ads.
tabaliah commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Adds come, I go. I already am at the end of my rope with this lousy version 5 interface for Mac. You can keep the change.
Advertising forced me from facebook - never looked back. It will lose me from Skype as well.
currawong1 commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Say goodbye to your customers then. Let me just say that I pay to use your services, so if I see ads in my Skype, then I'm cancelling. I'm sure there are many others with me on this.
wintermj commented Tuesday, Mar 8
I don't think it's right to force adverts into a client where customers are already paying to make calls. People usually pay to avoid the adverts.
Mark
ISPreview.co.uk
mboxwell commented Tuesday, Mar 8
You've done a great job with Skype up until now. Frankly, what Skype has delivered to the marketplace has been amazing. And it's all free. Somebody has to pay for it, and if advertising is the best way to be able to keep it free, then so be it.
But I would suggest you offer a paid-for service as well now, so that for a few dollars each month, people can pay you money not to have the version with advertisements. I think you'd then start getting a good revenue stream from that too. I for one would certainly be happy to pay a small amount each month to have an advert-free version.
burnheavenraisehell commented Tuesday, Mar 8
I'm going to hope that the addition of advertisements means that group video-calling will rendered free. S'a fair trade off, no?
ulrikhvide commented Tuesday, Mar 8
I agree. This is a very unprofessional decision and it will definitely make me look for some skype-alternative.
ulrikhvide commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Yeah location-based advertising is big business, but it has nothing, nada, zip, zero, zilch... to do with skype. You guys had so many ways to make money and yet you choose the most annoying and least efficient way. Someone in skype should get fired.
the_don_reba commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Thanks, but I will still block those ads. There will be no ads on my computer — period.
american_idiot5178 commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Hello all,
this is a blind boy from Italy. I just hope this ads won't interfere my Skype experience with JAWS when you'll decide to give this feature also here in Italy, and now the ones of English or German blind friends. Never willing to be rude, though accessibility is the most important thing for me.
Bye!
poweredbyweb commented Tuesday, Mar 8
The ads are not a problem, it is the freaking full screen skype ads they started running a month ago or so that annoy the crap out of me. I have to keep closing them so I can continue working as they cover everything.
mfluch commented Tuesday, Mar 8
NO! NO! NO! One reason I prefer Skype over other commercial chat and internet telephone solutions is that it is advertisement free! It would be a huge anoyance to see ads on my desktop! So don't even think about it! I use services of yours for which I pay but advertisement on my screen would kill a lot of benefits Skype has. SO DON'T DO THAT!!! (
bob.jacobson commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Skype's arrogance in the face of one massive failure -- Skype for Mac 5.0 -- and now this one, ads foisted on users, is typical of companies going supernova. A big blast, lots of heat and light, and then emptiness. I won't miss the impending black hole, not one bit. You keep BS-ing your users and then force this and that bad idea down our throats. Ick.
I signed up when Skype was new, have bought probably a thousand dollars (if not more) of services, and thought you really had it down with Skype for Mac 2.8 and a reasonably reliable service. Skype for Mac 5.0 is garbage, hard to use and unreliable -- and now you're going to burden it with advertisements? I hope you make a mint, because you won't have my hundreds of dollars a year to count on.
clydesmith105 commented Tuesday, Mar 8
Is this just for free users or are subscribers also going to get ads?
dko.ch commented Wednesday, Mar 9
if customers with a subscription are affected by any kind of ads, we will cancel our company subscriptions and find another service. As long as I pay for Skype I expect not to get any ads. Period.
As much as I love your service, both personally and for my company, ads are not acceptable.
nrshapiro55 commented Wednesday, Mar 9
I am a paid customer, including skypin as my regular phone. And it's already interfered with my "experience". The Skype application, which is minimized on the task bar, pops up on it's own to serve me an ad I don't want. You may gain advertisers, but lose customers. I will reconsider options to Skype at my next renewal period.
click_here_to_log_in commented Wednesday, Mar 9
Am I right to say that if I log into Skype while being in one of those countries, then I'll see ads regardless of my profile settings, but if I go somewhere else — I'm fine? But what if I don't want to see your ads regardless of the country I'm currently in?
kevin_cannon commented Wednesday, Mar 9
I spend about €10 a month on Skype, and this is how you treat a paying customer. You seriously need to learn a thing or two about customer service. If I pay for a service, I expect no ads. There's plenty of competitors biting at your heels, don't give me an excuse to switch to them.
(p.s. you're new mac client also sucks - fix that too)
juliawittich commented Thursday, Mar 10
@ Doug
Hi there!
I am interested in doing advertising with skype, but the link to the skype-advertising page is broken. Who may i get in touch with?
Kindest regards,
Julia.
adammckenna29 commented Friday, Mar 11
You can put all the ads in the background that you want, but you need to STOP THE POPUP ADS. These ads are extremely intrusive and need to go away. I for one will not be buying any more skype credit until these ads go away.
mikewolf051 commented Saturday, Mar 12
meh, so far from what I've seen its not that bad. I mean of course I'd rather there not be ads at all but heck if this practice allows multi video group chats to be free like it was when it was in beta I wouldn't mind.
geoff.worton commented Wednesday, Mar 30
@adammckenna29 - You're right, the popup ads are extremely intrusive and I will be withholding any more payments until they stop.
lukino.it commented Friday, Apr 1
NOT ONLY you totally destroyed a good interface design, you are giving me totally invasive ads too and I am a paying customer! Also, what is the point of the big big ad if the window is almost always closed now? I used to keep in on all the time before v5, now it is just impossible.
And you blocked Fring, that was my only option for mobile, since your nokia client drain my battery in less than a day vs three day of normal use, and it doesn't support video.
Keep on and I'll move to something else in no time!!
guy-o-rama commented Wednesday, Apr 6
That explains (well, sort of) why Skype seems to have not cared one bit about dropped calls, stalled text messages, poor connections and the myriad other problems that have been reported in the forums. You've spent all your time trying to make money the easy way instead of the right way - by assuring quality service, thereby attracting paying customers. My primary chat buddy and I both planned to purchase call plans so we had more talk options. However, we both were holding off until the technical problems (that seem to be getting worse) are dealt with. So, you'd rather get pennies per click revenue for a crap app, instead of subscription revenues for a quality app.
Oh, and I'm one of the people who has not paid (yet), so I won't object to ads. However, I agree with those who do pay. It's like Microsoft showing ads in Word or Excel after you've already paid for the product.
Look, if Skype worked like it should (and there's absolutely no reason why, given the extraordinary advances in communications technology), then I'd even consider buying an app like this. But it has to work reliably. There is no reason why this should not have been a top priority for this company, rather than planning for the tired old stand-by of ad revenue. For crying out loud, no one pays attention to ads; They're so prolific that we're numb to them. I pay no attention to them.
camerojo commented Thursday, Apr 7
I do pay for Skype - and unlike some other posters I have no problem paying for a quality product. I do sympathize with the need to make some money so that you can "continue to invest in developing great products".
However, you have destroyed your product. There is no way I would pay for something as misconceived as Skype 5. It is shockingly designed and poorly implemented.
I have dropped back to 2.8 (thank you for keeping that around) which I will use until you offer me a decent alternative.
torrespina commented Monday, Oct 24
It is annoying. Improvement that makes it worse and more aggravating to use. Why should I buy more credit or even subscribe? Have been a paying customer for a while.