Skype for Android now lets you schedule calls and open files directly in Microsoft Office

Skype today updated its Android app with a new scheduling feature and Microsoft Office integration. You can download the latest version now from Google Play.

Last week, Microsoft updated Outlook for Android and iOS with support to schedule Skype calls. Now the Microsoft-owned company is returning the favor: You can now add calls to your Outlook schedule from Skype for Android.

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In fact, the call scheduling should work with any calendar app. To use the feature, just tap on the person you plan to call, tap the menu in the upper right, and select “Schedule a call” (pictured below on the left). Skype will create an event and send out the calendar invite.

Next up, Skype for Android now integrates with the Microsoft Office apps on Google’s mobile platform. You can now easily open documents, spreadsheets, and presentations that you receive in Skype chats (pictured above on the right).

If you receive a Word, Excel, or PowerPoint file, tapping it will open the corresponding app for Android. If you don’t have the Office app installed, tapping on the file will tell you how to download and install it.

This isn’t a major update by any stretch, but it is another example of Microsoft trying to tie all its apps and services closer together. Google does the same thing on Android and iOS, while Microsoft tries to straddle those mobile operating systems as well as its own Windows world.

That said, Skype didn’t share when these features will come to iOS, nor when Windows 10 Mobile users can expect them. We expect iOS will probably get them first, as Skype’s integration for Windows 10 is still very much in the works.

“Windows users remain a top priority for Skype,” a Microsoft spokesperson told VentureBeat in October 2015. “We are focusing our efforts on integrating Skype capabilities into Windows 10 communications apps to deliver great experiences to Windows users. We’ll have more to share in the future.”

It’s 2016, and we’re still waiting to hear about that future.

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