Skype 5.0 delivers video-conferencing, Facebook integration

Popular and pre-eminent VoIP service Skype has wooed its fair share of people with an itch to ditch the landline and an internet connection, especially those with international contacts. The service has launched its latest update in the hopes of wooing even more customers and keeping the current ones happy. Skype 5.0 features a streamlined interface, Facebook integration and video-conferencing functionality.

The video-conferencing feature offers a few viewing options. One is the typical side-by-side screen with participants lined up in equal sizes. Then there's the more interesting dynamic view, which increases the size of the person doing most of the talking at any given moment. We got to check this out in a live demo and can see how it would be particularly useful for business calls.

The group video screen also prominently displays the relevant controls along the bottom, as well as a meter that measures call quality. Skype has added a call quality manager that gauges audio and video quality during calls. Automatic call recovery is another new feature that helps users quickly reconnect calls that are interrupted due to internet connection problems.