The end of the popular telecommunications conferencing app, Skype, is near. Microsoft has announced it is officially retiring Skype in May 2025 for a transition to Microsoft Teams.
Microsoft Teams, which is part of the Microsoft 365 suite family, is also free and already comes packed with the same features as Skype.
These include one on one calls, meeting, file sharing with extra enhancements like larger meetings (up to 10,000 internal org or external members), calendar management. Community building, and business features with 365 plans.
It’s Beginnings
Skype was founded over 20 years ago in 2003 with the goal of reducing the costs of voice calling. It was then purchased by eBay, followed by Microsoft in 2013 (for ~$8bn) to replace its Windows Live Messenger application.
It was a go-to solution for instant messaging, video calls and file sharing between users all over the world. And widely used all over the world way before other popular video call and conference applications like Zoom, Meets and the 365 alternative Teams hit the scene and eventually became more used.
Migrating to Teams
For a smooth transition for users, now before May, you’ll be able to communicate with Teams users, and can log in with your Skype credentials for a seamless transition. They also have given the option of data export for users who don’t prefer the move, but this powered-up version of Skype has the same features and more most won’t want to miss.
You can learn more about Teams and download it on their website microsoft.com/teams or on your device’s application store.
Which app do you prefer? What do you think of this transition? Let us know!
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