Recently, Fring pulled support for Skype on their platform after being sued by the internet calling juggernaut. It’s likely that Skype was Fring’s most used service, which is particularly crushing. It appears that the four year relationship was ended after Fring added 3G video calling on the iPhone platform, then pulled it soon after, prompting Skype to block them. So now, Fring claims Skype is being anti-competitive, Skype claims Fring is lying and pulled Skype because the network strain was too high.

The way I understand it, if a Skype licensor pulls Skype support from their product, they violate the agreement, which causes Skype to pull support. If that’s the case, Fring, collapsing under the incredible demand of iPhone 4 video calls, pulls the ability, which violates the agreement with Skype, whom in turn, doesn’t let Fring use their service. It’s also possible that Fring can’t handle the video demand and is looking for a scapegoat, as Skype claims.

This whole ordeal also raises a bigger question: why is there no Skype app for iPhone that supports video chat? Or that does iOS4 background calling? It’s clear that Skype is acting defensively in this case; I just wish they had something more robust that they were defending, since third parties like Fring have to date been our only option. -Gizmodo

Is what happened here? I’m not totally sure. Gizmodo has a good point. Fring has always been the innovator here. They had 3G calling, background calling, and video chat first — way before Skype. If Skype can’t deliver than we need these alternatives. We’ll probably see this unfold soon.

Read more about it here, here and here.

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