SkypeKit Launch Could bring Skype video calling to your favourite apps

By , Published June 23, 2010

Skype's launch of a new Software Development Kit that offers both software and hardware developers the ability to integrate Skype functionality into their own applications and devices promises to bring a big boon to Linux users.

The SDK provides developers with both API's for the main Skype feature set (chat, messaging, video, etc) as well as Skype's audio compression codec 'SILK'.

By allowing developers access to these core technologies the option is there for Linux developers to create everything from standalone native GTK front-ends to Skype to providing integration with existing messaging applications such as Empathy. The best part is that SkypeKit provides developers with access to Skype without users needing the Skype desktop application running  alongside (like some plug-ins for popular messaging applications.) Skype urge developers to think of SkypeKit as €œ€¦a 'headless' version of Skype €“ that is, a Skype client with no user interface that runs invisibly, not only on PCs, but also TVs, notebooks, and other connected devices.€

Time will tell what fruits are borne from this initiative for strict incensing terms could severely hamper to what extent integration is permitted.

In the mean time, for  more details, check out the official announcement on the Skype blog.

Article originally appeared on omgubuntu.co.uk

Related posts:

  1. Skype 2.1 Beta 2 For Linux Released
  2. Skype For Linux To Be Open-Sourced [updated]
  3. New Version Of Skype Released For Linux
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  • http://mpscripts.com Thomas Boxley

    This is great, maybe now the Skype4Pidgin plugin will actually become useful.

    • daas88

      This is great, because there’s still no support for msn videocalls. I can forget about that if I have skype on pidgin :D

  • Herr Gabriel

    Hopefully someone can finally bring proper multi-track jack support to skype. Would be very beneficial for podcasts :)

  • http://twitter.com/conscioususer Conscious User

    Promising, very promising. The prospect of full Empathy/Pidgin integration sounds great.

  • http://orkutcidio.deliriocoletivo.org Peterson Espaçoporto

    Very cool. Maybe part of Skype efforts to create an open-source client, as they said they would be doing?

  • http://blastfromthepast.se/ Tommy Brunn

    This, I like! I really do hope that we will see Skype-Empathy integration in the future.

  • Gust

    I still want jackd in gnome first

  • http://twitter.com/vivalostioz8005 mike

    really great news! :)

  • Anonymous

    gtk and QT skype

    integration with notification applet and empathy !

  • Anonymous

    This is interesting. Anyone think its a response to FaceTime being announced as an open standard?

    Edit: woops nvm :p http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/25554/

    • Anonymous

      is ichat an open standard? facetime=ichatmobile

      • Anonymous

        actually no FaceTime is not iChat mobile. iChat is an instant messenger with video chat capabilities. FaceTime is an open standard for video chatting used by iPhone 4.

        • http://omgubuntu.co.uk/ d0od

          and, iirc, will only be available for use via apps on the iPhone device itself.

          • Anonymous

            read the article I posted above ;) It’s available to use anywhere. Hence the word “open”

          • http://omgubuntu.co.uk/ d0od

            Didn’t see that. Sorry.

    • zekopeko

      Only if Skype knew that Apple was working on Facetime. Skypekit was announced a while ago.

    • Anonymous

      probably not but it is frustrating that there are like 4 major video chat standards at the moment, now that microsoft is pushing their own talk thing as well.

  • Spideryzarc

    skype is still the unique video chat app that really works on Linux!!

  • Anonymous

    very cool! i’m glad to hear that more is happening since that original announcment of eventual opensourced skype.

  • https://launchpad.net/~stephantom stephantom

    I’m afraid that this SDK won’t be much use for the open source community. They charge an “entry fee” just for accessing the SDK and plan to charge more once “a third-party product is ready for commercialization”.
    That means that every product that uses this kit will need to be certified by Skype themselves. And since the kit requires a fee to get, it won’t be possible to integrate it into an open source repository.

    • http://omgubuntu.co.uk/ d0od

      I feared something like that would be case :( What a way to suck!

    • HellHitZ

      They do charge the entry fee, but by reading the FAQ I get the impression that you don’t NEED to submit for approval, that’s only if you want the certification (which you can use for marketing purposes). So while I agree that the entry fee might deter adoption from Open Source projects, maybe there will be some “unofficial support”, I don’t know…but I’d kill for Pidgin/Empathy integration!

      • https://launchpad.net/~stephantom stephantom

        In my (layman’s) opinion, I think that this entry fee gives Skype the power to prevent/sue people from putting the SDK into a public repository.
        If one person/project pays for the SDK and puts it into a source repository, other won’t pay the fee and just get it from that repository. Also, I think it’s likely that the SDK will be under a licence that won’t be compatible with FOSS – hence we probably won’t be able to distribute it in source form.
        Sure, there will be some (rouge) implementations. But nothing that will make it into a default install of any well-kown client.

 
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