Can Skype Pull a Netflix for TV Video Chat?

Given Netflix’s performance in recent years, we think the company isn’t a bad muse to have when it comes to strategy, but we still have to wonder if a similar strategy will work for Skype. After all, Skype is a low-cost or free, VoIP and video communication provider, while Netflix is a successful, paid entertainment subscriber service.

NETFLIX: Netflix has repeatedly created business models that are pitch-perfect fits for current market realities.  When Reed Hastings founded Netflix, he envisioned a future for online streaming, but knew the market wasn’t ready, so he created a physical media subscription service that bought Netflix time. When broadband  became pervasive and online video popular, he reinvented the company by pushing aggressively into streaming, and made Netflix a must-have partner for any self-respecting connected device maker.

SKYPE: No doubt, some of the same overarching trends that have benefitted online video streaming helps video and voice chat, including broad device connectivity and pervasive, low-cost broadband. Not only that, but visual communication will become much more common in coming years, as people use devices like the iPhone 4 to talk to each other.