Facebook and Skype – planning for rendez-vous

Facebook and Skype are planning for a tight cooperation. For Facebook users, this means that they will be able to call their friends and send SMS to each other. Video chats will be integrated as well.

According to All Things Digital, a Wall Street Journal blog, Facebook and Skype have agreed on a far-reaching cooperation. The two networks had already worked together on importing tools for friend lists. With the cooperation, Facebook aims at offering more communication ways to its 600 million users. Skype has some 124 million active users per month, with a total user base of 560 million people.

Facebook users will be able to send SMS and call their friends, as well as making use of video chat. These new integration features would become available with Skype 5.0. Within the next weeks, the software will leave the Beta status.

Skype 5.0 Beta 2 supports video calls with up to ten participants. Skype has already added extended social platform features, like reading status messages by contacts, or setting your own status message and profile picture. You can send instant messages while you’re offline, and you can search for contacts easier.

With its Facebook cooperation, Skype could integrate better with Social Networking. Skype has many non-U.S. users, which could speed up Facebook’s global expansion. It is unknown which mobile features are going to be integrated.