Skype backlash…

It was inevitable...skype is fab product, but the hype and expectations got to be so large that some sort of reality-check was bound to take place, and it looks like it finally has: -James and Andy cover how MSN is now licensing the voice codecs of GIPS. For those that don't remember, GIPS are the folks behind the great sound quality of Skype. - Stuart questions whether a crisis is looming, and very critically assesses many execution errors that seem to have taken place with innovation in voicemail product development and management of the developer program - People who have been through the interview process at Skype have reported to me a "shockingly arrogant" attitude by some of the interviewers. Could the hype have gotten to some of their heads, giving them a sense of inevitability of their success? Have they just been under too much pressure and expectations, and too understaffed to continue to execute at their previous pace? Or is this just the media/blogosphere, "that taketh away as easily as it giveth"? Personally, I hope these guys succeed properly; but their success is FAR from guaranteed, and they'll have to scramble continually to stay ahead. After all, they're the key deflationary agent in a worldwide trillion dollar industry (bound to make some enemies when destroying that much surplus!), and are starting to be chased by some of the very scariest companies in the planet (Microsoft, Yahoo, perhaps Google, bunch of VC-backed startups)...nobody said it would be easy!

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