I have written about Skype a number of times. (See the past articles at http://goo.gl/olckz.)
Skype is one of the most useful programs I have; I use it several times a week to call telephones all over the U.S., Canada, and occasionally to call overseas. Skype also can call other computers if the other computer also has Skype installed. Now there is big news in the online voice call business: Microsoft is buying Skype. This is a huge move in the converged worlds of communication, information and entertainment. Skype has about 170 million users. The Skype deal ranks as the biggest acquisition in the 36-year history of Microsoft.
The deal allows Microsoft to integrate Skype's free and low-cost Internet-based video and telephony services into everything from its Bing search engine to Windows smartphones and its Xbox videogame system. The need to add a communications component is seen as crucial with the growing popularity of Apple Inc.'s Facetime video-chat service and Google Inc.'s Voice.
The agreement was approved by the boards of Microsoft and Skype and is subject to regulatory approvals.
Many online news sites are running articles about the story. Click here to see a few of them. The Wall Street Journal's article at http://goo.gl/iF7dd seems especially good.
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