Steve Jobs Asked About FaceTime Coming to Windows & Android
On the October 20 edition of MacBreak Weekly, Twit.tv’s Becky Worley (also works on ABC’s Good Morning America) was at the Apple press event that included the announcement of FaceTime for the Mac. During the post event hands on time, she chased down Steve Jobs. Via FaceTime she broadcasts a brief two question interview with Jobs.
First she just asked how he liked the new models. But the interesting question was her second. Worley asked Jobs, Does the fact that we now have FaceTime just on the Mac mean we won’t see API’s for other video conferencing?â€
His reply was basically no comment. Specifically Jobs said, We didn’t say any such thing.â€
That doesn’t sound like news, except that the rest of the panel on MacBreak Weekly took it to mean that FaceTime would not be coming to other platforms. That’s not how it sounded to me; he was really just saying, No comment.â€
But why don’t we yet have FaceTime for other platforms. It is because Apple has not yet released the API for the service. When it does, it seems obvious that we will see people creating FaceTime for Windows or Android. One reason Apple may be holding back because the company believes this is a chance to grab more market share.
They clearly pushed FaceTime in their ads this past summer after the release of the iPhone 4. Expanding to the Mac via the FaceTime beta released yesterday for Mac OS X 10.6 and the iPod Touches earlier makes it more useful to a wider audience.
The question remains, will FaceTime draw buyers to the Mac platform?
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I don’t think so, the app is great and if you have an iPhone 4 or iPod touch 4 gen it is very useful, but if you don’t, what is the difference between FaceTime and Skype, it’s just video calling via internet. It is like a normal chat but only for video, you cant type any text. If you have your PC or Mac with you and you have a WiFi connection you can use any other app. Like the new Yahoo chat for Iphone 4, Android and Windows. Why we have to use apps that will only work over one platform???
Have you ever tried setting up a Skype connection ? The firewalls are mainly blocking it and it is a pain. What windows users don’t get is the usability. You don’t have to setup anything else than entering your email account and it syncs with your address book.
Oh and BTW i’ve been a windows user for over 15 years and recently switched. I know how to setup a port forward on a router firewall. It’s just unintuitive, ugly and doesn’t suit the needs for around 70% of the user base.
Continue using your soft that you like, while you are configuring it… i’ll already be using it
Obviously you’ve never used skype. No config needed on it, just username password and it simply works even behind firewalls.
What is nice in facetime is that I can call iPhone users and they don’t have to login on any software to be online, it’s transparent for them.
So yes it will increase apple population as it’s simple and it works. I would like to have a simple application like facetime on my Android phone.
Use Tango works on 3G and wifi and its free for multi-platforms like Android and iPhone’s
This will definitely help apple’s market share. I am a windows users and from what I’ve seen with my girlfriends MacBook and my iphone4 I am surprised at the simplicity and speed at which it takes to set up facetime. The argument for skype is moot in because of skype’s lack of porting their video chat capability to smartphones. Fring was the only one app across multiple platforms that could utilize skype’s video chat for smartsphone video chatting, but Skype themselves shut it down. Skype’s mistake will be apple’s ‘killer’ app . A year or so and if facetime makes it to windows or android then we’ll know who made it on top.
Obviously your not understanding the importance. Your looking at it like skype to skype or pc to pc.
The deal is tons of people are getting ipod touch’s, and facetime is much cleaner and better quality than skype. this is what we want from facetime.
Facetime (windows) to facetime iOS (ipod Touch 4g, Iphone 4) or mac OSX.
You create an interconnected web where dialing your friend is as easy as looking in your contacts and pressing the facetime buttom. And the ipod touch 4g and iphone 4 both have N wifi capability. So far I’ve been on my ipod touch 4g at safeway (Grocery store) and my fiance’ at home on our wifi and said to myself well I wonder what yogurt she wanted? And so I accessed safeways free wifi and dialed her email on facetime it rang on her side she picked it up and I asked her about it. But whats really awesome is that I was able to show her the yogurt and have her confirm as if she was with me looking right at it. Much better than being on a phone saying, umm the red container with strawberry and etc… With facetime your able to show people what’s going on rather than trying to describe it with words. After all a picture or video is worth a thousand words.
All we want is the WINDOWS CLIENT… because let’s face it, most people have a computer, but not everyone has a mac. Making it compatible with all platforms would allow for a whole new ballgame that has the potential to put skype out for good.
I agree with you 100000%
The grammar nazi within me wants to slap you across the face.
Apple is using Facetime to boost sales of their own products, if not increasing market share. Just look at the iPod touch ads this fall, this will be the next thing after texting for the teenagers. The new iPad will have Facetime in Q1 2011 and then after Mac OS 10.7 is released we will see Facetime on non Apple platforms.
There’s a reason why iSight devices did not become ubiquitous and widely favored and iTunes did. iSight is Mac only. iTunes is Mac+Windows.
If they want FaceTime to succeed, there will be a windows version or a public API.
I think taking a short (stock) position on RIM/Blackberry is a very good move right now. Add Face Time with an answer to Blackberry’s BBM Apple will pull the youth/student market curretly enamored with Blackberry’s. The youth/studnet market knows technology and knows what they want. Look out Blackberry. Look out Verizon. Smile AT&T.
Well he would be better off to release it on other platforms, android is gaining fast on market share and I am sure windows 7 phone will be a strong competitor too, it looked pretty good from what I have seen so far.
As is looks Google is going to offer their video calling cross-platform wide, so more people will use it, if Apple wants to see people using facetime in the next couple years, they are highly advised to offer it on other platforms as well. Otherwise we see another iChat (which to be honest I don’t know anyone who uses it at all. Skype took that market over and they are cross-platform available.