Microsoft is set to retire Skype, the video-calling service it acquired for $8.5 billion back in 2011. The company announced this decision on Friday, revealing that Skype will be officially discontinued in May. Some of Skype’s features will be integrated into Microsoft Teams, which has become the company’s main platform for video conferencing. Existing Skype users will still be able to access their accounts through Teams.
This move reflects a long-standing trend where Microsoft has placed more emphasis on Teams over Skype. As how we communicate continues to evolve, Microsoft is adapting to meet these changing demands.
Skype was created in 2003 by a team of engineers in Estonia and revolutionized how we made voice calls by utilizing the internet instead of traditional phone lines. It gained widespread popularity, especially after adding video call capabilities following eBay’s acquisition of the service in 2005. By the time Microsoft bought Skype, it had around 170 million users globally, as noted by then-CEO Steve Ballmer during the announcement.
Ballmer highlighted Skype’s significant place in modern communication, noting that it became a verb associated with video and voice calls. In 2017, Skype was still considered a cutting-edge tool, even being used by President Donald Trump’s administration to connect with journalists from outside the White House press room.
As Microsoft shifts focus to Teams, it signals a new era in online communication, aiming to streamline services for users in a fast-paced digital world.
