Microsoft finally hangs from the long -term application of Skype, which it acquired 14 years ago, indicating the end of a season for one of the oldest internet communications applications.
For users, Skype will go off connection on May 5, when Microsoft replaces it with a free version of Microsoft teams. The teams have been selected for years by Microsoft successor for years, offering the same video calls and group meetings.
“Skype is an integral part of the formation of modern communications and the support of countless moments and we have the honor of being part of the journey,” said Jeff Teper, Microsoft’s president for collaborative applications and platforms.
As part of the movement, Microsoft will not dismiss employees who worked in the application, a spokesman said.
Skype users will be able to transfer old account data to their account for new groups, including old conversations and contacts, according to a company blog post.
Skype was founded by a team of Scandinavian entrepreneurs and released for the first time in 2003. The ebay online market acquired it two years later for $ 2.6 billion, before Microsoft bought it in 2011 for $ 8.5 billion, which was then its largest acquisition.
At its peak, about 2016, Skype had 300 million users. But its popularity has fallen over the years, usurpaged by opposing messages such as WhatsApp and professional workplace applications such as Slack. Since 2023, Skype had only 36 million users.
Microsoft made the team debut in 2016 and has grown it to become one of the most popular platforms in the industry workplace, with more than 320 million users. Now, the company will double its investment.
The teams became Microsoft’s messaging platform from almost the time it was released, after the company said it would abolish Skype for businesses in 2017, which came into force four years later.
Skype users who had paid for credits will still have access to them until the next renewal period, the company said. Even after the completion of the platform in May, the Skype Dial Pad will be available to paid users in groups.
