14 DAY TRIAL // Skype, the popular platform that allows users to make voice and video calls and chats over the Internet, was briefly available as a native iPad application until it got pulled by the developers for unspecified reasons.
Also popular for its additional features which include instant messaging, file transfer, and video conferencing, Skype has over 663 million registered users as of 2010.
The network is operated by Skype Limited, which has its headquarters in Luxembourg.
The company’s VP of Consumer and Product Design, Rick Osterloh, recently confirmed that an iPad version of their Skype iOS app was in the works.
He did not specify an exact release date, but he did say development was coming along nicely, and touted the cameras on the iPad 2 as the key driver in their decision to have a tablet version of the popular Skype app.
For a short period of time, the iPad app launched Internationally on August 1, 2011 (yesterday), just in time for a couple of sources to blog of its existence. The official release notes said:
• Send and receive video using front or back camera on iPhone 4, iPad 2nd Generation, and iPod Touch 4th Generation. • Send and receive video using rear camera of iPhone 3GS • Receive video only on iPad 1st Generation and iPod touch 3rd Generation
However, Skype then pulled their application from the App Store and tweeted the following explanation: “To ensure your best Skype experience, we've temporarily removed Skype for iPad which went live prematurely today.”
We’ll keep our ears to the ground to let you know when Skype for iPad makes a comeback.
On the iPhone front, Skype version 3.0.1 adds the ability to make video calls to a wider selection of clients and devices, including Skype for TV. Skype video calls require iOS 4.0 or later.