Latest news with #WindowsPhone
CNA
05-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Skype to ring for last time today after over two decades of connecting people across the world
After two decades of connecting people, Skype will ring for the last time on May 5. Microsoft is retiring the internet calling pioneer, as it sharpens focus on its newer flagship platform, Teams. Skype's sunset marks another chapter in Microsoft's graveyard of mishandled high-stakes bets — joining the likes of Internet Explorer and Windows Phone. Microsoft bought Skype in 2011 for US$8.5 billion, outbidding Google and Facebook. Back then, Skype had 150 million monthly users. But in 2020, that dropped to just 23 million. Microsoft says Teams has 320 million active users today.
RTHK
05-05-2025
- Business
- RTHK
Microsoft to shut down Skype on May 5
Microsoft to shut down Skype on May 5 Skype will become the latest in a series of high-flying bets that Microsoft has mishandled, such as the Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. File photo: AFP Skype will ring for the last time on Monday as owner Microsoft retires the two-decade-old internet calling service that redefined how people connect across borders. Founded in 2003, Skype's audio and video calls quickly disrupted the landline industry in the early 2000s and made the company a household name boasting hundreds of millions of users at its peak. But the platform has struggled to keep up with easier-to-use and more reliable rivals such as Zoom and Slack in recent years. The decline was partly because Skype's underlying technology was not suited for the smartphone era. When the pandemic and work-from-home fuelled the need for online business calls, Microsoft batted for Teams by aggressively integrating it with other Office apps to tap corporate users. Skype will become the latest in a series of high-flying bets that Microsoft has mishandled, such as the Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. Other big tech firms have also struggled with online communication tools, with Google making several attempts through apps including Hangouts and Duo. Microsoft declined to share the latest user figures for Skype and said there would be no job cuts due to the move. It added that Teams has about 320 million monthly active users. When Microsoft bought Skype in 2011 for US$8.5 billion after outbidding Google and Facebook – its largest deal at the time – the service had around 150 million monthly users. By 2020, that number had fallen to roughly 23 million, despite a brief resurgence during the pandemic. (Reuters)
Forbes
26-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Kill Your Business - Before It Kills You
In the realm of entrepreneurship, success often breeds complacency. The very strategies that propel a company to prominence can, if left unexamined, become the catalysts for its decline. This phenomenon, known as the 'Icarus Paradox,' illustrates how businesses can fail by clinging to past triumphs without adapting to evolving markets. Understanding the keys of this trap, might lead you to the obvous answer that to really grown, you might have to kill your business. Danny Miller coined the Icarus Paradox, which describes how a company's strengths can become its weaknesses. As businesses achieve success, they may become overconfident and resist change and innovation. This resistance can create a 'success trap.' In this trap, companies stick to what they know. They focus on using current skills instead of seeking new opportunities. Depending on your company's structure and culture, you can simplify discussing the Icarus Paradox. Try asking this question: 'Why don't trees grow to the moon?'' Trees Don't Grow To The Moon Erik Logan This question comes from an old German saying: 'Trees don't grow to the sky.' No matter how you bring it up with your company, the answer is clear: Success has stalled. What are you going to do about it? The first step is to acknowledge, then begin the understanding: Are you in a success trap? Are you a tree that has stopped growing? Maybe this can help. Nokia went from being a top mobile phone brand to a warning sign for businesses. This shows how dangerous it is to be complacent and not adjust to fast-changing markets. Nokia once held over a third of the global mobile phone market. But it failed to see the smartphone revolution coming. Its heavy reliance on old operating systems like Symbian caused a big drop in market share. Internal conflicts, a strict structure, and slow reactions to tech trends made things worse. When Nokia tried to shift to the Windows Phone, Apple and Samsung had already taken control of the market. This left Nokia fighting to find its place again. Stay alert for warning signs to keep your successful business from struggling. But as the old saying goes, 'You can't read the label from inside the jar.' You need to have some objective metrics and market