Lync-Skype Connectivity Arriving by June 2013
By Blake Shepard, Senior Business Planner, Lync
On February 19th Tony Bates, President of Microsoft’s Skype Division, announced in the keynote address at the Lync Conference and also in a blog post that Lync-Skype Connectivity for presence, IM, and voice will be available to all Lync users by June. This article is a follow-up to provide additional details and answers to the most frequently asked questions as we set out on the journey to re-humanize communications “from the living room to the boardroom.”
Lync-Skype Connectivity, available for both Lync Online and Lync Server, will enable Lync customers to connect and collaborate with suppliers, customers, and partners—relying on the richness of Lync and leveraging the reach of Skype. The upcoming release is an important first step unlocking the combined value of Lync and Skype. Over time, we will add more capabilities, with video calling as our next priority.
Many Lync users are already enjoying IM and presence connectivity with their former Windows Live Messenger contacts who have transitioned to Skype as part of Messenger’s retirement. By June, we will enable audio calls between Lync and Skype and the ability for Skype users to find Lync users and add them to their Skype contact lists. We will make another announcement when this next set of capabilities is available. Meanwhile, below are the most common questions that we’ve been receiving from customers about where we are today.
FAQs
Is IM and presence available today between Lync and Skype? Yes, on a limited basis. This functionality is enabled as part of the transition from Windows Live Messenger to Skype. Messenger users’ federated Lync contacts follow the transition into Skype with the rest of their buddy lists, and IM between Skype and Lync for these contacts is available immediately. Lync customers do not need to do anything to enable this continuity of service, but Skype users must sign into Skype using the same Microsoft account (formerly known as Windows Live ID) as was used for Messenger. (Note: Adding new Lync federated contacts into Skype and audio calling between Skype and Lync will both be available by June.)
Can Skype users add Lync users to their contact lists today? No, but this feature will be part of the enhancements delivered by June. The current set of capabilities is specific to enabling the Windows Live Messenger transition.
Can Lync users add Skype users to their Lync contact lists today? Lync users can add Skype users’ Microsoft accounts to their contact lists the same way that they have been able to add Messenger contacts (capability must be enabled by Lync administrator), and Skype users can sign in with Microsoft accounts (formerly known as Windows Live IDs). When both of these occur, IM and presence connectivity between Lync and Skype is established.
What communications capabilities will be supported between Lync and Skype as part of the upcoming release? Lync-Skype connectivity for presence, one-on-one IM, and audio calling will be available to all Lync users by June. Over time, we will add more capabilities, with video calling as our next priority.
What must Skype users do to connect to Lync contacts in the upcoming release? There are two requirements for Skype users to use all of the features: 1) Use the updated Skype client (release TBD, but by June), and; 2) Sign-in to Skype with a Microsoft account (which can be associated with an existing Skype ID).
Will Skype Connectivity work with Lync 2010? Yes, Lync 2010 is supported the same as Lync 2013.
What Lync licenses are required for Skype Connectivity? Skype Connectivity is licensed as part of Lync Standard CAL, Lync Online Plan 1, Lync Online Plan 2, or Lync Online Plan 3.
Comments
Anonymous
January 01, 2003
You can add a skype account without being associated with a live id?Anonymous
January 01, 2003
Hi , We are having problem to send invitation to Skype user even upgraded to online SIP . Both user not getting notification .Anonymous
February 28, 2013
In what a difference with federation in Lync 2013?Anonymous
March 01, 2013
can we expect office communicator of outlook & lync connectivity any time soonAnonymous
March 01, 2013
Doubt it. MS is never on schedule. And if they are, bug and fixes patches are applied. hey nobody or system us perfect but tell us credible information for once. Administradors who support your software programming atleast should have that so we keep on schedule with side projects.Anonymous
March 01, 2013
...and ignoring federation with Jabber customers via Lync Online continues.Anonymous
March 03, 2013
"Can Lync users add Skype users to their Lync contact lists today? " Unfortunally if Lync add a Skype user, Skype client will not give any popup or msg about authentification. So both directions cannot add each other. Currently you can workaround if you also have WLM installed. Auth by WLM, next to use Skype. But due WLM will switched off at least at 30.04. there will be a gap between this date and June :(Anonymous
March 14, 2013
with new Skype v6.3 is seems to be possible to add Skype buddies to Lync now Skype will popup for auth than (if v6.3) Vice versa seems still. not to workAnonymous
March 18, 2013
IM confused....What is the difference between, LYNC, Windows Messenger, Communicator, & SKYPE. I have a seperate account on each, how do I combine them?Anonymous
April 11, 2013
Our business is a major Skype user 80+ people, utilizing incoming and outgoing calls to landlines. Will Lync support these Skype features without purchasing a separate telecomm service? Also why did you remove call transfers from Skype? That's a major customer satisfaction issue.Anonymous
May 19, 2013
lync 2010 is compatible for HTC DESIRE VAnonymous
May 29, 2013
Can you add the email notification to Skype? This is one of the reasons why I'm still using WLM. Another reason is that in China, still a lot of people are using WLM, if we switch to Skype, we CAN'T add WLM users any more.Anonymous
May 30, 2013
Is there a tutorial on how to setup Lync 2010 connectivity to Skype and are all the features described in the FAQ above available ?Anonymous
May 31, 2013
@Tomaz: You can download the provisioning guide from here: www.microsoft.com/.../details.aspx This guide was written for Lync Server 2013 but works for Lync 2010 as well. If you want to update the Public Provider name from "MSN" to "Skype" as described on page 9, you should keep in mind that the -IconUrl parameter is not supported for the Lync 2010 version of the *-csPublicProvider PowerShell commandlets.Anonymous
August 01, 2013
The comment has been removedAnonymous
May 15, 2014
AbAsssAnonymous
June 02, 2014
BlankaAnonymous
June 17, 2014
Any news on when Lync/Skype video will be available?
CheersAnonymous
October 22, 2014
Skype V2 which is in beta state will have video facilities, but no ETA available yet.
http://blogs.technet.com/b/nexthop/archive/2014/02/18/microsoft-lync-skype-connectivity-v2-adds-video-and-more.aspxAnonymous
December 04, 2015
The comment has been removed