Is Facebook video chat really 'awesome'?

Not everyone is so sure that Mark Zuckerberg's Skype-integrated video chat is as groundbreaking and "awesome" as he says

Facebook launched its video chat app, 360 Mate, on Wednesday, and critics say it doesn't live up to Mark Zuckerberg's hype.
(Image credit: Facebook)

Last week, Facebook head honcho Mark Zuckerberg teased that his company was about to "launch something awesome." On Wednesday, he unveiled the awesomeness, delivering a handful of new Facebook features. First and foremost among them, Skype video chat will be integrated into the mammoth social network. But, given the widespread availability of video chat on a number of platforms, some aren't so sure Zuckerberg delivered on his big promise. Is Facebook video chat really so awesome? (Watch an AP report about Facebook's new feature.)

Yes... from a business standpoint: This could be "really really sexy and exciting," says Patricia Handschiegel at Daily Patricia. The telecom industry is on edge of a major shakeup. With features like Skype-integrated video chat, "Facebook could become telecom competition, or even better for investors, a telecom acquisition." It's still early on, but change is imminent. "For almost a decade, carriers have kept voice calling via the internet mostly to themselves. Now, Facebook is going to put it at the fingertips of its hundreds of millions of users.

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