Microsoft has announced that it will permanently shut down Skype on May 5, 2025, after 22 years of service. Despite its popularity in the early 2000s, Skype struggled to maintain its user base against competitors like Zoom and Google Meet. Microsoft has decided to end support for Skype to focus on its Teams app, encouraging users to transition to Teams using their existing Skype accounts.
The app will cease to function after the specified date, although previous contacts and chats can be accessed or exported. This decision follows a decline in Skype’s active user count, which dropped significantly from its peak years.
Microsoft’s acquisition of Skype in May 2011 aimed to replace its Windows Live Messenger service. Skype’s closure highlights the competitive and fast-evolving nature of communication technologies.
Microsoft will be closing down Skype in May and is encouraging users to transition to its free Teams app. Skype, purchased by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion, was once a pioneer in internet calls but has lost its appeal with the rise of other platforms like Zoom and Google Meet.
Despite being a household name and transforming global communication by making long-distance calls affordable and accessible, Skype’s popularity has waned.
Microsoft aims to streamline its communication services and focus on enhancing Teams, introduced in 2017, which shares many features with Skype. This move mirrors other tech phase-outs, such as the discontinuation of AOL Instant Messenger by Verizon in 2017
Microsoft has announced that it will be shutting down Skype in May 2025, inviting users to switch to Microsoft Teams instead. Skype, which was bought by Microsoft nearly 14 years ago for $8.5 billion, will cease to be available starting in May.
Users will be able to sign in to Microsoft Teams Free with their Skype accounts to retain their chats and contacts. Jeff Teper, President of Collaborative Apps and Platforms at Microsoft, highlighted Teams’ growing usage and its significance in facilitating everyday communication and collaboration.
Existing Skype subscription users will be able to use their credits and subscriptions until the end of their renewal period. Skype was initially launched in 2003 and had various acquisitions, including a $2.6 billion deal with eBay in 2005 before Microsoft acquired it in 2011.
This is also coming after Amazon announced the sunset its own chat service too Chime.
