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Irish Times
18-05-2025
- Irish Times
My late mother and I talked enough for two lifetimes on Skype. I'll miss it now it's shut down
Long before WhatsApp , there was Skype – a lifeline to all of us living abroad. Messaging platforms are taken for granted now, but at the time, it was ground-breaking. Skype shut down for good last week, but has always had a special place in my heart because of what it meant for myself and my mother. It was February 2005, and I was a work experience student, sitting in the stairwell of my apartment block – 13 storeys high – in Paris . Every evening, people gathered there to ring home. We sat around a single phone box with a card loaded with prepaid credit. This was the level that the technology was at back then. But that summer, everything changed. After returning to Ireland, a lot of us Erasmus-bound language students got our own laptops. It was a turning point in personal communication. Skype was created in 2003, the brainchild of a Swede and a Dane , Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis, and a team of Estonian developers. But it didn't come on to my radar until two years later. As I headed off to Nuremberg for a winter semester studying German, it was to make a huge difference between my stint abroad in France and my time in Germany. New laptop in tow, this pioneering free technology allowed our Erasmus generation to stay in touch with family in a way that just hadn't been available for previous generations who emigrated: letters home or a once-a-week call were suddenly replaced with unlimited time on the computer screen. We could all chat as much as we liked. I was able to ring my mother whenever I wanted. Probably too often. READ MORE But Mammy died nine years later – and I was glad we had talked so much. I look back now and wonder, how did we find the time? As an only child whose parents separated in my teens, I was very close to my mother. We also had our disagreements. In fact, we probably had a better relationship when I wasn't at home under her feet. Mammy was very funny and our conversations would be full of silliness and humour. She'd let me talk through relationships that hadn't worked out. I'd ask her how to boil an egg (by the stage I really should have known), or to advise on some new plight in my mid-20s life. We had a Skype party when I quit my bureaucratic job for pastures new. Karen McHugh and her late mother Madeleine It was always a comfort to have my mother on the end of the line. She was the safety net that allowed me to explore Europe without having to miss out on life at home. We had great chats. I thank Skype for that. It was, in some ways, like I'd never moved away. I could have been up the road, though I lived in Brussels, a thousand kilometres away. [ 'Living abroad is a transformative experience that opens our eyes to new cultures, perspectives and opportunities' Opens in new window ] Until my mother got sick. A phone call, from my father, to tell me. I flew home the next day. Mammy had a brain tumour, and it was advanced. She went through a difficult operation and was suddenly very unwell. Nothing was ever the same again. Mammy died nine months later, aged 55. She barely used her laptop again in those nine months, and we never Skyped again. As her illness progressed further, she couldn't talk very much. And I was so thankful we had had those years of conversations, waffling on about everything and nothing. Much later, when I was going through Mammy's belongings, I came across her agendas from those years. She had kept a note of our conversations. 'Talked to Karen for three hours,' popped up more than once. We had talked enough for two lifetimes. Skype went out of service on May 5th, and before that users and former users were told we could download our old messages by then. I logged in for the first time in years. I looked at Mammy's profile picture with a pang – a paint-by-numbers image of two dogs that I had made when I was nine and that was still hanging around somewhere. I'd forgotten about that. The waving emoji invites me to start a conversation. If only. My poor mammy. Tears brim anew. For a split second I can feel that carefree feeling, of when everything was just fine and she was still alive. Karen McHugh and her mother: 'She had kept a note of our conversations. 'Talked to Karen for three hours' popped up more than once' I clicked on the download button. I opened the files. There was nothing there. Our conversations were too old to be stored on the cloud. I felt sickened, and kicked myself for not transferring them years ago. It's too late now. But would I even want to endure the sadness of reading back over all our messages if I had access to them? In 11 years, I had never tried. I do one thing. I take a picture of the screen. It looks like another world. The innocent one you inhabit before you enter that club nobody wants to be part of – when a parent dies and you grow up. [ Life after the death of my mother: You enter new territory where no one ever wants to go Opens in new window ] Meanwhile, my father has taken over when I want to call home. No marathon chats, though. I now live in Iceland. Skype gave me the freedom to stay connected to both parents as I moved around the world. Skype also heralded everything that came after – Zoom, Teams, and WhatsApp groups. I'm delighted for families who can now live abroad much further away than I ever did – in Australia, in America – and keep in touch with home. All of us, in far-flung corners of the world. Living our hybrid Irish-foreign lives. And I'm very grateful for what one piece of technology gave to me and my mother. A lifetime of chats, packed into eight years. Goodbye, Skype. And thank you. Karen McHugh is a journalist based in Reykjavik, Iceland
Russia Today
05-05-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
Microsoft kills Skype
Pioneering internet calling service Skype officially shut down on May 5, 2025, after nearly 22 years in operation, according to Microsoft. The company is shifting focus to promoting its Teams application instead. The service was originally launched in August 2003 by Niklas Zennstrom, Janus Friis, and four other Estonian developers, offering users the ability to make free or low-cost voice and video calls over the internet. The program's name was derived from 'sky peer-to-peer' – how the developers described its functionality. Rest in Peace @Skype You served us well back in the day. It soon became a global phenomenon, allowing both Skype-to-Skype calls and calls to traditional landlines and mobile phones. At its peak, Skype had more than 300 million monthly users in the mid-2010s and was widely regarded as a pioneer in internet-based communication. Skype wasn't just an app it was a lifeline for me, a bridge that brought distant worlds closer. Saying goodbye to it feels like letting go of a piece of my youth. These feelings are deeply real and meaningful. Those memories will stay with me forever. Skype changed hands several times over the years before being acquired by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion. The company has since gradually shifted resources toward its Teams platform, which is now being positioned as its primary product for business and personal communications. The rise of competing services such as Zoom, WhatsApp, FaceTime, and Google Meet ultimately contributed to Skype's declining popularity in recent years. In late February 2025, Microsoft announced that it would shut down Skype and urged users to transition to Teams, allowing them to keep their old contacts and chat history. The company said that the data will be available to transfer until January 2026, after which it will be permanently deleted. Despite its decline, many users have shared tributes to Skype on social media, calling its shutting down 'the end of an era' and reminiscing on how it was one of the first programs they used to stay in touch with friends, loved ones, and colleagues. 'Fly high, frozen blue screen – you weren't perfect, but you were our first,' one user wrote on X.
