As promised, we have rolled out the change to use Skype for Business desktop app on Mac as our web-downloadable meetings client instead of Skype Meetings App (SMA)!
The change applies to meetings that are hosted on Skype for Business Online or on Skype for Business Server 2015 that is configured to use the Microsoft Content Delivery Network (CDN). (If your server is not configured to use the online CDN, there is no change to your experience.)
The desktop app brings many advantages over SMA: Screen sharing, audio, and video are significantly more reliable. The meeting experience is built around a larger and more immersive display of video and shared content. Screen sharing from the Mac uses Video-based Screen Sharing (VbSS), which is faster and more reliable than Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) used by SMA. The app has also been optimized to work well with macOS 10.14 (Mojave), including Dark Mode.
When you click to join a meeting on a Mac, you will see this screen in your browser:
"How would you like to join your meeting?" web page when joining a Skype for Business meeting
Selecting Download and install Skype for Business will download the SfB desktop installer (recently reduced in size from 47 MB to 35 MB):
Web page for downloading the SfB app installer
Click the download to install the app. Users who do not have administrator permissions on their Mac should choose the Install for me only option on the Destination Select page of the installer.
Destination Select page of SfB Installer
When Skype for Business opens, you have the option to sign in (if the meeting is from your own organization or an organization that is federated with yours) or to join a guest.
Join as a Guest screen in Skype for Business
We are excited to bring these improvements to our Mac users, and we look forward to your continued feedback on Skype for Business!
