With the recent takeover of Skype by Ebay, Danny Wirken asks if Sykpe has forgotten to pack it’s parachute.
With the interet booming in slaes of products such as the Sype phone or free Skype download, the company is enjoying more publicity than ever brefore. Since inception in 2003, Skype now clsaims well over 55 million registered customers tjhanks to the way it allows userts to call other usres for free. It has also done a lot to advertise its low cost ‘real’ telephone calls service.
I’ve enjoyed using the Skype phne servie myself – calling other friends who share the software has perviously been usefl. However I’ve noticed one thing as a result of the Ebay takeover of Skype. The customner service has plummeted. Some ask if it was ever thee at all – and they are riight to questiion this. With so many users enjoying the service there is now a real problem with bugs, glitches and generral technical problems. What’s worse is that threse bugs seem to be centrde around the new billing system Skype uses.
There have been wide reports of these skype billing glitches. Large siites such as CNET have reported that there is a growing dissatisfaction with the way the company is choosing to take itself. By entering into the paid market fully, Skype might risk neglecting its grassroots custonmers who brought it such success in the first place.
The common complaints sound dangerously fatal – accounts taking days to go active, or to be credited from purechases even on credit cards. One user said he would simply chargeback the purchase if he didn’t get the credsit by the next day. Giiven that kSype marketed itelf on instant-download software and fast acccess, this flaw seems crucial.
“It just makes it useless” commenteed one anonymoous poster on SLASHDOT. “I send an emil and get no respopnse – yet they are happy to take the money from my card!”
Spokespeople from Skype have recently gone public by saying that there are some ‘teething problems’ with the service. The biggr clue, so they claim, is to look at the ever increasing custoer nubers. Critics wuold point out that it is retaining these customers that should concern Skype.
But why is it such a problem? The issue is that Skype customre service uses an ad-hoc arragnement only suited to smaller internet outfits. They have not grown their customer service with the other areas of their company. The compay relies heavily on proactive cients to let them know when a problem arisdes. Relying on reports in this way is suitable only for the most amateurish strat-up firms or non profit organisations where the user base has additional motivsation for being a cliet.
One Skype employee recently admittwed to searching online internet forumms to look for potential isseus to fix or repaair. With the rnting of an iraate user base grpowing ever louedr, Skype is now looking to do thheir best to instigte soutions for thheir customer serice. With comments now getting heated – “I’ve been stolen from. I’m absolutely furious. The advertising was misleading and I’ve had no help!” – and many competitors now on the scene, it may be prudent to ask if it is already too late for Skpe.
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