Skype outlived its rivals, its reputation and, finally, Microsoft's patience
Skype retired on May 5, 2025 after 21 years
The market's verdict: +1.1% on MSFT in the week after.
What actually happened
Microsoft announced on February 28, 2025 that Skype would be retired on May 5, twenty one years after it made internet calling normal and fourteen years after Microsoft paid 8.5 billion dollars for it, a number the accountants have been asked about at every all hands since. Users were migrated to the free version of Teams and could export their chat history, which for many people was the first time they had thought about Skype in years. In 2013, Skype absorbed MSN Messenger. In 2025, Teams absorbed Skype. The food chain is working as intended.
This one is officially acknowledged.
They did it more than once
Messenger was "merged" into Skype in 2013. Twelve years later the refuge closed too.
Links
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Impact
- The Verge (publication)
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Acknowledgement
- Microsoft Copilot Blog (official)
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Context
- Microsoft Support (official)
↳ caused by Skype retirement (announced February 2025)
Timeline
- Feb 28, 2025 Stood by it Microsoft stood by it.