Microsoft Is Finally Giving up on Skype

Skype, once the preferred way to video chat on the internet, is being shut down. In an X post, Microsoft, which bought Skype over a decade ago, told users the service will be discontinued in May.

According to the software firm, Skype users will be able to switch to Microsoft Teams’ free plan without creating a new account or changing login information. Message history, group chats, and contacts can also be transferred over. Users who choose not to use Teams can download their data instead.

“Skype users will be in control, they’ll have the choice,” Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft 365 collaborative apps and platforms, told The Verge. “They can migrate their conversation history and their contacts out and move on if they want, or they can migrate to Teams.”

Skype will stay active until May 5, giving users roughly two months to either switch or remove their account. Paid Skype subscribers can use any outstanding credits on Teams until the end of their next billing period. Customer support for calling will go away in the next few months.

Starting in May 2025, Skype will no longer be available. Over the coming days you can sign in to Microsoft Teams Free with your Skype account to stay connected with all your chats and contacts. Thank you for being part of Skype pic.twitter.com/EZ2wJLOQ1a

— Skype (@Skype) February 28, 2025

Skype Revolutionized Internet Calling, Now Microsoft Is Shifting Focus to Teams

Initially launched in 2003, Skype was an internet call pioneer, allowing users to call just about anyone in the world for free. At the time, traditional international calls were prohibitively expensive. For obvious reasons, Skype grew exponentially.

E-commerce site eBay took notice and bought the service in 2005 for $2.6 billion. Four years later, eBay unloaded its majority stake in Skype on an investor group, selling it for $1.9 billion. Microsoft saw opportunity and scooped up the service for $8.5 billion in 2011, topping any previous acquisitions the company had ever completed.

Yet, Microsoft’s lack of updates and various security issues pushed users away. Competitors like Zoom and Google Meet took advantage and started grabbing market share, especially during the pandemic as more and more people were working from home. Apple’s FaceTime and Meta’s WhatsApp made calling between friends easy, which sent many casual Skype users toward these apps.

With the retirement of Skype, Microsoft will focus on growing its Teams app. Microsoft employees probably won’t be affected much as one individual group works on both Skype and Teams.