Office 2016 Lync - Skype for Business

A first IT Pro and Developer version of Office 2016 was published Monday, and we have begun testing it with the kalmstrom.com Solutions. There are no changes for add-ins and macros compared to Office 2013, so we expect all our products to work just fine on Office 2016 too.

While testing we are of course exploring the new features of Office 2016, and here is one of them.

Lync becomes Skype
Microsoft bought Skype in 2011, and now they are strengthening the brand name by taking it into the Office package and giving the name "Skype for Business" to the communication platform that was earlier called Lync. On the whole, Skype for Business is the same as Lync, and as you'll see in the demo below we even have the Lynch name in the Start menu of the preview version I have been testing!

Aimed for business
Lync was developed as communications platform for businesses, while Skype first was created for individuals. By giving the name Skype for Business to the more advanced product, Microsoft continues in the same way as with their file hosting service SkyDrive. The personal cloud storage SkyDrive became OneDrive, and the business storage SkyDrive Pro was renamed into OneDrive for Business.

Skype Product Manager
I was one of the first hundred when I began working at Skype as responsible for the Skype toolbars in 2005, and when I left the company after five fascinating years it was world leading.

Organizationally I was part of the department "Skype for Business", so that term brings many good memories and I feel satisfied when Microsoft now continues to expand the Skype brand name. I am well aware of the Lynch benefits, and by connecting them with the more well-known Skype name Microsoft will have a marketing advantage.



I use a preview version of Windows 10 for this demo, and you can learn more about Microsoft's new operating system in a recently published kalmstrom.com blog post about Windows 10. There will be more comments on both Windows 10 and Office 2016 in this blog, so keep visiting!

By Peter Kalmström
CEO and Systems Designer
kalmstrom.com Business Solutions