Yahoo Takes on Apple, Fring with Messenger Mobile Video
Yahoo is working to bring videoconferencing via to Android and Apple iPhones, much like Fring or Apple's FaceTime. It's part of a new version of Yahoo Messenger for Mobile, due in a few months.
Yahoo is working to bring videoconferencing to Android and Apple iPhones, much like Fring or Apple's FaceTime.
Yahoo showed off the capability as part of a product demonstration of Yahoo Messenger 11 at the company's at its Sunnyvale, Calif. headquarters.
John Dunning, a product manager for Yahoo, said that the new Yahoo Messenger for Mobile service will run over either 3G or Wi-Fi. For now, Yahoo demonstrated the technology running from the Android phone (an EVO 3G, in this case) to a Webcam-equipped laptop, although users will be able to place mobile-to-mobile voice calls.
Yahoo doesn't have a timeframe that the company is willing to commit to, beyond saying that the technology will be rolled out in the next couple of months, Dunning said. That's roughly the same timeframe as Messenger 11.
Like AOL's AIM and Gmail's Chat feature, Messenger's PC version allows users to place video calls or chats to other users, as well as text or audio chat.
In the mobile space, Yahoo is following in the footsteps of to iPhone, Android or Nokia users either via 3G or Wi-Fi; Apple's FaceTime also allows two-way mobile-to-mobile video calls, but only over Wi-Fi. (As of August, .) And .
Yahoo will also debut PSTN calling, a technology offered by many other communication services. Yahoo users will be to call friends on either a landline or mobile phone for as little as 1.5 cents per minute, Yahoo said.
Yahoo's Messenger 11 will allow users to publish status messages to Yahoo Pulse, Facebook, and Twitter simultaneously, even "Like" updates from their friends. Yahoo Messenger users will also be able to chat with Facebook users, and play Zynga games from within the desktop Yahoo Messenger client.