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Thursday, August 20, 2009

Why do you uninstall Skype?

What might we learn from a Skype survey?

Which of the following are reasons why you are uninstalling Skype? Please check all that apply:

  • Skype doesn’t work with my webcam
  • I couldn’t hear the other caller or the other caller couldn’t hear me
  • Buying Skype Credit is too complicated
  • My antivirus or firewall software wasn’t allowing Skype to launch
  • I used Skype in my company, but it is not allowed anymore.
  • I received unwanted calls
  • I was unable to use Skype because I had lost my password
  • It wasn’t easy to get setup and started on Skype
  • I didn’t realize you have to pay for calls to landlines and mobiles.
  • I didn’t have a headset or speakers.
  • I had technical problems or other restrictions not related to Skype (e.g. internet access).
  • I have read that Skype is not secure.
  • I find that using Skype didn’t save me any/much money.
  • I am uninstalling Skype to upgrade to the latest version of Skype
  • Money on my Skype account is/was missing.
  • None of my friends used Skype even after I tried to get them to start using Skype
  • It is not convenient to use because I don’t want to turn my computer on to make personal calls.
  • The call quality was not what I expected.
  • I had technical problems (other than bad call quality) or received error messages from Skype.
  • Couldn’t use my credit card to make a purchase
  • Skype is too complicated to use
  • I was being spammed (e.g received unwanted calls/ chats or requests to authorise contacts from people I don't know)
  • I couldn’t find any of my friends to contact who were already using Skype
  • Skype takes up too much space on my computer
  • Other

This version of the survey is from January 2009.

The causes fall into four broad buckets:

  • Problematic perceptions of Skype's product and web experience,
  • social behavior (too few people you want) and antisocial behavior (too many people you don't want),
  • gear missing, limited, or just not working
  • third-party interference (employer, networks, ISPs)

Have you dropped Skype? Given up? What was your reason?

What could Skype do to get you to try again? Which of Skype's competitors could earn your business?

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6 Comments:

At August 20, 2009 2:21 PM , Anonymous J.A. Watson said...

You left off a major point - "I had a problem (technical or commercial) with Skype, and I got nothing or garbage from Skype "support". Perhaps an intentional omission?

 
At August 20, 2009 2:39 PM , Anonymous Lore said...

Mostly I turned off Skype because of spammers, but the voice quality is poor as well. Some people we can't hear at all, and vice versa. I don't like seeing people on the video in extremely slow motion, or the indication that Skype is using a lot of CPU. I have privacy options set so that only people we have on the list can contact us, but apparently that does not work. People were constantly sending me their sex website links. I bought the best webcam according to amazon reviews, and also gave a different model to my sister-in-law, but nobody can hear her and when looking at her on the video, she is frozen.

 
At August 21, 2009 12:40 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm a long-time Skype user. Years and years. I've paid lots of cash to Skype, and have been happy with what I've paid for. So far I've been able to avoid the most recent update - it's terrible. I've got version 3.8 on my netbook.

If for some reason I were forced to use the newer version, I would stop being a Skype customer. It's that bad.

 
At August 22, 2009 4:04 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

i still have my skype running and use it quite a bit. but most of my friends and family have only very briefly tried it. the following two things dominate their disappointment:

1. they thought skype would let them make free phones calls to actual phones and than found out that it was no cheaper(or even more) than using the calling cards they are familiar with.

2. they wanted to use skype with a very weak WiFi connection as there primary phoneline. VOIP in general seems to have a very high attraction rate for people who do not pay for a internet connection via cable or DSL but just pick up on a free WiFi connection wither provided as an incentive to move in to an apartment or just a neighbors left open one. even more than skype, magicjack buyers seem to expect this to work well and are quite disappointed when it does not.

 
At August 25, 2009 7:52 AM , Anonymous jacob said...

how about skype rasing the connection fee from 3.9 to 7.9 cent?!?!

 
At August 31, 2009 7:15 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am missing; "because Skype is getting to expensive" especially since they now increased the connection fee to 7,9 cents per call!

 

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