Microsoft has announced its plans for Skype Translator, a new tool that aims to break down language barriers by translating spoken words during Skype video calls in real time.

Last week at the Code Conference in California, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Skype corporate vice president Gurdeep Pall demonstrated the feature publicly for the first time, via a conference call conducted between Pall speaking English in California and Diana Heinrichs speaking German in London. Though the translations were not always entirely accurate – many onlookers who understood German described them as “passable at best” – the near-real-time translation into a voice speaking the listener’s language impressed many. Microsoft state that Skype Translator “opens up so many possibilities to make meaningful connections in ways you never could before in education, diplomacy, multilingual families and in business”, and it’s easy to agree.

The company plan to release Skype Translator as a Beta for Windows 8-based devices later this year. Following successful testing, it’s believed the tool will later be offered as an update to existing Skype copies and support Windows 7, although nothing is confirmed beyond Microsoft’s reminder that Skype is “available across a number of devices and computing platforms”.