data to help clear the fog and think clearly. Here are a few key areas you may start: • Stagnant Growth: Plateauing sales or market share can indicate a need for a strategic reset. Be honest with yourself; if sales are slow, ask yourself if you are making excuses for the flattening. Are you trying to find the good in your numbers? You might think those answers are good enough. But push your team and yourself to find the real truth. • Resistance to Change: A clear sign of stagnation is a culture that ignores new ideas or technologies. This can slow down progress. A subtext here is also the amount of turnover you may be having with your company. Unless you have initiated layoffs, the turnover could signal internal dissatisfaction . • Loss of Market Share and/or Profit Margins: This is where you actually see the decline year over year, not just slowing growth. A common mistake is attributing the downturn to market headwinds. The temptation at this point is to find ways to justify the downturn. A common theme or variation is, 'The market was down 10%, and we were down 2%, which means we were up 2% against the market.' While technically true, it builds in a mentality that growth isn't there. And by definition, maybe it's time to grab that saw! The first thing you should do is pat yourself on the back for having the courage to look at the reality of where you are. It's something that isn't as easy as many think. After reflection, you may determine that you are not ready to kill the business but rather use it as motivation to delve deeper into the core issues. Two very quick and easy ways to push the culture and the company forward are: 1. Test New Ideas with Your Leadership Team: Observe who is open to innovation and who is stuck in old ways. This will help clue you in on who is ready for larger conversations. 2. Fire Yourself: Imagine that you are not the leader or CEO. Next Monday is your first day. Go through the process of walking in on your 'first day.' Ask questions as if you are the new person. Why do we do it that way? Even if you understand, does your team? Ask for clarity on how what they are doing maps to the goals and overall strategy of the company. Success isn't just a one-time goal. It's an ongoing journey that needs constant review and adjustment. Businesses can avoid mistakes made by others by recognizing past strategies' limits and embracing change. The key lies in balancing the confidence of past successes with the humility to evolve. Don't just watch a company's failure. Dig deeper to find where their strategy went wrong. Learn from others and form your own opinion. Take those lessons and apply them to your company. Remember, trees don't grow to the moon, and neither do businesses. Recognize when you need to kill your business. Be honest, time to plant a new seed, nurture it, and allow it to flourish in new soil.
Egypt Independent
02-03-2025
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Skype is shutting down after two decades
New York CNN — Microsoft is shutting down Skype, the internet-based phone and video service that was once the dominant way of staying connected in the mid 2000s. Skype will 'no longer be available' to use starting in May, the company confirmed on X, telling users that their log-in information can be used on Microsoft Teams' free tier in the 'coming days.' Skype's shutdown comes 14 years after Microsoft bought the service for $8.5 billion in cash, marking the company's largest ever acquisition at the time. Microsoft integrated the service into its other products, such as Office and its ill-fated mobile operating service Windows Phone. 'Skype has been an integral part of shaping modern communications and supporting countless meaningful moments, and we are honored to have been part of the journey,' Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft 365 collaborative apps and platforms, said in a blog post. 'We're excited about the new opportunities that Teams brings and are committed to helping you stay connected in new and meaningful ways.' Skype's popularity has faded in recent years, despite a pandemic bounce that lifted other competing products, including Zoom, Google Meet and Cisco Webex. Skype has also faced increased competition over the last decade and a half from apps like Apple's FaceTime and Meta's WhatsApp. Plus, Microsoft has been investing heavily in Teams, which offers many of the same services. Skype launched in 2003 in Estonia and quickly caught on as a way to make free calls worldwide, a notable perk considering international calling on traditional phones used to be expensive. The service quickly became popular, leading eBay to buy it in 2005 for $2.6 billion. However, the partnership did not work out, and eBay sold its 65% stake in Skype to an investor group for $1.9 billion in 2009 before Microsoft bought it in 2011. This story has been updated with additional context and developments.