The Journal
05-05-2025
- Business
- The Journal
Skype has closed down today as owners Microsoft shifts focus
ONLINE VIDEO-CALL service Skype has closed down today. Owners Microsoft announced the end of an era in February when it confirmed that it would be closing the pioneer of online video chatting. Remaining users have been transitioning to the firm's other service, Teams, which has become Microsoft's main focus for conference calls in recent years. President of Microsoft365 Jeff Taper said in February that the lessons from Skype, and its fall from grace, helped the company to better develop the professional-targeted Teams service. Advertisement He said the decision to close Skype down, after purchasing it in 2009, came once it was decided that it would be simpler to focus on one video-call app to deliver a better service to customers. Skype was founded in 2003 Scandinavians Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis in Estonia. It was later purchased in by Ebay in 2005 who later sold it to Microsoft. It dominated internet communication for years by offering free voice calls between computers and affordable rates for calls to landlines and mobile phones. But, as smartphones became more popular, Skype failed to hold its space. Zoom, Teams and other free alternatives offering similar services began to increase their user base, particularly during the covid-19 pandemic as most of the professional world worked from home. Microsoft told The Verge that its rates for landline and mobile phone calls were no longer as relevant in today's market, where mobile data plans are less expensive. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
India.com
02-05-2025
- Business
- India.com
Goodbye Skype: Microsofts Video-Calling Platform To Retire On May 5; What Will Happen To Current Subscribers?
Microsoft Skype Shutting Down: Microsoft has announced that it will shut down its video-calling platform, Skype, on May 5 — just a few days from now. The company believes it no longer needs both Skype, the video-calling platform that made headlines in the early 2000s, and Teams in its business plans. This move is a part of the company's broader strategy to consolidate its communication platforms and focus on Microsoft Teams. However, tech giant Microsoft did not make the decision to shut down Skype overnight and its update was first announced earlier this year. People have got enough time to make the transition from Skype to Teams. Skype Launch Date The video platform was launched in 2003 by Danish software developer Janus Friis and Swedish developer Niklas Zennstrom. Skype was among the most popular video-calling platforms. Skype Features: What Will Happen To Current Subscribers This change will affect both free and paid Skype users, but not Skype for Business. Microsoft will stop offering paid Skype features to new customers, including Skype Credit and subscriptions for making and receiving domestic and international calls. However, the current subscribers can continue to use their existing credit and active subscriptions until the conclusion of their next renewal cycle. Skype Users Can Switch To Microsoft Teams Microsoft says that Skype users will not face any major issues when migrating to Teams, as their existing Skype IDs can be used to log in and easily transfer chats and contacts. However, both platforms have similar features which includes one-on-one and group calls, messaging, and file sharing.
Observer
28-02-2025
- Business
- Observer
MS retires Skype, web call pioneer, in favour of Teams
San Francisco: Microsoft on Friday announced it was retiring Skype, the online voice and video call pioneer that the tech titan acquired in 2011. "Starting in May 2025, Skype will no longer be available," said a post from Skype support on X, directing users to sign into Microsoft's Teams platform for further use of its services. Skype was founded in 2003 by Scandinavians Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis in Estonia, revolutionising internet communication by offering free voice calls between computers and affordable rates for calls to landlines and mobile phones. Over the years, and as internet speeds improved, Skype evolved to include video calls, instant messaging, file sharing and group communication features. By 2005, Skype had already reached 50 million registered users, demonstrating its rapid global adoption. Online auction site eBay acquired Skype in 2005 for approximately $2.6 billion, but the expected synergies never panned out, and in 2009, eBay sold a majority stake to a group of investors, who then sold it to Microsoft. In recent years, especially after the rise of the smartphone, Skype failed to hold onto its place against new rivals such as Meta-owned WhatsApp and Zoom, as well as Microsoft's own Teams. "We've learned a lot from Skype... as we've evolved Teams over the last seven to eight years," said Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft 365 collaborative apps and platforms. "But we felt like now is the time because we can be simpler for the market, for our customer base and we can deliver more innovation faster just by being focused on Teams." Microsoft said that Skype group chats would remain intact in the transition to Teams and that during a 60-day window, messages on Microsoft and Teams will be interoperable so you can message contacts from Teams and those messages will be delivered to friends still using Skype. In one big change, Microsoft is removing Skype's telephony features, meaning you'll no longer be able to call regular phone numbers, cell phones, or make international calls through the service. Microsoft said to The Verge that these features are no longer as relevant in today's communication landscape where mobile data plans are less expensive. The name "Skype" derived from "Sky peer-to-peer," the technology that was fundamental to Skype's original architecture. The peer-to-peer aspect was crucial as it distributed the network demands across users' computers rather than relying solely on centralised servers, which was a key innovation that allowed Skype to scale rapidly. — AFP
