Skype sets the mood with free video valentines.

Pick your cover…

Record your love note using a webcam, and address it to the one(s) you love.

From the Skype media team:

Roses are Red, and Violets are Blue
Chocolates are sweet, but what about you!?

To make someone smile and giddy with glee,
Just video call your Valentine; it’s easy and free!

With a click and record, your readers can share,
Their Valentine’s wishes as though they were there.

While overpriced roses can stir up some hype,
What better surprise than a quick call on Skype!

So say ‘I Love You’ to him, her, or mom,
By recording a video card at Skypevideocard.com.

Observations from the 2008 Christmas/Chanukah Video Greeting Card version still apply: Skype can use your video as they like, including your name and the name of your recipient. Skype will delete your videos when it suits them. No encryption. While Skype video cards are a great example of marketing fun and elegance, my concerns still stand:

The video card site doesn’t use Skype. At all.

• No use of Skype names or address books to send video greetings.
• No use of the Skype client to record the video message. Or to view video messages from others.
• No use of the Skype client as a way to continue the conversation in a voice, chat or video call.
• No use of Skype’s advanced audio/video codecs for higher quality.

Skype Video Card highlights where Skype’s technology is creaking with age at the end of 2008.

• Skype doesn’t offer a browser-based client. Rich Internet Apps improve virality and adoption with less downloading and faster time-to-value.
• Skype’s APIs don’t expose an open web services platform beyond simple presence. So third parties cannot build Skype into, oh, say, video card apps running in browsers.
• Skype doesn’t support third-party authentication, identity interop, profile synchronization, or personal contact synchronization, or personal contact group synchronization. Far from the data portability ideals.
• Skype’s identity model does not facet identity. So you’re stuck with one profile for everyone. For family. For every job. For every relationship. Forever.
• Skype clients don’t support inline media sharing. No playing of images, videos, sounds or other objects during a conversation.

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