A lot has changed since Skype made its debut 11 years ago . Younger users are n't satisfied with lengthy video calls on computers anymore . They want to communicate in small bites throughout the day , sending texts , selfies , gifs , emojis and `` Yo '' s from mobile devices . To keep up with the times , Skype launched the ephemeral messaging app Qik on Tuesday . The free app sticks to Skype 's video roots while borrowing heavily from the Snapchat playbook . The standalone app lets you send videos up to 42 seconds long to a single person or a group . They can then respond by recording another video clip or with a prerecorded five-second video . The clips in the resulting back-and-forth `` conversations '' can be replayed for up to two weeks , at which point they disappear . Video clips ca n't be shared outside the app , and if someone deletes a video they sent , it will disappear from the recipient 's app as well . To make it simple , the app , available for iOS , Android and Windows Phone , does n't require users to sign in with any account . It just uses their phone number and then looks for contacts in their address book . Skype 's video calls are still hugely popular , but mobile devices have upended how people communicate . More than half of Skype 's new users every month sign up from smartphones and tablets , and during the day , there are times when more people are using Skype on a mobile device than on a desktop or laptop . The company , which was purchased by Microsoft in 2011 , is competing against social networks and an assortment of messaging apps . They include Viber , WhatsApp , WeChat , Snapchat and Facebook Messenger , as well as traditional texts and instant message apps . `` There 's a different social contract to how we communicate these days , '' said Dan Chastney , Qik 's principal program manager . `` It 's really changing behavior , where you 're not worried if the person on the other end is available to talk to you . '' Most recently , there 's been a rise in ephemeral messaging , in which photos and words automatically delete after they 're viewed . Snapchat may have popularized the trend , but the desire to have communications that are n't archived forever echoes the real world . `` I would n't want somebody recording every conversation I have in a bar , '' Chastney said . The company thinks that not saving everything will help some people loosen up and become more comfortable with asynchronous video conversations . `` We did n't want people worrying about having to look perfect on camera or that a message recorded might be taken out of context later , '' Chastney said . Apps that automatically delete messages can give a false sense of privacy . Skype is careful to avoid selling its new product as a security tool , like more security-minded competitors Wickr and Cryptocat . That might be a smart move after recent news that more than 100,000 Snapchat photos were intercepted and leaked . Qik 's creators say it is n't meant as a high-security method for holding important conversations . `` The goal of the app was n't to have this super-private , super-secure communication , '' Chastney said . `` It 's for having casual conversations . ''
Qik is a new messaging app from Skype that lets people communicate with video clips . Like Snapchat , the clips eventually delete , so there 's no archive of conversations . This is Skype 's first standalone spinoff app .