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Microsoft to Acquire Skype for $8.5 Billion

chiefpavvy said:
Apple has squandered FaceTime. They could have opened up the API and allowed a Windows client, amongst others. As it stands I have zero use for FaceTime. (Yes I realize Skype is proprietary as well but the fact remains they have produced clients for most everything.)

Skype works cross-platform and is everywhere. You even see Skype's logo on new flat screen TV's. It is ubiquitous and that's what Microsoft is really paying for. Someone on here said Skype's brand was worthless, I would disagree. How many millions are online using Skype at any given time? Many TV stations now uses Skype for remote shots and call-ins (often displaying the Skype logo on screen).

I think I'll reserve judgement until we see what Microsoft does with it. No reason to jump the shark here.
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Yup. A lot of the time Skype has felt resource constrained. This could really help. MS could screw it up (as Apple did Lala). Who knows at this point, but it's too early to see it as a negative. In the meantime it still appears secure as a large successful multiplatform client, which is why it works.

Hopefully it will give Apple a considerable kick up the arse to sort out the disaster that Facetime has become. No open standard despite announcements to the contrary, poor handling when a device has more than one account or an account has more than one device, no cross platform use (crippling - who would buy an iPhone that could only phone other iPhones? No one. So why could Facetime even possibly be successful?), poor privacy settings, no cross user video chat etc etc etc. It needs a hell of a lot of development and it's been dumped in a draw and forgotten.

Phazer
 
applekid said:
How is this good news for the tech industry? Engadget comments about how this is good is getting all of the likes! I don't understand. I thought all of the Android fanboys would be angry over this just like we are!

So FaceTime is still an open platform if anybody actually decides to port it to other OS's... Just saying...
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Skype was never open. SIP is open.
 
LagunaSol said:
Why are there so many uneducated kids completely unfamiliar with Microsoft's history?
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Indeed. What they did to hotmail:mad::mad::mad:...

My account is pretty much unusable because of all the MS spam. The spam filter works on every other kind of spam though:rolleyes:.

Good thing I never got embroidered in to Skype the way I got hooked on to hotmail. I was one of the first user, so I got the username I wanted. Username. No Username123456789, because someone beat you to the name you wanted.:p
 
Name 1 acquisition Microsoft have made and improved on?
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DOS, which eventually evolved into Windows.
Visio.
Sybase database server, now better known as Microsoft SQL Server.
Kinect (in which Apple also was interested, but did not manage to purchase).
I hear Hotmail is also still very much alive. Just like almost all the other stuff that they have bought along the way and then integrated into their platforms. Microsoft's product portfolio is much more diverse than Apple's and unless you work in a data center or a large corporate environment, you won't even see or hear of most of their products.
 
pubwvj said:
So will they: buy-underrate-kill it? That is their pattern on products I've liked. Usually they kill of the Macintosh version first but eventually the entire product.
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Skype is more than a product, it's the network and the mindshare. They've basically just bought a huge telecommunications company. The price isn't *too* outrageous considering that.

I doubt the name is even going to change. The brand is so strong it's practically a generic term for VOIP now. I imagine it will simply become known as "Microsoft Skype".
 
So whilst tech press is criticising MSFT as it has just paid 8 billion, it is saying much less about the fact that Apple from the rumors is sticking pretty close to Nuance worth around $6 billion.

Apple hasn't reportedly done a deal with Nuance, as yet, but at least MSFT can point to a lot of known Skype customers they get immediately, whilst the full visibility of Nuance and their customers is much less clear.

Both transactions are risky and expensive, but its too early to say whether either of them will work out.
 
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I can't be the only one thinking that this is a good move on Microsoft's part. I agree that 8.5 billion is a touch overpriced but their getting a recognised cross-platform brand and access to millions of customers. This I feel brings the reality of true cross platform, mass market Internet calls a step closer.

FaceTime is open source isn't it? If Microsoft are smart they'll switch skype to be compatible with that so that VoIP will work between Xbox, windows phone, windows 7, iOS, OSX.

It'll allow Microsoft to work within the established platforms of their competitors, making them raise their game while we as consumers will be able to contact each other on an even larger range of products.
 
I haven't seen any responses that mentioned Microsoft's current product that replaces LiveMeeting called Lync. It's awesome.

1. VOIP, IM, Screen sharing, interactive meeting control (voting, polls, etc) and integrated recording in one app. If you haven't used it, watch the demos.

2. Based on the technology in Lync this is a really, really good thing for Skype users.

I'm excited to see what comes out of all this.
 
Considering Skype was already shriveling up like an old prune past it's best before date makes it just perfect for MicroSoft. It'll blend in well with the rest of the MS produce.
 
Skype has been neglecting the Mac for years. 720p video chatting has been available on the Windows version for almost two years, but still not on the latest Mac version. Ever since Mac version 5 was in beta, Mac users have been complaining about the interface taking up way too much screen real estate. There's tons of useless white space. Skype solicits feedback, but doesn't listen. There reduced white space by a little, but there is still a massive amount of unnecessary white space. Mac users have repeatedly told Skype to go back to the version 2.8 interface, or at least make the 2.8 interface a view option, but Skype just pumped out a new version with the same huge, clunky, white space-laden garbage interface.

I'm no Microsoft fan, but I cannot imagine Microsoft's developers being worse than the present Skype team. Hopefully, there will be some improvement for the Mac version once Microsoft takes over. It would be in Microsoft's best interest to not only improve the Mac version, but to also make it perhaps even better than the Windows version. Why is that, you ask? Well, because if Microsoft does not improve Skype for Mac, Apple is going to have legions of Skype for Mac users switch over to FaceTime.
 
coolant113 said:
i give it max 2 years for microsoft to screw skype up.... its gonna go from software that everybody loves and cross platform to microsoft putting there "own fine tune to it" and thats where everything will go wrong, and them favoring Windows 7 phone platform.. so there goes key features for iOS users.... i dont think this one of the best ideas for not only microsoft but also every skype user... looks like we might be going back to aol instant messenger... Just my two sense on this.. :apple::apple:
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I agree. I think Microsoft will pour tons of resources into Skype for Windows Phone and the rest of their own products in an attempt to entice people to buy those products. As for Skype on other platforms, it really does everything it needs to do already. It doesn't need any big new features, in my opinion. They should just focus on polishing the UI on each platform to make it more like each respective platform. I hope that's what they'll do, but I'm not optimistic. After all, it seems ludicrous to spend billions just to polish the UI.
 
I think this is a great thing. I'm really happy with Xbox live, and if they integrate skype with xbl, that will be even better.
 
I've never been a big user of Skype so if this is the beginning of the end of it, I won't miss it too much.

However, I don't think Microsoft are acquiring Skype to make it a integral part of Windows, rather it's Microsoft buying themselves into the Internet market.
Microsoft have a good spot for both Windows and Office (business-wise), but their Internet services has been a constant let down for the company and this is their attempt of catching up with Google. Not that Google are big in VoIP, not in any way, but they need something going for them online.

I'm not saying it's gonna succeed, the huge price tag suggest it's been a rather desperate price war from MS to keep Google and others from getting, but it does give MS an opportunity to be market leader in a new segment.
 
I don't think people comprehend just how much 8.5 BILLION dollars really are. Especially for something like Skype.
 
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fungus said:
And you thought the Skype 5 update for Mac was a step backward... :rolleyes:
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Now that Microsoft is involved., Skype will probably look a lot like FaceTime, before long.
 
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