Re: [NEWS] Microsoft to shut down Skype

On 28 Feb 2025 at 23:20:19 GMT, "Your Name" <YourName@YourISP.com> wrote:

 
Another product bought up by a big tech business and (eventually)
closed down in favour of their own product, and another third-party
product destroyed by Microsloth buying it up.  :-\

I haven't kept tabs on who's leading between MS & Google in numbers of
third-party apps bought, left to rot then eventually killed off. Google would
take gold easily if you added in all the home-grown apps & services that have
popped up over the years and popped their clogs a few years later. Yes, Yahoo
should be included as well, but I think even their record would only get them
a bronze medal.

   Microsoft acquired Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion in what was
    then its largest-ever acquisition. At its peak, Skype had more
    than 300 million monthly active users and was synonymous with
    internet-based voice and video calling. The service steadily
    declined in relevance in recent years, with its active user
    base shrinking to approximately 36 million by 2023 as
    competitors such as Zoom, WhatsApp, and Microsoft's own Teams
    platform gained traction.
 
   [...]
 
    Skype played a key role in popularizing VoIP (Voice over
    Internet Protocol) technology, enabling businesses and
    individuals to connect around the world with minimal costs. It
    also served as an early testbed for AI-powered real-time
    language translation, a feature Microsoft showcased in a widely
    publicized demonstration in 2014. However, its frequent UI
    changes, reliability issues, ill-conceived social media-like
    features, gradual shift toward enterprise, and inability to
    keep pace with newer competitors, especially during the
    COVID-19 pandemic, ultimately led to its obsolescence.

While I disliked what Skype became in its latter years, there's no denying it
was a game-changer product when it came out in the 2000s, and a survivor of
efforts by incumbent telcos to stave off the thread of VOIP to their positions
and profits by whatever means possible.