Snapchat has become one of the most popular social media platforms today, and other platforms have tried to emulate it. With the latest update, Microsoft seems keen on turning Skype into its version of Snapchat.
The Next Generation Of Skype
Skype had carved out a spot as one fo the top video calling services available on PC. As time went on and other platforms started introducing its own, Skype seemed to get lost in the shuffle. Microsoft wants to change that with its latest update and also wants to take on Snapchat.
The two of the key features in this update are highlights and capture, which work in tandem. Capture will allow users to take pictures and videos whenever on Skype that can be posted and shared with contacts on Skype. While any videos and pictures can be sent directly, they can be posted on highlights. When posted in highlights, any friends on Skype can go to a user's profile and see what they have been up to for the day.
For chatting, Microsoft has also added a new find feature. With it, someone can pull up different bots and add-ins that can be inserted into chats. While it's not clear how many are going to be available initially, Microsoft has teased that there will be more bots and such added as time goes by, with some unique to certain markets.
Blatantly Snapchat
Microsoft doesn't try to hide the fact that its Skype update pulls directly from Snapchat with its new features. While the capture is pretty standard, given Skype's roots as a video calling platform, it's the highlights feature that doesn't hide what it is. The feature works the same as stories on Snapchat, where people can take pictures and videos throughout the day and post it to their profile for their friends to see at any time.While this is pretty blatant, Microsoft wasn't the only one to do this.
Last year, Instagram introduced Instagram stories as a feature for its mobile app. This is just one of many examples Facebook has tried to copy or integrate into itself or Instagram over the last few years. Other examples include timed messages in the Facebook Messenger app and image filters for Facebook and Instagram. This sort of influence and copycatting goes to show the growth and popularity of Snapchat in the last few years.
The social media app launched in 2011 and almost immediately caught fire. The platform thrived in the simplicity of its design, allowing it to grow at an extremely fast rate. It helps that any changes have avoided making the platform complicated. It will be interesting to see what or who is the next piece to get aped from Snapchat.
