14 DAY TRIAL // Nimbuzz users that were using the application for Skype will no longer be able to access these services starting October 31, 2010. The company has officially asked Nimbuzz to remove its support for Skype service in a not so pleasant tone.
The movement follows the decision to pull out from Fring IM and makes it more and more obvious that Skype plans to get rid of all the third-party apps that are offering support for its services.
Either it's the fear of losing too much of the market share or the two companies didn't manage to come to an agreement.
Further, it seems that Skype even offered to meet with Nimbuzz officials and discuss the issue, but haven't heard back from them since August, thus Skype made the move today.
A Skype official made the following statement, when asked if Skype was preventing access by makers of mobile apps:
“Currently, our APIs and SDK are designed for third-party hardware and desktop software application development. Distribution of a third-party Skype developer application through a mobile phone network operator or mobile handset manufacturer is only permitted with the prior written consent of Skype."
"Because of the way our software works and the differences between the mobile and PC ecosystems, we have these rules in place to protect the Skype brand and Skype user experience. To ensure this, we only work with mobile developers, operators, and handset manufacturers committed to delivering the best Skype user experience, as we’ve shown with 3, Nokia, Verizon and most recently KDDI.” To counter the loss of Skype and SkypeOut services Nimbuzz is making some attractive offers to its users: a 15% bonus credit to use on NimbuzzOut (valid until November 2010); NimbuzzOut now lets you call mobile phones and landlines in 45 countries for only 2 cents per minute.