Microsoft says Skype will shut down in May. This video call service once had hundreds of millions of users.
Skype became one of the most visited websites in the world. People used it to make free voice calls on their computers to friends and family across the globe.
Other companies offered similar services. But Skype helped make free computer-to-computer calls popular with the public.
Skype posted on X that users can sign into Microsoft Teams with their accounts, which keeps all their chats and contacts.
BBC News asked Microsoft for comments but did not receive any right away.
Skype first came out in 2003. Microsoft bought it in 2011 for $8.5 billion, the biggest purchase Microsoft had made at that time.
Microsoft added Skype features to its products like Xbox and Windows devices.
In December 2010, tech writer Om Malik called Skype one of the "key applications of the modern web." He said this after the website stopped working for two days worldwide.
After hearing about the closure, one user said it felt like losing part of their teen years. They shared many good times with their best friend on Skype.
What happened to Skype? When Microsoft bought it, the app had been downloaded one billion times with hundreds of millions of users.
Microsoft leader Steve Ballmer said they would "create the future of real-time communications" together.
But Skype became less popular as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger grew.
Microsoft changed Skype's design in 2017. Some new features looked very much like Snapchat, and users did not like these changes.
Rachel Kaser from The Next Web said people felt upset because Microsoft tried to fix something that already worked fine.
People started thinking Skype might end in June 2021. When Microsoft announced Windows 11, they included Microsoft Teams as a basic part but left out Skype for the first time in years.
Teams became more popular during COVID-19 when people had online meetings for work and personal reasons.
As Skype's closure was announced, Jeff Teper from Microsoft wrote a blog post. He said the company wants to focus on Teams as their free service.
He explained that Teams has many of Skype's features, like one-on-one calls, group calls, messages, and file sharing. Teams also lets users host meetings, manage calendars, and join communities for free.
Skype users must choose between moving to Microsoft Teams and saving their Skype data, such as chats, contacts, and call history.
Skype became one of the most visited websites in the world. People used it to make free voice calls on their computers to friends and family across the globe.
Other companies offered similar services. But Skype helped make free computer-to-computer calls popular with the public.
Skype posted on X that users can sign into Microsoft Teams with their accounts, which keeps all their chats and contacts.
BBC News asked Microsoft for comments but did not receive any right away.
Skype first came out in 2003. Microsoft bought it in 2011 for $8.5 billion, the biggest purchase Microsoft had made at that time.
Microsoft added Skype features to its products like Xbox and Windows devices.
In December 2010, tech writer Om Malik called Skype one of the "key applications of the modern web." He said this after the website stopped working for two days worldwide.
After hearing about the closure, one user said it felt like losing part of their teen years. They shared many good times with their best friend on Skype.
What happened to Skype? When Microsoft bought it, the app had been downloaded one billion times with hundreds of millions of users.
Microsoft leader Steve Ballmer said they would "create the future of real-time communications" together.
But Skype became less popular as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger grew.
Microsoft changed Skype's design in 2017. Some new features looked very much like Snapchat, and users did not like these changes.
Rachel Kaser from The Next Web said people felt upset because Microsoft tried to fix something that already worked fine.
People started thinking Skype might end in June 2021. When Microsoft announced Windows 11, they included Microsoft Teams as a basic part but left out Skype for the first time in years.
Teams became more popular during COVID-19 when people had online meetings for work and personal reasons.
As Skype's closure was announced, Jeff Teper from Microsoft wrote a blog post. He said the company wants to focus on Teams as their free service.
He explained that Teams has many of Skype's features, like one-on-one calls, group calls, messages, and file sharing. Teams also lets users host meetings, manage calendars, and join communities for free.
Skype users must choose between moving to Microsoft Teams and saving their Skype data, such as chats, contacts, and call history.
