Firefox, a free and open source web browser, has just announced the release of an update to their experimental Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) feature, beta version, known as ‘Firefox Hello’; and they’re requesting for testers to give it a try.
“Today, I’m incredibly pleased to announce a partnership between Telefónica and Mozilla which introduces “Firefox Hello” – a seamless real-time video communication feature – directly into the Firefox Beta browser,” said Ian Small CEO, Communications Services at Telefónica and Chairman of TokBox.
Firefox Hello, powered by Telefónica’s TokBox technology, is a video chat service that allow users to make free voice and video calls, without the need to download any software, plugins or create an account. The update allows anyone who has a WebRTC-enabled browser (i.e. Chrome, Firefox or Opera) to be able to use this service.
Exciting news – #FirefoxHello now available for all Firefox users, powered by #OpenTok http://t.co/3xjwB4Y8ws
— TokBox (now Vonage) (@tokbox) January 14, 2015
A statement about the feature on their website says, “Firefox Hello provides more value to Firefox users by making it easier to communicate with your friends and family who might not have the same video chat service, software or hardware as you.”
The new features are call options and contacts integration; the former allows users to connect with people without creating an account. Users simply share a call-back link with the person of interest, the person at the other end click on the invite link to begin conversation. The latter enable users add contacts to their address book manually or import them from their google account to Firefox Hello. If, however, the contacts are online, they can be added directly from Firefox.
Say Hello to a friend on March 3 using #FirefoxHello. It’s the easiest way to stay in touch! http://t.co/8rLfjMvYdU pic.twitter.com/KPPtAxf7EZ
— Firefox 🔥 (@firefox) March 1, 2015
“These are just some of the main improvements that we will be rolling out over the next few weeks to all Firefox Beta users. So please test them out and let us know what you think at the end of your call. Please remember we’re still in the experimental phases and making a lot of changes behind the scenes,” another statement reads on their website.
Mozilla Firefox (known simply as Firefox) is a free and open-source web browser developed for Windows, OS X, and Linux, with a mobile version for Android, by the Mozilla Foundation and its subsidiary, the Mozilla Corporation.
Eager testers can download the Firefox application here.
