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Well, it also took a long time before it became a technology that actually worked. Working in telco, I remember seeing video call demonstrations as early as th

Well, it also took a long time before it became a technology that actually worked. Working in telco, I remember seeing video call demonstrations as early as the 1990s, and it was also touted as a killer feature for 3G. But in the end it was Skype that made it mainstream starting ~2010, and to massive telco displeasure it did so by going "over the top" and using any old Internet connection instead of the pay-per-minute premium rate video call the telcos would dearly have loved to force you in to. In not a few countries like the UAE, OTT video calls like Skype were in fact banned at their behest -- and it appears the ban was only (partly) lifted this very year thanks to COVID! https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/26/coronavirus-lockdown-uae-residents-call-for-end-to-whatsapp-skype-ban.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/26/coronavirus-lockdown-uae-res...

gedy 6y ago
I know some folks don't like to remember this or were too young, but your point is a good reminder that "regulation" comes with downsides like this. E.g. monopolies and incumbents like telecom will sometimes beg to be "regulated", and use to keep out competition and to avoid having to change/innovate.
- Broken_Hippo 6y ago
  I'd take a guess that most regulations are helpful - everything occasionally has downsides, especially if you game the system. For example: You probably don't test a new can of paint for lead - thanks to regulation. I don't know the standards now, but telcos used to have consumer positive regulations as well. Like having to offer citizens of some states payment plans so they can afford their phone or regulated to apply payment certain ways to help avoid total phone disconnection (landlines here). Fines if phones weren't answered in good time. Some states had weak regulation about updating rural and poor areas as they do the profitable ones: Some countries still make sure this is done in a timely manner.
ghaff 6y ago
One of the things I find interesting is that somewhat organic/bottoms-up solutions have generally won out in collaboration. Video sort of just naturally grew out of IP-based telephony. (ADDED: And, as you say, video with a big premium attached--much less special conference rooms etc.--was a real niche. But video that was just a part of cheaper IP-based telephony really took off.) Collaborative doc editing sort of naturally grew out of the migration of office suites to SaaS. Chat has been around forever but assumed a more important role. None of this looks like a grand unified collaborative toolset like a lot of people were thinking in terms of through the 2000s.
- swiley 6y ago
  All of the value add from telcos is expensive and a pain in the ass 100% of the time. Why do I only get sms/mms on my phone? It uses http to get the mms message anyway, why can't I get it on my computer?
  - howlgarnish 6y ago
    Because MM7 is the gnarliest protocol ever, even by telco standards? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MMS_Architecture https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MMS_Architecture
treeman79 6y ago
Recall waiting for “decades” for my video phone. One day It was “holy crap, they are here!” Gave one to teenager explain how long It all was and how exciting it all is. And a week later. No more video phones in the house.
patall 6y ago
Interesting. I Made a few Skype calls from my hotel in Dubai in 2013 but that may have been via VPN
pmiller2 6y ago
There were working prototypes of video phones in the 1930's, and the first videoconferencing service started in 1970. [0] Your perspective is colored by the fact that "video calls" now take place in front of a computer, I think. --- [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_videotelephony https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_videotelephony

gedy 6y ago

I know some folks don't like to remember this or were too young, but your point is a good reminder that "regulation" comes with downsides like this. E.g. monopolies and incumbents like telecom will sometimes beg to be "regulated", and use to keep out competition and to avoid having to change/innovate.

Broken_Hippo 6y ago
I'd take a guess that most regulations are helpful - everything occasionally has downsides, especially if you game the system. For example: You probably don't test a new can of paint for lead - thanks to regulation. I don't know the standards now, but telcos used to have consumer positive regulations as well. Like having to offer citizens of some states payment plans so they can afford their phone or regulated to apply payment certain ways to help avoid total phone disconnection (landlines here). Fines if phones weren't answered in good time. Some states had weak regulation about updating rural and poor areas as they do the profitable ones: Some countries still make sure this is done in a timely manner.

ghaff 6y ago

One of the things I find interesting is that somewhat organic/bottoms-up solutions have generally won out in collaboration. Video sort of just naturally grew out of IP-based telephony. (ADDED: And, as you say, video with a big premium attached--much less special conference rooms etc.--was a real niche. But video that was just a part of cheaper IP-based telephony really took off.) Collaborative doc editing sort of naturally grew out of the migration of office suites to SaaS. Chat has been around forever but assumed a more important role. None of this looks like a grand unified collaborative toolset like a lot of people were thinking in terms of through the 2000s.

swiley 6y ago
All of the value add from telcos is expensive and a pain in the ass 100% of the time. Why do I only get sms/mms on my phone? It uses http to get the mms message anyway, why can't I get it on my computer?
- howlgarnish 6y ago
  Because MM7 is the gnarliest protocol ever, even by telco standards? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MMS_Architecture https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MMS_Architecture

treeman79 6y ago

Recall waiting for “decades” for my video phone. One day It was “holy crap, they are here!” Gave one to teenager explain how long It all was and how exciting it all is. And a week later. No more video phones in the house.

patall 6y ago

Interesting. I Made a few Skype calls from my hotel in Dubai in 2013 but that may have been via VPN

pmiller2 6y ago

There were working prototypes of video phones in the 1930's, and the first videoconferencing service started in 1970. [0] Your perspective is colored by the fact that "video calls" now take place in front of a computer, I think. --- [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_videotelephony https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_videotelephony