Skype targets podcasters and live streamers with a new feature for recording video calls

Microsoft is hoping to capitalize on the popularity of podcasts and videos to make Skype more appealing to content creators. The company is now testing a new “Skype for Content Creators” mode for its desktop app that will allow creators to place and record calls using Skype software, which can either be streamed live or imported into other apps for further editing before posting.

The feature is currently in “preview” – Microsoft’s term for software that’s being tested with select users ahead of a broader, public release.

Explains the company in a blog post, Skype for Content Creators will allow digital broadcasters, streamers, and vloggers to record videos, podcasts and live streaming calls “without having to invest in expensive studio equipment.” Instead, Windows 10 and Mac users will be able to use the Content Creators mode to place and record their calls directly in NDI-enabled software like Wirecast, Xsplit, or Vmix, for example. Users won’t need other recording or screen capture software, the company notes. The look-and-feel of the call can be customized, too.

The feature will work best for those who record video chats with other remote guests – like for a weekly call-in show – but it can also work for calls that are live streamed to other platforms, like Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube.

If the call is not being live-streamed, the recording can be imported into other apps for further editing, like Adobe Premier Pro or Adobe Audition.

This isn’t the first time Skype has sought to leverage a specific use case to encourage people to adopt its communication software. For instance, the company launched Skype Interviews last year, aimed at recruiters who want to test candidates’ coding skills during their chats. In both cases, Skype is targeting a subset of its users with features built just for them. Retaining users and appealing to newcomers is critical as Skype’s growth has plateaued in recent years. At Microsoft Build 2016, the company said it has 300 million users – the same figure it cited on Skype’s 10th birthday several years prior.

Microsoft isn’t the only company trying to simply streaming video for content creators, as of late, however. YouTube in March also launched a new feature that lets users “go live” from their desktop without an encoder.

Skype for Content Creators will go live this summer, but will be demoed at the NAB conference in Las Vegas next week.

Comments

Pandora’s loot box: the legal ramifications of microtransactions game makers

The landscape surrounding microtransactions in video games continues to evolve at a pace outstripping the law’s ability to keep up. Just months after enduring public outcry over an extensive loot box system in Star Wars: Battlefront II , EA Games has announced a complete overhaul that eliminates the ability to purchase in-game items that impact gameplay. Meanwhile, the Entertainment Software Regulatory Board, the self-regulating agency created by the Entertainment Software Agency, has now weighed in on the mounting controversy over microtransactions, but its response is only a new “In-Game Purchases” label on “games that offer the ability to purchase digital goods or premiums with real world currency.” Rapid industry changes and the absence of a clear regulatory environment may leave developers with a wild west sense of lawlessness. But lack of regulation does not equate to lack of legal exposure and the battlegrounds most likely to shape rules re...

Waze officially launches its ad program for small businesses

With the launch of Waze Loca l, Google-owned navigation app Waze is offering small businesses a way to market themselves to consumers on the road. Waze has allowed larger brands to buy ads for years, and it’s been beta testing Waze Local since 2016. “It’s been a gradual strategy,” said Matt Phillips, who leads the Waze Local team. “We wanted to get it right.” He added that the key is understanding the needs of small businesses — like the fact that most of them are more interested in driving traffic to their physical stores than their websites. As Phillips explained it, Waze Local’s “core ad format” is the branded pin, which will appear on users’ screens as they drive near a store’s location. For some advertisers, such as coffee shops, a branded pin might persuade drivers to make a quick detour before they continue their commute. For others, the pin might not lead to an immediate action, but it still helps build awareness. In addition, Wa...

Samsung Gear VR Review

Samsung Gear VR Review (2017): A New Way to Play The Samsung Gear VR continues to be one of the most popular mobile VR headsets on the market. But that doesn't mean Samsung is resting on its laurels. To coincide with the launch of the new Galaxy S8 and S8+ , the company has once again revamped the Gear VR, debuting a new color and a new peripheral in an effort to make your virtual reality experiences that much more immersive. Throw in the Gear VR's ever-growing library of content (over 600 apps and counting), and you've got the makings of a hell of a good time physically and virtually. Compatibility In order to use the new Gear VR, you need one of the following phones: Note 4 , Note 5 , Galaxy S6 , S6 Edge , S6 Edge Plus , S7 , S7 Edge , S8 or S8+ . Design New phone, new color. To coincide with launch of the new S8 handsets, the Gear VR has undergone a palette swap, going from an inky midnight blue to Orc...

NariPo

Search This Blog