Mozilla’s Firefox is gearing up to give services like Skype and Viber some new competition by launching a new browser-based video chat called Firefox Hello.
The new chat service will be available for testing inside the latest Firefox beta release and will be released to the general public in a matter of weeks.
Mozilla shared a blog post about the new service explaining that it aims to open up more possibilities with video chat services.
“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,” Mozilla’s post explained.
The big advantage with Firefox Hello is that it will allow users to connect with others regardless of their Internet setups.
The chat service won’t require users to download any new software or additional plugins that could possibly slow their computers.
The blog boasts that users won’t even be required to set up a profile or account. All they will need to do is use Firefox to initiate the call.
In order to try Hello Firefox, users need to download the latest Firefox beta and click on the chat bubble icon.
According to Technobuffalo.com, users will then be able to “share a ‘callback link’ with the person you’d like to communicate with, and all they have to do is click the URL to initiate the call.”
Mozilla will also be making use of user’s Google address books.
Instead of being forced to create new contacts one-by-one, users will be able to import their entire Google address book to their Firefox Hello contacts list.
Users interested in trying out the beta version can follow the corresponding links provided by the Mozilla blog.