This new policy from Microsoft comes after Skype has just made this feature free to all existing platforms in April, while making a handful of changes to the service to reflect the most active participants in conversations.
It is in this spirit that a new group during a Skype video chat on Windows allows to highlight the same time the three most talkative people, and alongside the creator of the conference, on the screen. Obviously, the remaining participants appear when they talk.
If for any reason there is only one person in the room that you want to see, or that a person does not speak, you simply double-tap it, and it will then be displayed in full screen.
Tablet owners or hybrid devices Windows bored in the middle of a video chat or want to multitask, can of course browse the Web or check e-mails by resizing Skype so that it holds that a small part of the screen.
Originally, this feature was only available for Skype premium subscribers, until the company owned by Microsoft announcement at the end of April that users on Windows, Mac and Xbox One would be able to use the service for free.
Although this is a way for the company to make money, this change in strategy appears to have been motivated by the fact that Google has extended group discussions Hangouts in his application on a wide range of platforms ... and free!
Microsoft reached a deal to buy Skype in October 2011 to 8.5 million dollars, and has been gradually integrated into its product line since.