On May 5, 2025, once a leading video call platform, Skype is officially shut down, and the closure comes after 22 years of operation. Known for making audio calls, chats, video calls, and meetings, the platform has been one of the favorites of millions of people around the world.
In 2011, Microsoft acquired Skype, mentioning the step as the company’s strategy to focus on other latest platforms. The Microsoft team seems to be focused on the latest technologies, apps, and websites, working in different fields.
Let’s find out the basic information about this calling platform:
History of Skype and Its Relation with the Shutdown
Skype was launched in 2003 and soon became a revolutionary tool for free audio/video calls and chats over the internet. The services were for the whole world, and this has made the app so popular that at its peak, there were 300 million users in the mid-2010s.
At that point, apps like Zoom and FaceTime were not in fashion; therefore, the credit for changing the communication boundaries through the internet goes to Skype. The free platform has made the new records, making the communication clearer with more advanced features.
In 2011, Microsoft acquired the platform for $8.5 billion and got ahold of its central part features, considering it as the company’s strategy. Later, other platforms like WhatsApp, Zoom, FaceTime, and others got the hold with the new features and similar functionalities.
With time, the popularity and use of the Skype platform faded, and the attention of Microsoft gained traction, and after years, the company made the decision to shut it down completely.
On February 28 of this year, the company decided that on May 5, it will retire Skype to streamline its functions and use the “Team” platform for communications and calls. Moreover, the company encourages the users to use “Teams” instead of Skype.com.
One of the main reasons is that the new technologies always provide better features; therefore, instead of building the current platforms, it is better to get the new one made according to the needs of the time.
Another interesting technique nowadays is artificial intelligence, and the experts like Weborik Hub are integrating the AI features into the web solutions, making them flawless and more efficient.
Why is Skype Officially Shut Down?
Previously, Microsoft has spent a lot on Skype, as mentioned before. Now, the company is focusing on Teams, and only the business part of Skype is going to be active for communication. Over the years, the competitors like Zoom, Discord, and WhatsApp have gotten the fame because of their latest features.
Microsoft has to be in the trends; therefore, it started focusing on the platform, Teams, and is slowing down the feature enhancement on Skype. Here are some important changes the Skype users are going to face:
- The Skype users will have to use their credentials on the “Team” to log in. There is no need to create the new account here.
- All the contacts and connecting details will be shifted to Teams, and the users are not going to lose any data. This is going to be automatic, so there is no need to connect anything.
- Till January 2026, users have the ability to download, delete, or transfer their chat history from Skype. This is the only way to get the files and chats, and after this, the data will be permanently removed from Skype.
Microsoft Teams was launched in 2017 and is working as the ultimate player in the communication app. Microsoft is trying to be a part of the latest trends; therefore, it is paying attention to them. The company encourages users to join their new platform to be a part of its new strategy.
