Starting next week, Skype will begin beta testing a new group video chat feature on Windows PCs, according to the Associated Press. The feature will let up to five people join in on a video chat simultaneously, which is a big leap from Skype's current limit of two users to a video chat.
Group video chat will initially be available for free, but Skype plans to start charging for it within three to four months, along with other new features. The company also plans to bring the feature to Macs later this year.
Skype consumer business general manager Neil Stevens said the group video chat feature was one of the most requested by its users. That doesn't come as much of a surprise. While one-on-one video chat has been available to consumers since the late nineties, it took the proliferation of broadband internet access, faster computer speeds, and cheap webcam availability over the past decade to popularize it.
Now webcams are integrated into practically every laptop (including bargain-priced netbooks), and we'll also be seeing them in smartphones like the HTC Evo 4G and the next-gen iPhone this summer. In short, all of the pieces are in place for group video chat to be the next big killer webcam feature. We can expect video chat competitors like Yahoo Messenger, Windows Live Messenger, and even Apple's iChat to offer group chat in the future as well, but Skype will have a significant head start.
Skype has also leapfrogged Cisco at bringing the technology to consumers. Cisco has long made group video conferencing possible for professionals, but its solutions remain too expensive and complicated for individuals and many small businesses. Its technology may be more advanced than Skype's, but Skype has the advantage of being a much stronger brand with consumers.