Microsoft to Discontinue Skype in May
Microsoft is shutting down Skype, the video-calling platform it acquired for $8.5 billion in 2011, which played a crucial role in transforming online communication. On Friday, the tech giant announced that Skype will be retired in May, with...
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Microsoft is shutting down Skype, the video-calling platform it acquired for $8.5 billion in 2011, which played a crucial role in transforming online communication.
On Friday, the tech giant announced that Skype will be retired in May, with some of its services transitioning to Microsoft Teams, its primary videoconferencing and collaboration application. Current Skype users will be able to log into Teams using their existing accounts.
For years, Microsoft has emphasized Teams over Skype, and the decision to retire the brand underscores the company’s goal to unify its main communication tools amid increasing competition.
Launched in 2003 by a team of engineers in Tallinn, Estonia, Skype was groundbreaking in its ability to facilitate internet-based telephone calls, utilizing VOIP (voice over internet protocol) technology that converts audio into digital signals for online transmission. The service incorporated video calling after eBay's acquisition in 2005.
"You no longer had to be a senior manager in a Fortune 500 company to have a good quality video call with someone else," remarked Barbara Larson, a management professor at Northeastern University specializing in the evolution of remote work. "It brought a lot of people around the world closer."
By enabling users to avoid costly international phone calls, Skype became a game-changer not just for businesses, but also for individuals connecting globally.
"You could suddenly have long calls, frequent calls, that were either free or very inexpensive," Larson noted, although the platform also attracted scammers, like many new technologies do.
When Microsoft purchased Skype from eBay in 2011, the service boasted around 170 million users globally; then-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer remarked at the announcement, "The Skype brand has become a verb, nearly synonymous with video and voice communications."
Even in 2017, Skype was still viewed as cutting-edge, as it was used by President Donald Trump's administration to engage with journalists located away from the White House press briefing room. A month later, Microsoft unveiled Teams to address the rising demand for workplace communication tools triggered by competitor Slack Technologies.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, platforms like Slack and Teams, as well as newcomers such as Zoom, experienced significant growth as companies transitioned to remote operations, while families and friends sought new means for virtual interactions. Although Skype was already losing traction, it had laid the foundation for enhancing remote connections.
"Higher-quality media can really deepen relationships and make people able to work through complex problems much better," Larson explained. "Suddenly, this was available to anyone with a decent internet connection. And that was the real sort of revolutionary role that Skype had."
Rohan Mehta contributed to this article for TROIB News
On Friday, the tech giant announced that Skype will be retired in May, with some of its services transitioning to Microsoft Teams, its primary videoconferencing and collaboration application. Current Skype users will be able to log into Teams using their existing accounts.
For years, Microsoft has emphasized Teams over Skype, and the decision to retire the brand underscores the company’s goal to unify its main communication tools amid increasing competition.
Launched in 2003 by a team of engineers in Tallinn, Estonia, Skype was groundbreaking in its ability to facilitate internet-based telephone calls, utilizing VOIP (voice over internet protocol) technology that converts audio into digital signals for online transmission. The service incorporated video calling after eBay's acquisition in 2005.
"You no longer had to be a senior manager in a Fortune 500 company to have a good quality video call with someone else," remarked Barbara Larson, a management professor at Northeastern University specializing in the evolution of remote work. "It brought a lot of people around the world closer."
By enabling users to avoid costly international phone calls, Skype became a game-changer not just for businesses, but also for individuals connecting globally.
"You could suddenly have long calls, frequent calls, that were either free or very inexpensive," Larson noted, although the platform also attracted scammers, like many new technologies do.
When Microsoft purchased Skype from eBay in 2011, the service boasted around 170 million users globally; then-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer remarked at the announcement, "The Skype brand has become a verb, nearly synonymous with video and voice communications."
Even in 2017, Skype was still viewed as cutting-edge, as it was used by President Donald Trump's administration to engage with journalists located away from the White House press briefing room. A month later, Microsoft unveiled Teams to address the rising demand for workplace communication tools triggered by competitor Slack Technologies.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, platforms like Slack and Teams, as well as newcomers such as Zoom, experienced significant growth as companies transitioned to remote operations, while families and friends sought new means for virtual interactions. Although Skype was already losing traction, it had laid the foundation for enhancing remote connections.
"Higher-quality media can really deepen relationships and make people able to work through complex problems much better," Larson explained. "Suddenly, this was available to anyone with a decent internet connection. And that was the real sort of revolutionary role that Skype had."
Rohan Mehta contributed to this article for TROIB News
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