gmb45
7th January, 2010, 06:54 AM
Skype, the popular internet service which allows people to make free phone and video calls across the web, will now be built in to a new range of televisions from LG and Panasonic.
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01290/skype_1290818c.jpg Skype users will be able to make video calls through their televisions, after Skype signed a deal with LG and Panasonic
It means that Skype users will be able to have video chats with friends and relatives around the world through the television in their living room.
The Skype tool will be embedded in to a range of new high-definition, internet-enabled televisions from major consumer electronics manufacturers Panasonic and LG. It will enable Skype users to make free voice and video calls to other Skype users, and make cheaper calls to conventional landlines and mobile phone numbers anywhere in the world.
?The popularity of Skype video calling has increased substantially in recent years," said Josh Silverman, chief executive of Skype. "An average of 34 per cent of Skype-to-Skype calls now include video. Many people who are video calling on Skype have expressed a desire to communicate with their friends and family from somewhere comfortable, and preferably on a big screen. Logically, this led to the development of Skype embedded on HDTVs.?
Skype software will be built in to Panasonic's new range of VieraCast internet-enabled high-definition televisions, and LG's web-enabled LCD and plasma screen HD TVs. Users will need to plug an additional webcam in to their television in order to have video chats with friends. Skype said the webcam would be able to pick up sound and video across a sizeable distance, so users would be able to have a video conversation from the comfort of their sofa. Skype also recommends that users have a relatively fast home broadband connection.
Panasonic and LG have not yet released pricing details for their Skype-enabled televisions, but the TVs are expected to be available in the UK later this year.
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01290/skype_1290818c.jpg Skype users will be able to make video calls through their televisions, after Skype signed a deal with LG and Panasonic
It means that Skype users will be able to have video chats with friends and relatives around the world through the television in their living room.
The Skype tool will be embedded in to a range of new high-definition, internet-enabled televisions from major consumer electronics manufacturers Panasonic and LG. It will enable Skype users to make free voice and video calls to other Skype users, and make cheaper calls to conventional landlines and mobile phone numbers anywhere in the world.
?The popularity of Skype video calling has increased substantially in recent years," said Josh Silverman, chief executive of Skype. "An average of 34 per cent of Skype-to-Skype calls now include video. Many people who are video calling on Skype have expressed a desire to communicate with their friends and family from somewhere comfortable, and preferably on a big screen. Logically, this led to the development of Skype embedded on HDTVs.?
Skype software will be built in to Panasonic's new range of VieraCast internet-enabled high-definition televisions, and LG's web-enabled LCD and plasma screen HD TVs. Users will need to plug an additional webcam in to their television in order to have video chats with friends. Skype said the webcam would be able to pick up sound and video across a sizeable distance, so users would be able to have a video conversation from the comfort of their sofa. Skype also recommends that users have a relatively fast home broadband connection.
Panasonic and LG have not yet released pricing details for their Skype-enabled televisions, but the TVs are expected to be available in the UK later this year.