Microsoft will close Skype in favor of a free version of the teams

Microsoft is finally hanging in its application of calls and messaging messages, which acquired 14 years ago, which means the end of an era for one of the oldest internet communications applications.

For users, Skype will disconnect on May 5, when Microsoft replaces it with a free version of Microsoft equipment. Teams has been the successor chosen by Microsoft for years, offering the same types of video calls and group meetings.

“Skype has been an integral part of configuring modern communications and supporting countless significant moments, and we are honored to have been part of the trip,” said Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft's collaborative applications and platforms, in a statement.

As part of the movement, Microsoft will not fire any employee to work in the application, said a spokesman.

Skype users will be able to transfer old account data to their new equipment account, including chats and old contacts, according to a company Blog.

Skype was founded by a group of Nordic entrepreneurs and launched 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 its largest acquisition.

At its peak, around 2016, Skype had 300 million users. But its popularity decreased over the years, usurped by rival messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and professional work applications such as Slack. From 2023, Skype only had 36 million Users.

Microsoft debuted in teams in 2016 and has grown it to become one of the most popular work platforms in the industry, with more than 320 million users. Now, the company will double its investment.

The teams became the Microsoft Focus messaging platform from almost the moment it was launched, after the company said it would eliminate Skype for Business in 2017, which It entered into force four years later.

Skype users who had paid the credits will still have access to them until the next renewal period, the company said. Even after the platform goes out in May, the Skype marking platform will be available for users paid within the equipment.