April 10, 2007 on 1:22 pm | In Voice | 29 Comments
Forrester Research recently published a report, “The VoIP Customer Experience: Work in Progress”. The report examines users’ experiences with voice-over-IP (VoIP) providers, particularly those that combine voice and instant messaging into one application like Yahoo! Messenger.
Although more than half of surveyed consumers knew about VoIP, only 8% had ever tried it. Among this small group, only 4% continue to use VoIP for personal calls, while 3% gave up altogether. So what’s causing this reluctance to try making phone calls through the internet and once in, why do users stop using it?
Forrester found that most problems arise during setup. Due to confusing menus, inconsistent icons and an unintuitive interface, users aren’t really sure how to make that first call. Although Yahoo! Messenger faired best with a usability score of +9 (on a scale of -50 to +50), we still did not achieve Forrester’s minimum passing score of +25. Other factors like whether a user has friends online that they can call for free and concerns about low voice quality were the primary drivers for abandonment.
Yahoo! Messenger did receive thumbs up in a couple of areas. Our prominent security and privacy messaging during setup was noted, along with our efforts to educate users on what VoIP devices work best with Yahoo! Messenger. “Yahoo! came out as the least geeky application, the result of the firm consciously focusing its designers on converting instant messaging users into voice users.”
Have you tried voice in Yahoo! Messenger yet? If not, what’s stopping you? Here are a few common reasons we hear from skeptical users, followed by some helpful suggestions:
“I’m not sure how to make a call in Messenger” - There are two ways to initiate a call. While you’re IM’ing with a friend, click the Call button in the upper left corner. Or, near the top of the main Messenger window (where your contact list is), enter a phone number in the white box and choose the “Call Phone Number” from the drop-down menu.
“I don’t believe the quality is very good” - Hearing is believing, right? Make a free PC-to-PC call to another friend who’s online in Messenger. Or call an 800, 866, 877 or 888 toll-free number – it’s free and there’s no sign-up required (you need to be on version 8.1).
“I don’t want to sign up with my credit card” – You can make free PC-to-PC calls to any Messenger friend that’s online. You only need to sign up with your credit card if you want to call landlines or mobile phones at low rates using Messenger.
“I don’t have the right equipment” – If you’re on a laptop, your built-in speakers and microphone are all you need to make voice calls. If you have a desktop, you can use your speakers or headphones to hear the call, and you can find inexpensive PC microphones ($10 or less) at many online retailers or at a local Radio Shack. For additional voice devices, check out the Yahoo! Messenger Accessories page.
“I don’t want to be tied to my computer to make calls” – Late last year, Linksys released the CIT310 Cordless Phone for Yahoo! Messenger. Plug the USB cord into your computer and the other into your phone jack, then use it to make VoIP calls over Messenger or to make regular landline calls over your phone line. It’s cordless so you can roam free!
So what are you waiting for? Go ahead, make that first call. 
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
April 6, 2007 on 4:18 pm | In Fun Stuff | 19 Comments
What do felt, RFID chips and velcro have in common with Yahoo! Messenger? Meet Shumbee, the latest addition to our family. Shumbee made his debut at Hack Day last week where Messenger team members Mike Holzer, Brian Kobashikawa and Karl Adam presented their invention.
Shumbee is a prototype for an offline/real-world status changer that’s based on our popular emoticons. Despite looking like a felt humpty-dumpty, Shumbee’s innards consist of a circuit board with an embedded Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reader and Bluetooth chip.
Accompanying Shumbee are his different felt faces which each represent a distinct status (“Seeking caffeine”, “Out to Lunch”). So when you get up from your desk to grab a cup of coffee, just drop the “Seeking caffeine” emoticon on Shumbee’s head and your online status changes accordingly. Check out the video demo to see how it works:
Here’s how the technology works: The RFID reader inside Shumbee scans the code in the RFID chip on his felt face. That code is sent to the computer where a small piece of software translates it into an actual Yahoo! Messenger status. When Shumbee is just hanging out with his original face, your status is “Available”. Throw on one of his faces and your status changes accordingly. There’s even an “Invisible to Everyone” face that when dropped on Shumbee, puts you into stealth mode. The prototype software to read and translate the RFID codes was done on a Mac, largely due to the accessible Bluetooth framework that is part of OSX.
Shumbee’s function offers compelling possibilities for offline, real-world applications that integrate with Yahoo! Messenger. Shumbee’s creators originally conceived of changing status based on your cell phone’s proximity to your computer. Most of us always have it on us, so it’s a good indicator of where you are. So as you walk away from your computer with your phone in your pocket, Messenger would change your status to “Not at My Desk”. Similarly when you return, it would detect the Bluetooth signal from your phone as you walk up and change your status back to “Available”. That proved a little too ambitious for a 24 hour Hack Day, so they scaled back a bit and Shumbee was born.
Shumbee is just a prototype, so don’t expect to see him in the aisles of Best Buy anytime soon. Congratulations to Karl, Mike and Brian for earning top honors in the “Fun” category at Hack Day. Special kudos to Brian K. for those mad sewing skillz and to Matte Scheinker for being the “cool boss” that lets his team work on fun stuff like Shumbee.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
April 4, 2007 on 10:06 am | In Features | 15 Comments
Yesterday, Reuters Messaging announced the release of version 6.0, which includes connectivity with Yahoo! Messenger.
Reuters Messaging is a popular instant messaging program among energy market professionals, allowing them to communicate instantly with their market contacts about trades, scheduling and logistics. This new interoperability between Yahoo! Messenger and Reuters Messaging enables users of either program to send text based messages, see online presence, and access conversation history between networks by signing into one service.
To add a friend who uses Reuters Messaging 6.0 to your Yahoo! Messenger contact list, click the “+” button on your Messenger window. Then enter your friend’s email address and choose the “LCS” network from the drop down menu (eventually “Reuters” will become an option in the network menu, but for now use LCS).
This latest interoperability is part of our overall effort to help Yahoo! users connect with more friends, family and co-workers around the world by partnering with the industry’s leading communication networks. The Yahoo! Messenger network currently interoperates with the Microsoft Windows Live Messenger, IBM Lotus Sametime, Microsoft Live Communication Server and Reuters Messaging networks.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
April 3, 2007 on 11:45 am | In News | 46 Comments
We released an update to Yahoo! Messenger 8.1 (for Windows) that includes an important security update. The new version number is 8.1.0.249.
Starting this week, you may receive a prompt to update to this latest version when you sign into Yahoo! Messenger. When the window appears, click the “Update Now” button to install it. The latest Windows version of Yahoo! Messenger is always available from the download page of our website as well.
If you need to check the version number of your Yahoo! Messenger, first sign into Yahoo! Messenger, click on the “Help” menu, then select “About Yahoo! Messenger”.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
April 2, 2007 on 9:00 am | In News | 33 Comments
Hi everyone,
Beginning later today, we will no longer provide customer care support via email or phone for the 7.0 and 7.5 versions of Yahoo! Messenger (for Windows). Online help pages for 7.0 and 7.5 will still be available.
If you are using one of these versions, we recommend that you upgrade to the latest version (8.1), available on the Yahoo! Messenger website. Upgrading will ensure that help and customer care support remain available to you, plus you’ll enjoy additional features like the ability to instant message with Windows Live™ Messenger friends right from Yahoo! Messenger.
If you need to check the version number of your Yahoo! Messenger, first sign into Yahoo! Messenger, click on the “Help” menu, then select “About Yahoo! Messenger”.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
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