How To Connect Your Skype Account With Your Facebook Profile – And Why?
In May 2011, Skype got acquired by Microsoft for $8.5 billion. Knowing that Microsoft has 1.6 percent of Facebook’s shares, it became clear that Skype will somehow get connected with Facebook, or vice versa.
Not long after the acquisition, Skype released an update which brought us interaction with your Facebook friends. So, let’s see how to connect your Skype and your Facebook and why should you even do it.
This Facebook implementation is not reserved for Microsoft only. Pretty much every web application today has a Facebook login option and it’s only a matter of time before other desktop applications (at least the ones for instant messaging) implement Facebook as well.
Step 1 – Log in
I’ll presume that you already have an active Skype account and an active Facebook profile. If you don’t, you can register for Skype and Facebook. Download the Skype application and enter your username and password.
Step 2 – Initiate a Connection
Once logged into your Skype account, click on the tab with a Facebook icon on it. This is the place you’ll see all of your Facebook friends once you connect the two accounts. Click Connect to Facebook.
Step 3 – Application approval
Like with any other application that wants to access your Facebook profile, you’ll have to log in first and grant it some permissions. Let’s start with a login…
…and continue with approving the details of access for your Skype account. Notice how Skype asks for a lot of permissions, and if you feel incomfortable with granting some of them, you can revoke them in your Facebook Privacy Settings.
Step 4 – Use It!
That’s it! You’ll now have your newsfeed within your Skype application, where you’ll be able to post updates, like statuses and comment on them. You’ll see all of your Facebook friends and be able to start a Facebook chat with them in Skype…
Of course, they’ll be using their browser while you’ll be chatting from within your Skype application.
Do I Really Need To Do This?
No. I wasn’t sure about connecting my Skype and Facebook accounts either, they are two different worlds, two different sets of contacts and there is no reason why should I get them connected. Lucikly, you can easily disconnect Skype from Facebook, so give it a try.
If you use Skype and Facebook chat a lot, you should connect the two and somewhat organize your chats in one single application. But once again, take good care of your Facebook privacy, because you don’t want to send a public update instead of a Skype message to a single person.
