Skype allows video calling in Edge without plugins

Skype for Web has gained support for in-browser video calling without the need for plug-ins. That only works on the Edge browser for now, but support for other browsers is on the way.

The plug-in-less version of Skype for Web was announced on the service’s blog. From now on, users of the web service no longer need a plug-in to make video calls, as long as they use Edge to surf. For now, the update has only been made for preview versions of the Edge browser, but soon all users of the Microsoft browser should be able to make video calls without a plug-in. If you now want to try out the new version, you should use the Edge browser on Windows 10 with build number 10.0.10586. In the preview version, you may still be prompted for a plugin in some cases, but these issues will be resolved in a later release.

According to Skype, compatibility with other browsers is also being worked on. These include Chrome and Firefox, which will also receive support for Skype for Web without the need for plug-ins. Skype is waiting for browser makers Google and Mozilla to build in support for h.264 encoding.

To provide video calling in Edge without the need for plug-ins, the objectrtc api is used, which is designed to enable communication via audio and video. In September, Microsoft already provided support for this api in Edge, with the aim of supporting Skype, also owned by Microsoft.