ΤECH: Microsoft announces that Skype is now open ‘for Business’

Replacing Microsoft Lync, “Skype for Business” combines the best features of Lync and Skype in a Skype-inspired user interface for an intuitive experience that is similar whether you are in a work environment or just communicating with friends and family. It brings together the familiar experience and user appreciation of Skype with the enterprise security, compliance, and control that charecterised Lync. Moreover, organisations will gain reach into a network of hundreds of millions of Skype users across the globe.

Some of the features offered by “Skype for Business” include presence, IM, voice and video calls, and online meetings, and it is built into Microsoft Office, so initiating chats, calls and meetings remains an integrated experience within Office. Despite their many similarities however, Skype and “Skype for Business” are two separate offerings with different user IDs and passwords.

Users can also look forward to a new “Skype for Business” mobile application – available on iOS and Android – due to become available in the coming months. In the meantime, they can continue to use the Lync mobile for clients with “Skype for Business”.