Arab Times
01-03-2025
- Business
- Arab Times
Microsoft to shut down Skype after two decades
NEW YORK, March 1: Microsoft has announced the shutdown of Skype, the internet-based phone and video service that once dominated global communication. Starting May 5, 2025, Skype will no longer be available, and users will be directed to migrate their log-in credentials to Microsoft Teams' free tier. This decision marks the end of an era for Skype, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion, the company's largest acquisition at the time. Over the years, Skype was integrated into other Microsoft products, including Office and the failed Windows Phone operating system. "Skype has been an integral part of shaping modern communications and supporting countless meaningful moments, and we are honored to have been part of the journey," said Jeff Teper, President of Microsoft 365 collaborative apps and platforms, in a blog post. He expressed excitement about the opportunities Teams offers and reaffirmed Microsoft's commitment to helping users stay connected in new ways. Despite its early success, Skype's popularity has significantly waned in recent years. While the service briefly experienced a surge in usage during the COVID-19 pandemic, it has faced increasing competition from platforms like Zoom, WhatsApp, FaceTime, and especially Microsoft's own Teams. Skype was originally launched in 2003 in Estonia, allowing users to make free calls worldwide. It quickly became a popular alternative to traditional, expensive international calling services. In 2005, eBay acquired Skype for $2.6 billion, but after a failed partnership, eBay sold its 65% stake in the service in 2009 to an investor group, and Microsoft later acquired it in 2011. The decision to shut down Skype comes 14 years after Microsoft purchased the service, which was once a major force in internet communications. The shutdown signals Microsoft's intensified focus on Teams, which has rapidly grown both in business and consumer markets. "We know this is a big deal for our Skype users, and we're very grateful for their support of Skype and all the learnings that have factored into Teams over the last seven years," Teper told TechCrunch. "At this point, putting all our focus behind Teams will let us give a simpler message and drive faster innovation." As of early 2023, Skype had approximately 36 million active users, a far cry from its peak of 300 million in 2013. Microsoft has urged Skype users to transition to Teams, offering them the option to migrate their contacts and chat data to the new platform. Users who prefer can also export their data using Skype's built-in export tool. Skype's decline has been gradual, especially after the launch of Microsoft Teams in 2016. Teams, initially aimed at businesses, evolved to integrate communication tools such as chat, video calls, and file-sharing, creating a direct overlap with Skype's services. In 2017, Microsoft announced plans to phase out Skype for Business, and by 2021, Teams had become the preferred communication tool for Windows 11. As Teams grew, Skype was increasingly sidelined. By December 2024, Microsoft stopped allowing users to add credit to their Skype accounts or purchase Skype phone numbers. Instead, it moved users to monthly subscriptions and Skype-to-phone plans. "Skype took a bump — as did Teams — during the pandemic, and Skype has largely been stable in the last couple of years," Teper said. "And we felt the time, and the feedback, was such that we could make the move." In that same period, Teams experienced a fourfold increase in consumer calling minutes. Despite Microsoft's investment in Teams, Skype's steady decline in usage meant the company was ready to consolidate its efforts on the more popular platform. "It's at a high enough scale that we feel great about the app [Teams] for personal use," Teper explained. "We feel we have the mileage under our belt on the adoption by consumers, [who are] using Teams in their personal lives." While Skype pioneered internet-based communication, its usage has been overtaken by newer technologies and messaging platforms. By 2020, WhatsApp surpassed 2 billion users, and Skype's numbers dwindled significantly. When Skype filed for an IPO in 2010, it reported 560 million registered users and 124 million active monthly users. In 2020, Microsoft announced that Skype had grown 70% month-on-month to 40 million daily users during the pandemic, but that boost was short-lived compared to competitors like Zoom. Microsoft has encouraged users to transition to Teams Free, which retains some Skype features such as chat and video calls but lacks the ability to call mobile and landline numbers—a key Skype feature. Subscription renewals for Skype will end on April 3, 2025. For those with remaining Skype credit, Microsoft will make the Skype Dial Pad available both in the Skype web portal and in Teams until further notice. "We'll support [this] as long as users have credit and they're using this functionality," said Amit Fulay, Microsoft VP of product. Despite offering phone-call functionality in its enterprise version, Fulay confirmed that Teams Free would not support PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) services due to changes in consumer usage patterns. "We've been looking at usage of telephony for a while on Skype, and patterns have changed, usage has changed, and this is a step towards that," he explained. During the transition, Skype users can log into Teams with their Skype credentials, automatically transferring all contacts and chats. Skype will remain functional until May 5, 2025, but users who do not migrate by that date will see their data retained until the end of the year before being deleted. The end of Skype marks the blurring of lines between business and consumer communication tools. Just as Skype began as a consumer product that expanded into business use, Teams has now made the reverse journey. "I think a lot of people will make the transition [from Skype to Teams]," Teper said. "If you think about Word, Excel, PowerPoint, those are brands that work for business and personal use for people. We have kids and parents doing their homework in Word, and budgets in Excel, so we have good precedent about our tools being used in personal and work life." As Skype fades into history, Microsoft's focus on Teams represents a new phase in its vision for connected communication tools that bridge both personal and professional realms. The shift signals a new chapter for Microsoft's collaboration platforms, as Teams is set to dominate the communication landscape moving forward.
