Microsoft lastly pulls the plug on Skype after 20 ...

After over 20 years of calling and messaging, Skype will likely be shutting down on Could 5.

First noticed by XDA Developers, the most recent preview construct of Skype for Home windows reportedly has a message that reads, “Beginning in Could, Skype will not be obtainable. Proceed your calls and chats in Groups.”

Microsoft has since officially confirmed the information and highlighted its efforts to develop Groups in recent times.

“With a view to streamline our free shopper communications choices so we are able to extra simply adapt to buyer wants, we will likely be retiring Skype in Could 2025 to give attention to Microsoft Groups (free), our trendy communications and collaboration hub,” mentioned Microsoft’s Jeff Teper in a blog post.

The historical past of Skype

Quickly gone, however not forgotten

When Skype first launched in 2003, it was primarily utilized by individuals to make calls over the web with out having to pay their telephone firm a fortune. Then the smartphone period arrived, considerably diminishing that demand. In 2011, Microsoft acquired Skype for $8.5 billion, however the tech large by no means fairly found out what to do with it. It tried to combine the service with Home windows, the Home windows Telephone (RIP), and Xbox, but it surely by no means fairly labored out. Since launching Groups in 2017, Microsoft has largely relegated Skype to the dustbin, sometimes offering updates to remind customers it nonetheless existed and that folks have been surprisingly nonetheless engaged on it.

It is no secret that Microsoft’s official various to Skype is Groups, and it has been for years. Even through the pandemic, when distant communication platforms like Slack, Groups, and Zoom have been surging in recognition, Skype was largely forgotten. Though Skype going offline in Could would not considerably change issues, it’s nonetheless unhappy to see it go.

I bear in mind utilizing Skype rather a lot again within the day to speak to associates whereas taking part in PC video games within the late 2000s and early 2010s. Nonetheless, the true nail within the coffin for Skype for me wasn’t Groups; it was Discord — probably the most common messaging apps on the planet now for gaming, with over 150 million month-to-month lively customers. If you happen to nonetheless use Skype, you may quickly see a message within the app about its Could demise, and the choice to switch your contacts and messages to Groups.

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