Microsoft announces Skype will close in May
Skype, the video-calling service that had hundreds of millions of users, is closing in May, its owner Microsoft has said
Skype, the video-calling service that had hundreds of millions of users, is closing in May, its owner Microsoft has saidIt was once one of the world's most popular websites and allowed people to make voice calls via their computers to friends and family all over the globe for free.Skype was not the first or only company offering this service but by allowing the public to make computer-to-computer calls free, it helped popularise the concept Following news of its imminent closure, Skype users past and present described their memories of using the service for video calls and the impact it had on their lives.
"My best friend and I share many good memories on Skype," one X user said. "This is a sad day and almost a feeling of losing yet another fragment of my adolescence."Another early user of Skype called Louise told and her partner used the service to chat when they "embarked on a transatlantic relationship"."Skype was such an exciting invention at the time - before smartphones and WhatsApp calls," she said.Back then, it felt like magic," she wrote. "There were no dodgy international call charges, just a quick dial-up and some pixelated faces keeping us connected.
"Skype led the way for video calls. But now it's officially done. Microsoft is pulling the plug, but honestly... it's been on life support for years."When Microsoft announced Windows 11, its new operating system, it stated that Microsoft Teams would be integrated by default, while Skype, for the first time in years, was not.Teams had seen a boost in popularity during the Covid pandemic as people moved their work and personal meetings online.
