Microsoft (MSFT) Adds Group Video Calling to Skype for Modern Windows

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) posted the following to its Skype blog today:

In April, we made our group video calling experience free to existing platforms, with additional device support coming soon. Since then, we've seen a fantastic four fold increase in group video calls, and now we're bringing the feature to Windows tablets and Windows 2 in 1 devices.

We'd all like to be able to catch up more frequently with friends, family, colleagues and hobby groups spread across different locations. Group video calls are a great way to do this. Check out the video below for our walkthrough of the group video calling experience and some behind the scenes information on key decisions we made.

We've found that most group calls take place between three or four participants. When building the group video calling experience for modern Windows, we optimized so that the three most talkative people - plus yourself - are visible at the same time.

However, you can be on a call with up to 10 people: their videos will show up once they start speaking.

Also, if you want to see someone that isn't currently talking, simply double tap on them and their video will go full screen. To go back to the gallery of all participants, double tap again.This way you can focus on anyone, at any moment.

Finally, if you want to browse the web, watch a video or check emails during a group video call, you can resize Skype so that it only takes up part of your screen. This way you can multitask while chatting with your friends or family just like they are with you.

We look forward to more people enjoying group video calling for free with modern Windows. To share your feedback or to get the latest news and tips, please follow us on Twitter and Facebook, and join us on the Skype Community.

Supported operating systems: Windows 8.1.

Take a look at the instructions to get a free upgrade to Windows 8.1 from Windows 8.0.