Microsoft is set to retire its Skype service in May, urging users to switch to Microsoft Teams. Despite continuous updates to Skype, its relevance dwindled amid competition.
Microsoft has confirmed that it is set to shut down Skype, the two-decade-old internet calling service, on May 5. The company is retiring the platform and encouraging users to migrate to Microsoft Teams. To facilitate the transition, Skype users will be able to access Teams for free on any compatible device using their current Skype login credentials. Chats and contacts will be automatically transferred to the new platform. However, Microsoft has not yet disclosed the number of users or employees that will be affected by this change.
What Microsoft said about shutting down Skype
In a statement to the news agency Reuters, the company said that discontinuing Skype will streamline its communications and enable a sharper focus on its own Teams service.
“Skype has been an integral part of shaping modern communications. We are honored to have been part of the journey,” Microsoft said.
This move was first spotted by XDA Developers after a message was discovered within the latest version of Skype for Windows preview confirms the upcoming retirement. The message in the codes of the app states that “Starting in May, Skype will no longer be available. Continue your calls and chats in Teams.”
While many may have anticipated Skype’s eventual demise years ago, it continued to receive updates. The decline was partly due to Skype’s underlying technology not being built for the smartphone era, the report added.
Founded in 2003, Skype introduced affordable audio and video calls that changed the traditional landline industry, eventually attracting millions of users. In recent years, however, the platform has struggled to compete with rivals such as Zoom and Salesforce’s Slack.
During the pandemic, as remote work increased and the need for online business calls grew, Microsoft shifted its focus to Teams by integrating it with its Office suite, aiming to serve the corporate market that had previously relied on Skype.
Skype is now part of a series of Microsoft projects that have not met expectations, alongside Internet Explorer and Windows Phone. Other tech companies have also faced challenges with online communication tools, with Google making several attempts through apps like Hangouts and Duo.
When Microsoft acquired Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion, outbidding Google and Facebook, the service had around 150 million monthly users. By 2020, that number had declined to roughly 23 million, even with a brief increase during the pandemic.
